ABSTRACT

I begin this concluding chapter with these two quotes because they point towards some of the optimistic trends that are present within contemporary urban cultures with regard to the valence of racism. Some of the young people I have referred to, as Fanon suggests, have turned their backs on the inhuman voices of their ancestors. The dehumanizing consequences of racism do not flourish uncontested in the metropolis. Young people are attempting to build a culture, and defend a space, beyond the circumscriptions of race. Yet progress

towards this vision of unity is not simple or linear. It is here that I re­ turn to the question I posed at the beginning of the book. How does racism enter into the lives of young people growing up in urban con­ texts? A short, and perhaps banal answer is that the impact of racist discourses on young lives is partial and complex. In the following dis­ cussion I want to explore what this means and how this book furthers an understanding of England’s multiracial and multi-racist character.