What is multiculturalism? Here Trevor Phillips makes an important point. He says "It is important to differentiate the idea of a multicultural society which is a fact of life from multiculturalism". We must defend our multicultural society against reactionaries and bigots. London is one of the most diverse cities in the world. This fact enriches the lives of all its inhabitants. Diversity, as Mayor Livingstone says, is to be celebrated. It is not a new phenonomen. For centuries there have been waves of immigration into London and other cities in the UK by workers from throughout the world seeking employment and escape from poverty in their own countries. This has been actively encouraged by the capitalist class, as these workers have filled gaps in the labour force - often at cheaper rates. In the 1950s workers came to Britain from the Indian sub-continent to work at factories such as Wolf's Rubber Factory in Southall, where the employers could not recruit as the pay and working conditions were so bad. Workers came from the Caribbean to work on our public transport system and in our health service. These workers could easily be identified as they are black and Asian. The present wave of large-scale immigration however are white - they are from the eastern European countries which have recently joined the European Union. All these are part of the British working class and, as such, their working conditions and welfare are the concern of the labour movement. The working class in Britain is diverse - any suggestion that there is a ‘white working class' separate from ethnic minorities is reactionary and misguided. The working class has always been diverse, based on different industries and communities. It is economics - such as the pit closure programme of the 1980s and 1990s - not immigration which has destroyed working class communities. However there is in part a reaction against the concept of multiculturalism - because again to quote Trevor Phillips, "The philosophy of multiculturalism begins by defining people as different and then treating them differently."

The strategy of multiculturalism had its roots in the riots of the 1980s. Discontent amongst ethnic minorities in areas such as Southall and Brixton had to be managed and controlled. This was to be done by ethnic monitoring, funding to interest groups and encouraging separate development by communities. This was not a class approach. Asian communities for instance have millionaires and workers on £12,000 a year. The strategy of multiculturalism would treat them all as the same. Multiculturalism was a top down approach to tackling racism. It aimed to contain the problem rather than confront it.

The campaign against racism in the 1970s was a political campaign waged by anti-fascist groups and the labour movement. After an Asian student was murdered by a white racist in Southall in 1976 a magnificent demonstration was organised by the Asian community and by local labour movement organisations such as the trades council and the Labour Party. Its theme was ‘one race, the human race'. (Although Marxists at the time would have called for ‘one class, the working class') - this theme was adopted to emphasise what unites us, not what divides us. It was a political campaign - in the face of opposition not just from white racists and members of fascist organisations, but the ruling class itself. The Tory Party at the time had a racist agenda. The Tories on Ealing Council, just years after the death of an Asian student in 1976, allowed the National Front to call a so-called public meeting in the centre of Southall, which now had a majority of Asian residents. This meeting which led to violence and the death of an anti-fascist demonstrator - Blair Peach - was a deliberate provocation.

Multiculturalism has been embraced by the establishment - ethnic monitoring is wide spread in every workplace and diversity toolkits are provided for staff. But is this is an effective way of combating racism? It is a managerial approach to a political issue. Many workers from ethnic minorities still find themselves in low pay ghettos. It also has a fragile base. Embracing multiculturalism has gone hand in hand with an economic boom in the 1990s where immigrant workers to fill vacancies have been welcomed by employers. At the last election, the Confederation of British Industry, the employers' organisation, had doubts about supporting its traditional party, the Conservative Party because of the party's dubious position on immigration. ‘We need these workers,' they said - there cannot be restrictions or curbs.

But would this survive a slump as in the 1970s, when with rising unemployment, immigrant workers were made scapegoats? Racism is not just about skin colour. Bosnians and Poles could face the same hostility as black and Asian workers did in previous years.

In these circumstances multiculturalism could become decidedly flakey. Are we in favour of integration? Yes if it is democratic and voluntary. Accentuating differences can make minorities vulnerable and confine them to ghettoes of poverty. Areas inhabited by ethnic minorities who arrive in this country often have the worst housing conditions. Workers stay in these areas because they cannot afford to move out and they fear being attacked by racists. There is security in the ghetto.

But the present threat to multiculturalism does not lie in the economic situation but has come about as a result of US and British foreign policy. Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have gone hand in hand with attacks on Muslims. They have also had an impact on Muslim youth in Britain. Young people who were brought up as typical British teenagers have turned to ‘radical Islam' as a response to wars waged in the interests of US imperialism, which have led to  the slaughter of Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan.. Attitudes have hardened on all sides. Some have even been prepared to kill innocent civilians on a large scale in their home country in the name of their cause. The events of July 7^th in London 2005 in turn provoked an anti-Muslim backlash. It is in the light of this that Jack Straw's comments on women wearing the veil must be seen.

In a multicultural society where differences are to be celebrated how can one decide what does or does not go? What other forms of dress can be banned?

Are we not in danger of falling into the trap of behaving in the same way as religious fanatics in Afghanistan and Iraq?  In Iraq women in both Sunni and Shia communities are persecuted for wearing ‘the wrong' dress. This is after the so-called US led ‘liberation' of the country.

But there was always a problem also with the concept of multiculturalism. Do you celebrate all differences? What about forced marriages or female circumcision? The current ongoing debate about the veil, recently extended to the dismissal of a teaching assistant who insisted in working veiled, has brought this dilemma to the fore. Behind it lies the oppression of women in society and the role that religious institutions have played in this. Many of these practices have not previously been challenged by Labour MPs. Within the Labour Party itself cultural differences are used as an excuse to turn a blind eye to practices such as packing meetings. It is only when a scandal emerges that the Labour leadership has been forced to take some action.  In some constituencies, religious and cultural organisations substitute for Labour Party organisation. This inevitably gives power and influence to the ‘elders' in the community, often enforcing very reactionary ideas which may well be at odds with those of the young generation.

Multiculturalism cannot be an effective way of fighting racism. Culture is a complex issue, often justifying traditional attitudes that are constantly being challenged. Capitalism destroys cultures and tries to create uniformity. As Darcus Howe said on the subject, "we all shop at TESCOs now". Is this what we have in common? It maybe one of the activities, which for better or worse shapes our lives. But what we have in common is that we live and work here in this country. There is no other definition of a ‘British culture'. Attempts to define a British culture have been ludicrous and reactionary.

In the 1970s and 1980s the labour movement was a key factor in life in the UK. It was through the labour movement that workers of ethnic minorities have been integrated in the past and through which present and future layers will be integrated.