Ethnicity, Law and Human Rights

This book is an analysis of the interaction between the cultural traditions of Britain's ethnic minorities and English law. It explores the policies and principles that should govern legal responses to ethnic diversity and tests them by reference to case studies in which an issue of cultural concern to a minority community is addressed. Recent world events have demonstrated anew that a majority of modern states do not reflect single nations, rather they are ethnically heterogeneous in character and possess profound religious, linguistic, and cultural divisions. This book from the acknowledged expert in the field is the first in-depth analysis of the interaction between the cultural traditions of Britain's ethnic minorities and English law. It explores the policies and principles which should govern the response of English law to ethnic diversity and tests them by reference to six detailed and illuminating case studies exploring specific issues of major cultural concern to a particular minority community, from the wearing of turbans to cannabis consumption. The continuing global upsurge in novel assertions of ethnicity and the book's many references to human rights law, as well as to other legal systems, make for a timely analysis set in a broad international context. The book will be of particular interest to scholars of civil liberties and human rights law, those interested in ethnic studies, and to race relations professionals.