Party News: Socialists and the census

On Sunday 29 April everyone in Britain will be called on to fill in a census form. In principle this should be able to gather some useful information, but one of the questions is a dangerous one.

Like last time, ten years ago, there will be a question on “ethnic origin”. This is dangerous as “ethnic” is just another way of saying “race”, but race is a completely unscientific concept. As one of those involved in the human genome project has put it: “No serious scholar in this field thinks that race is a scientific concept. It just is not” (Dr Craig Venter, quoted in the Daily Telegraph, 12 February). What is dangerous is that the use of the concept, especially on an official form, encourages people to think in racial terms, which is divisive and impedes working class political unity for socialism.

For these reasons, the 2000 Conference of the Socialist Party carried the following resolution: “For the coming census in 2001 the Party adopts the same policy regarding the question on so-called “race/ethnic origin” as for the 1991 census, namely, that members and others be urged to answer “Other–Member of the Human Race”.