Ethnic identity as difference can be related to the qualities we carry that makes us different. For example the different clothes we wear the different cultures we adopt or the different languages we speak. As a result of difference, inequality may arise as some cultures or ways of life are seen to be superior compared to others. This is also enforced through various socialisation processes like Education where Gilborn argued that the curriculum taught in British schools is ethnocentric, meaning it teaches the British culture to be superior. Also, Paul Collony found that teachers in his study brought racist stereotypical views from outside school and treated black pupils harshly, especially criticising black boys more than anyone else.
The first way in which some ethnic groups are disadvantaged is through prejudice, discrimination and racial abuse which refers to the type of racism experienced via opinion, attitude or fear rather than action for example racist name calling and bullying.
Connolly and Keenan provide evidence for this through their survey in Northern Ireland. Their results found that a quarter of all their respondents were unwilling to accept an African Caribbean, Chinese or south Asian as a resident in their local area. Which may be the cause of segregated comfort zones as such people may cause those of ethnic minorities to stick to their own in the area or move to an area of like ethnicities creating a security blanket.
Their survey also found that 21% of respondents stated that their friends had called someone a name to their face because of their colour or ethnicity.
In addition, the Institution of Race Relations reported racial attacks between 1991 and 1997 and results showed that there have been 65 murders in Britain with a suspected or known racial motive. The overwhelming majority of victims have been Asian, African Caribbean, African or asylum seekers.