Racial Neoliberal Britain?

Abstract

The rush to label all recent social, economic and political phenomena as neoliberal is reminiscent of discussions of postmodernism — sometimes particular terms seep between sub-disciplines and are exchanged as a kind of cipher for a broader sensibility, in this case, the suspicion that economics might matter after all. However, as with previous catch-all terms, the explanatory value of the term may be limited or so expansive that it is hard for us to speak meaningfully to each other (see Ferguson 2009). If we are to take neoliberalism as a frame through which to understand the remaking of global racism but with local configurations, then there may be some value in considering again what we mean when we name our neoliberal times. After all, the point of sharing these catch-all terms is to enhance our shared understanding, even if we may continue to disagree on the details of what is happening and why it matters. As a result, what follows is largely an exercise in clarification, to try to think again about the term ‘neoliberalism’ and what it might signify in the concept ‘racial neoliberalism’. I use this discussion to consider the suggestion that neoliberalism is in crisis and perhaps has been for some time, and how plausible such a suggestion is in relation to racial neoliberalism in Britain. This leads to a reconsideration of the definition of racial neoliberalism and its applicability to Britain, and of the impact of austerity measures on these patterns of racism.