Learning from America? The Future of Immigration to the United Kingdom	Events > Event Announcement

In February 2003, Trevor Phillips was appointed by Home Secretary David Blunkett to chair the Commission on Racial Equality. Prior to his appointment as Chair of the CRE, Mr. Phillips was a broadcaster with London Weekend Television, Chair of the London Assembly and co-author of Windrush: The Irresistible Rise of Multi-racial Britain. Described by many as a 'renaissance man', Phillips' career from schoolboy in Guyana, through a very active student union role in the UK, as well as broadcasting and political career, make very clear that his was not a low-profile appointment by the government.

The Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) is a publicly funded, non-governmental body set up under the Race Relations Act of 1976 to tackle racial discrimination and promote racial equality. Since his first day on the job, Trevor Phillips has connected race relations to UK immigration, asylum, and integration policies. In an August 18, 2003 article in The Guradian, Phillips wrote:

The place where Americans do have something to teach us is on immigration and asylum. They aren't perfect, but I would happily exchange our miserable and mean-spirited attitude to migrants for their energetic pursuit of talents and energy from everywhere in the world. Great Britain was created out of the vitality of a multiracial, polyglot empire, but we kept our subjects at arm's length. The Americans are less fussy about who they let through Ellis Island. They raid the world for the best and the brightest and turn them into Americans with hi-tech jobs and green cards. Instead of being dazzled by the few bright sparks in America's racial nightmare, Europe should be working out how we can copy the real success at the heart of the American dream.

On Thursday, February 5th from 12:00 noon - 2:30 p.m. MPI will hold a roundtable discussion on with guest Trevor Phillips, Chair of the Commission on Racial Equality (CRE), United Kingdom. Demetrios G. Papademetriou a Co-Director at MPI will chair the discussion. This roundtable is part of the Migration Policy Institute's "Migration Policies and Processes in Europe" visitor series, funded by the European Commission's Delegation in Washington DC.

WHO:
Trevor Phillips, Chair of the Commission on Racial Equality (CRE), United Kingdom Demetrios Papademetriou, Co-Director, MPI

WHEN:
Thursday, February 5, 2004 12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.

WHERE:
1400 16th Street, NW, Suite 300