Race Relations Act 1965

Race Relations Act 1965
Dates
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Citation	1965 c 73
Royal assent	8 December 1965
Other legislation
Amended by	Race Relations Act 1968
Repealed by	Race Relations Act 1976
Status: Repealed

The Race Relations Act 1965 was the first legislation in the United Kingdom to address racial discrimination.

The Act outlawed discrimination on the "grounds of colour, race, or ethnic or national origins" in public places.^[1]

It also prompted the creation of The Race Relations Board (in 1966), to consider complaints under the Act.^[1]

Reasons for the Act's introduction

The UK saw an influx of economic migrants after World War II, many from the Commonwealth countries. The Museum of London states that "casual ‘colour prejudice’ was part of daily life" for many.^[2] In 1958, London saw the Notting Hill riots,^[2] and in 1963 the Bristol Bus Boycott occurred.^[3]

Outline

The Act made it a civil offence (rather than a criminal offence) to refuse to serve a person, to serve someone with unreasonable delay, or to overcharge, on the grounds of colour, race, or ethnic or national origins. The Act also created the offense of "incitement to racial hatred."

The first conviction under the act came in October 1967, when a 17-year-old member of the National Socialist Party was found guilty of racial discrimination at Middlesex Area Sessions.^[1] The leader of the British National Socialist Movement, John Colin Campbell Gordon was also successfully prosecuted under the Act and jailed for 18 months in 1967.^[4]

Black immigrants were also tried for this offence including Black Power leader Michael Abdul Malik and four members of the Universal Coloured People's Association for "stirring up racial hatred against white people."^[5]

Limitations

The Act did not extend to Northern Ireland, and specifically excluded shops and private boarding houses,^[1] only outlawing discrimination in "places of public resort." The Race Relations Board was rather weak in its enforcement capabilities, being limited to conciliation and an assurance not to return to the discriminatory behavior.^[6] It was "a weak piece of legislation"^[7] and failed to end racial discrimination in the UK fully.^[7]

Amendment and repeal

The Act was strengthened with the Race Relations Act 1968, which extended the legislation's remit to cover employment and housing. It was repealed by the Race Relations Act 1976, which saw the creation of the Commission for Racial Equality.^[1]

Notes

1 2 3 4 5 "On this day: 8 December 1965: New UK race law 'not tough enough'". BBC. 8 December 1965. Retrieved 10 January 2010. Check date values in: |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
1 2 "Race Relations Acts 1965-1976". The Museum of London. Retrieved 10 January 2010.
↑ Editorial (10 November 2005). "In Praise Of...The Race Relations Acts". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 10 January 2010.
↑ "Glasgow Herald - January 26, 1967". Retrieved 2016-06-23.
↑ "Twomey, Anne --- "Laws Against Incitement to Racial Hatred in the United Kingdom" [1994] AUJlHRights 15; (1994) 1(1) Australian Journal of Human Rights 235". www.austlii.edu.au. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
↑ "The Origins of the Race Relations Act Philip N. Sooben Research Paper in Ethnic Relations No.12 Centre for Research in Ethnic Re" (PDF). webcache.googleusercontent.com. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
1 2 "Discrimination and race relations policy". The National Archives. Retrieved 10 January 2010.

References

Hepple, B.A. (1966). "Race Relations Act 1965". Modern Law Review. 29: 806. JSTOR 1093572.

United Kingdom legislation

Pre-Parliamentary legislation	List of English statutes Charter of Liberties Magna Carta

Acts of Parliament by states preceding the Kingdom of Great Britain	Acts of the Parliament of England to 1483 1485–1601 1603–1641 Interregnum (1642–1660) 1660–1699 1700–1706 Acts of the Parliament of Scotland

Acts of Parliament of the Kingdom of Great Britain	1707–1719 1720–1739 1740–1759 1760–1779 1780–1800

Acts of the Parliament of Ireland	to 1700 1701–1800

Acts of Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland	1801–1819 1820–1839 1840–1859 1860–1879 1880–1899 1900–1919 1920–1939 1940–1959 1960–1979 1980–1999 2000 to date Halsbury's Statutes Legislation.gov.uk Short titles

Church of England measures	List Church of England Assembly (Powers) Act 1919

Legislation of devolved institutions	Acts of the Scottish Parliament List Acts and Measures of the National Assembly for Wales List Acts of the Northern Ireland Assembly List Acts of the Parliament of Northern Ireland List Orders in Council for Northern Ireland List

Orders-in-Council	Order in Council

Secondary legislation	United Kingdom Statutory Instruments Scottish Statutory Instruments Acts of Sederunt Acts of Adjournal

Black British topics

Black British history	First Africans in London Atlantic slave trade Abolitionism Empire Windrush Bristol Bus Boycott Race Relations Act 1965 Decline and legacy of the British Empire Race riots

Black British culture	Music British hip hop Ska Caribbean Grime UK garage Dubstep Jungle Drum and Bass

Civic and economic groups	Black and Asian Studies Association Committee for the Relief of the Black Poor National Black Police Association

Ethnic and national sub-divisions	African-Caribbean Antiguan and Barbudan Barbadian Jamaican Guyanese Montserratians Trinidadian and Tobagonian Congolese Ghanaian Ivorian Kenyan Nigerian Sierra Leonean Tanzanian Ugandan Zimbabwean Other black groups

Languages	British English Multicultural London English

Lists	Black Britons Large and significant communities

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 9/17/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.