[WillowTheWhisp]

I've read the article and one thing the immediately struck me was Jack Straw saying "There is not just simply residential segregation, but there is separation in education, in social, cultural, faith, in virtually every aspect of their daily lives, employment too." Now some of that seems strange to me because of course there are going to be cultural differences between different immigrant groups and between immigrants and the indigenous population and people want to retain their own culture. Why shouldn't different cultures co-exist happily side by side? Is that wrong? Faith too is obviously going to be different because people naturally want their own religion and are not going to just join another one because of the other people around them. It's a very personal thing. But education I agree that should be able to be integrated and it's a shame when it isn't. Employment? Is there really segregation in employment? I thought that was illegal.

It does seem that possibly personal lifestyle choices are being interpreted as racist when they are not. For instance, I wouldn't want to become a muslim but that doesn't mean I don't want to have muslim friends. I wouldn't want to become a Jehovah's witness either but that doesn't make me racist does it?