White people are being erased.

Are they, though? Are white people being erased? Really? If you’ve spent time online, you might believe they are. Comments like this are rife:

‘These days, white people are the ones being discriminated against.”

“I’m white; I work, I provide for my family. But somehow, I’m the bad guy.”

“White bashing needs to stop!”

Some people are convinced that increased diversity means prejudice against white people. The sentiment is clear: there is still discrimination, but it’s no longer toward black people or people of colour. Now, it’s against white people. And white people are being erased. But is this true?

Let’s bust this myth. First, I’ll look at whether we white people are being erased. Then I’ll explore if we’re facing increased discrimination.

Are white people being erased?

Are we seeing fewer white people? No.

85% of England and Wales classify themselves as white, according to 2019 data. In the 2011 census, that figure was 86%. So it’s dropped by a tiny 1% in 8 years. If it continues to drop at this rate, it’ll take 280 years for whiteness to reach 50%. Hardly a cause for panic. White people are not being eradicated. There’s plenty of us about. The stats show that we’re still the dominant skin colour in British society. By a long way.

We, white people, are not being erased.

But are we facing more bigotry?

Are white people more discriminated against than non-white?

Again, no.

White people face less discrimination than non-whites in every area of life. The Equality and Human Rights Commission found inequality in employment, education, living standards, health and care, and crime. For example:

• Unemployment for white people is lower (6.3%) than for non-white (12.9%)
• More white people (10.7%) work as managers than non-white (8.8%)
• White students are excluded from school less frequently than black students
• White people are less likely to live in poverty (17.2%) compared with non-white (35.7%)
• Fewer white people (0.006%) are prosecuted than black (0.013%)

The facts speak for themselves. White people are not experiencing increased discrimination

However, 1 in 5 Britons believes we are. A 2018 YouGov survey found 10–20% felt that “people from ethnic minority backgrounds face lesser discrimination than white people.” They believe that “white people are more strongly discriminated against.” These are disturbing findings because they’re not true.

So why do people think we whites are facing more bigotry? For two reasons. First, many people view discrimination as a zero-sum game. Second, most of us have fallen for The Illusion of Diversity. I’ll explore both in this article before finishing on why these misunderstandings matter.

Some white people see discrimination as a zero-sum game.

Those who think white people are the real victims of discrimination believe there will always be some intolerance. Some level of discrimination. So, when they see bigotry for non-whites reducing, they feel like it’s increasing for white people. For evidence, let’s look over the pond to the American equivalent of the YouGov survey I outlined earlier. Here respondents were asked about discrimination against white and black people. The good news is everyone thought prejudice against black people had declined. Yet, some white respondents claimed that bigotry against whites was rising. But why?

“The reason is that whites see discrimination as a zero-sum game. The more they thought discrimination against blacks was decreasing, the more they felt discrimination against whites was increasing.” said the authors. As a result, they continued, “Whites tend to view increasing diversity as anti-white bias.”

But discrimination is not a zero-sum game.

Let’s consider that for a moment. If bigotry against one group is falling, must it rise for another? Does there have to be some level of discrimination? Of course not. That makes no sense. We don’t have to be intolerant toward each other. We could live in a society without any. Imagine that? [Author sighs dreamily]. Nowadays, white people are not experiencing a rise in discrimination.

Furthermore, the 20% who felt anti-white discrimination was on the rise also believed something else. They thought that inequality was due to hard work and behaviour, not structural racism. So the people who don’t believe in structural racism against non-whites now think there is reverse racism for whites. Got it.

The evidence is clear; white people are not being discriminated against. And bigotry as a whole is declining.

So we know that white people are not facing increased discrimination. Nor are we being erased. But many believe we are. Why is that? Well, we’ve fallen for The Illusion of Diversity.

The Illusion of Diversity

“People tend to believe populations are more diverse than they actually are,” the New Scientist reported in April 2022. The journal reported on studies by Rasha Kardosh from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in Israel.

In the studies, people were shown photos of 100 faces. Seventy-five were white, and 25 were black. The experiment was then repeated with 55 white faces and 45 black. Respondents were asked what proportion of faces were black. In both instances, they overestimated. In the first case, they guessed at 43% and in the second, 58%. This overestimation was seen in both black and white study participants. But why?

The paper’s authors say,

“Our minds are tuned to the uncommon or unexpected in our environment. In most environments, members of minority groups are just that — uncommon. Therefore, the cognitive system is tuned to spotting their presence… As a result, we consistently overestimate their presence”.

Thus creating an Illusion of Diversity, also known as Overestimation Bias.

Overestimation Bias

Overestimation Bias makes us think populations are more diverse than they are. For instance, we’re so used to seeing white people in positions of power that we don’t think anything of it. But we notice the occasional non-white person in similar positions. This leads us to conclude that black people and people of colour are adequately represented. But they aren’t.

For example, only 10% of MPs are non-white, compared with 14% of the general population. Of course, seeing a white MP is nothing special. We do it all the time. But, seeing a black or minority ethnic MP is unusual. This means that we’re more likely to remember them when we see them. Leading us to overestimate their presence. And so we have Overestimation Bias.

Why this matters

So far, we’ve learnt that white people are not being erased. Nor are we experiencing more discrimination. But a minority believe otherwise. This matters because these beliefs have a tangible impact on diversity-promoting initiatives.

Reduction in diversity-promoting initiatives

Studies have found that the Overestimation Bias of minorities “led to decreased support for diversity-promoting policies.” Thus, people of colour are experiencing a double whammy. First, their presence in positions of importance is being overestimated. And second, this is leading to less support for diversity-promoting policies.

Overestimation Bias isn’t limited to white people. Yet its effects matter because we are more likely to be in senior positions. Those in senior positions get to say yes or no to diversity-promoting policies. So, becoming aware of Overestimation Bias is essential. Once we know about it, we can ask ourselves, are non-whites properly represented at this level? Using stats, not hunches, will help us make these decisions.

We must recognise and acknowledge our own biases. It’s vital that we open our eyes and believe facts, not opinions.

Those facts are that we’re not being discriminated against. We are, however, seeing increased diversity in all areas of life. So, if we’re not being erased, then something else must be going on. And it is. We’re being de-centred.

White people are not being erased; we’re being de-centred

De-centering means occasionally moving the spotlight away from white people. It’s about not being in the limelight all the time. We can still be on the stage and have our needs met. It just means that we’re starting to see more diversity.

Yes, we’re being de-centred. But this is different to being discriminated against. We’re used to being the centre stage of politics, business, media, advertisements, sport, history, and culture. So any deviation from that jars with us. 85% of the UK is white, so if we were as equal as we believe, then we should see white people in 85% of all roles. But we don’t. We see more white people in positions of power. And more non-white people in places without power. De-centring allows us to rectify this imbalance. It will enable us to ensure more non-white people attain positions of power and visible positions.

So, we white people are not being discriminated against. Moreover, discrimination is not a zero-sum game. Furthermore, most of us suffer from Confirmation Bias. And all this means we’re not being erased. But we are being de-centred.

De-centring is not discrimination. It’s redressing the balance. It’s the right thing to do. And I’m here for it.