Time to look at our consciences on racism

This is Intercultural and Anti-Racism week, when Ireland really should be indulging in a spot of self-examination, and seeing how do we measure up in our treatment of people not originally from this country.In general, we have always prided ourselves on being non-racist, and in general too, our record doesn't seem that bad.Ireland has always been known as the "land of the welcomes", and we are still a friendly country, and known for the warmth of our welcome for visitors.In fairness, that warmth and curiosity that we bring to our conversations with visitors, can, however, sometimes be misinterpreted when the "visitor" is someone who lives here. The first question we've always tended to ask off visitors is "where do you come from?" - a friendly enquiry born out of a genuine interest in knowing more about the person. But sometimes asking people who are long-time resident here the same question is - unfairly - perceived as "racist". Some people feel it's not appropriate that they are constantly asked where they come from, but against that must be weighed that long-Irish tradition of friendly curiosity. It is, after all, almost the first question we ask off each other, followed by: "Oh, I used to work with a man from that village"; an attempt by the Irish to forge links and find common ground.But sometimes, one can find oneself stunned in this country by the comments thrown out casually in conversation, especially now that there is an economic downturn. More than once, comments have been made to journalists of this newspaper to the effect that, "between ourselves" there would be more jobs available if "the foreigners" would "go home".However, it's not just since the downturn that there appears to be a willingness to give voice to a sentiment that certain parties apparently feel that they can, quite acceptably, say to each other. There is plenty of evidence that during the boom years, there was widescale exploitation of foreign workers here.Strangely, there are people in this country who believe every non-Caucasian who comes to this country is an "asylum seeker". It doesn't appear to have struck home that the needs of the Irish labour market brought many highly-educated and highly-skilled people to this country.Even stranger, there are citizens in this country who will affirm with 100 per cent certainty that "asylum seekers" in this country are given free cars, free homes - and believe it or not - free hairstyles. The reality is that asylum seekers receive accommodation, and on top of that the sum of just €19.10 a week for adults, and €9.60 for children.Some of us Irish get quite cross when we hear "Irish jokes" told. Take the recent UK case where an Irish born trade union official was paid out compensation on the basis of having been racially offended when a local councillor told an Irish joke in his presence. But we're not always quite so conscientious when we're looking for laughs ourselves.We live in a new Ireland, that is multi-cultural in a way that it never was before. We don't have to sacrifice our Irishness to accommodate the newcomers - after all, there is an onus on immigrants to assimilate, and we certainly don't want to end up the way of the UK where there is a culture of almost-apology for the retention of so much that is good about British culture for fear of offending other cultures. But we do need to ensure fair play for all. We need to extend a helping hand to people who may not have the network of friends or family here that most of us can take for granted. We need to ensure equality of access to services and opportunities here. But most of all, we need to arrive at a stage where nationality or race is not the first thing that defines a new acquaintance to us.