Focus on issues of immigration

For example, Rivers of Blood (BBC2) raised the question of immigration, focusing on Enoch Powell's notorious speech in April 1968 forecasting dire consequences of unfettered immigration into this country. At that time, most of the immigrants were of Afro-Caribbean or Asian origin but now the main focus of some people's wrath seems to be the influx of white workers from Poland and other eastern European countries. Aren't they now, too, part of the 'white working class'? And the programme failed to point out that the influx of immigrants after the Second World War was encouraged by the government and businessmen, because we wanted workers for our hospitals, transport system and factories.

In Bradford, Pakistani immigrants were invited in by mill owners to work the night shifts which British workers wouldn't take. Last Orders (BBC2) looked at the failing fortunes of a working men's club in Wibsey, near Bradford; but, again, the club's problems were not merely the result of the white working class being marginalised or superseded by immigrant workers. Such factors as television and cheap supermarket beer have lured people away from traditional clubs - as we can see in Oxford. The reasons for the Wibsey club's decline are numerous, including the fact that, as one woman says of the committee: "They're stuck in the dark ages." Several club members used the old "I'm not a racist, but . . ." line before condemning Polish immigrants taking our jobs by working for lower wages.

The Poles Are Coming! (BBC2) took a good-humoured but clear-eyed look at the reality of the influx of workers from eastern Europe - not only Poles but also Lithuanians, Latvians and others. Presenter Tim Samuels visited Peterborough, where many such workers go to find jobs like picking and packing vegetables - because wages are higher here than in their own countries. They aren't actually taking away jobs from Brits: Tim found that local white youths were unwilling to do these hard jobs and prefer to live on benefits. Peterborough now has one of the fastest-growing economies in Britain, but the money is not being spent on solving such problems as overcrowded houses. And the situation has repercussions in Poland, where jobs now have to be filled with immigrant workers from China, North Korea and the Ukraine.

The main problem with the BBC's 'White' season is that it encourages lazy generalisations - not only about white working-class people but also about immigrants of any background. Naturally, we have worries about terrorists and extremists, but these are a small minority. And we all share concerns about unemployment and inadequate housing, but these are not caused solely - or even primarily - by immigrants. Last Orders showed three people arguing about whether or not they were working class, which suggests that such categories may be meaningless.

Simplistic generalisations were rife in White Girl (BBC2), a drama in which a dysfunctional white family moves to an area of Bradford inhabited entirely by Muslims. The eldest daughter finds a refuge at the mosque and starts reciting Arabic. The feckless white family is contrasted unfavourably with the well-behaved, kindly Muslims. It was well acted but it seemed like an unsubtle and improbable commercial for Islam.

The Primary (BBC2) looked at real children in a real school: Welford Primary in Handsworth, Birmingham, which has pupils from 17 different ethnic backgrounds, yet manages to achieve the much-maligned goal of multiculturalism. Of course, there are fights in the playground, and insults are sometimes bandied about on such subjects as colour, religion or country of origin. Nevertheless, the pupils generally get on well together. As the headmaster says: "Our children here are all British but have got heritage from many parts of the world."