A bill to outlaw racial discrimination in Britain, which would also prohibit discrimination or incitement against Jews, passed a second reading in the House of Commons last night by a majority of 12 votes for the Labor Government. The bill is Britain’s first attempt at laws against such discrimination.
The legislation would outlaw discrimination for reasons of race in “places of public resort,” providing fines for violation. A second section would ban speaking or writing “threatening, abusive or insulting” words intended to stir hatred against racial groups, which is intended to cover Jews.
Sir Frank Soskice, the Home Secretary, accepted, before the vote, the principle of a conciliation commission to act before criminal proceedings are taken under the measure. He did so because a number of Labor leaders agreed with Conservative deputies that the proper approach was that used in the United States–conciliation plus civil law suits if necessary, rather than exclusive reliance on criminal law.
Sir Dingle Foot, the Government Solicitor General, said that the main purpose of the bill was “to prevent a situation here in regard to the colored people which prevailed in 1935 and 1936 in regard to Jews.” Sir Barnett Janner, voicing Jewish public opinion, said he welcomed the bill as step in the right direction and as an indication of the government’s position on racial friction and incitement to racial hatred.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
