Introduction

The relationships between ethnic communities and political participation were explained in terms of their political commitment to voting in elections and to support of political parties. The importance of ethnic politics was set aside as being another form of political participation along with withdrawal from political participation and opposition to racism. The studies of ethnic politics in the 1960s and early 1970s concentrated on issues of ethnic and racial discrimination and the reactions of ethnic communities to them. Ethnic politics, which depends upon non-political forms of organisation, developed alongside the emergence of ethnic social organisations and communities. Community relations councils, far from being buffer organisations, actively assisted ethnic communities to increase their political participation. Now ethnic communities are dependent upon voting as their main form of political participation and on political parties for opportunities for selection for seats. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.