30.03.2016 – Peter Aspinall hat in den letzten 10 Jahren die Erhebung von Gleichstellungsdaten in Großbritannien begleitet, berät seit 1994 den britischen Zensus und war 2001 Sprecher der Arbeitsgruppe zu Fragen über den kulturellen Hintergrund im Zensus. Wir haben ihn zu seinen Erfahrungen und den erwartbaren Entwicklungen in Deutschland befragt: 

Ethnic group monitoring and data collection has a history in the UK going back to the early 1990s. Now, in 2016, this practice is pervasive across central government departments, local authorities, and other statutory organisations and is increasingly practised in the voluntary and private sectors. While many inequalities have proved impervious to their identification through ethnic monitoring and subsequent targeted interventions, there have also been success stories. Between 1991 and 2011, for example, minority ethnic groups experienced greater improvements in educational attainment compared with the White British group. In Germany and other European countries ethnic and wider equality monitoring, in itself, has the potential to provide a space for dialogue between members of different ethnic communities and the state and other providers, as has been the case in the UK when decennial census and monitoring findings on ethnicity have been published. Moreover, ethnic monitoring and other equality data collection provide us with a measure of what still has to be achieved in our endeavours to build a more fair and just society and to address the inequities that have arisen from racism, discrimination, and other structural disadvantage. It also provides us with information on how diverse are our workforces, our universities, police force, armed services, and other occupational groups, and that need will always be present. This will, in turn, lead to more inclusive workplaces and a better understanding of the needs of our communities.

Peter Aspinall, Emeritus Reader in Population Health

Centre for Health Services Studies – University of Kent