Skip to content Skip to navigation
University of Warwick
  • Study
  • |
  • Research
  • |
  • Business
  • |
  • Alumni
  • |
  • News
  • |
  • About

University of Warwick
Publications service & WRAP

Highlight your research

  • WRAP
    • Home
    • Search WRAP
    • Browse by Warwick Author
    • Browse WRAP by Year
    • Browse WRAP by Subject
    • Browse WRAP by Department
    • Browse WRAP by Funder
    • Browse Theses by Department
  • Publications Service
    • Home
    • Search Publications Service
    • Browse by Warwick Author
    • Browse Publications service by Year
    • Browse Publications service by Subject
    • Browse Publications service by Department
    • Browse Publications service by Funder
  • Help & Advice
University of Warwick

The Library

  • Login
  • Admin

Decolonizing the British Army : a preliminary response

Tools
- Tools
+ Tools

King, Anthony (2021) Decolonizing the British Army : a preliminary response. International Affairs, 97 (2). pp. 443-461. doi:10.1093/ia/iiab001

[img] PDF
WRAP-Decolonizing-British-Army-preliminary-response-King-2021.pdf - Accepted Version
Embargoed item. Restricted access to Repository staff only until 8 March 2023. Contact author directly, specifying your specific needs. - Requires a PDF viewer.

Download (1137Kb)
Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1093/ia/iiab001

Request Changes to record.

Abstract

Following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on 25 May 2020, anti-racist protests occurred across America and Europe. As a result, public institutions in the UK have begun to re-examine their cultures and practices to ensure not only that they are non-discriminatory, but also that they are actively anti-racist. The Army will not be immune to this process. Indeed, senior commanders including the Chief of the Defence Staff have already embraced the ‘decolonizing’ programme. Since 2000, the Army has incorporated significant numbers of Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) soldiers; just over 10 per cent of the Army is now BAME. This article examines the integration of minority soldiers over the last two decades in order to assess the prospects of ‘de-colonization’ in the Army today. Despite the apparent success of the Army's integration policy, this article identifies three obstacles which still obstruct minority integration and are likely to impede de-colonization. Firstly, the majority of the Army's BAME soldiers are not British citizens, but foreign and Commonwealth nationals. Secondly, the young age of the majority of British soldiers generates interactional dynamics in barracks and training which often accidentally excludes foreign minority soldiers. Thirdly, the military ideal of the British Army remains understandably Anglo-Saxon. This article considers the tensions inherent in the Army's multicultural project and lays out suggestions about how they might be overcome to pursue a de-colonizing agenda.

Item Type: Journal Article
Subjects: H Social Sciences > HT Communities. Classes. Races
J Political Science > JV Colonies and colonization. Emigration and immigration. International migration
U Military Science > U Military Science (General)
Divisions: Faculty of Social Sciences > Politics and International Studies
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): Decolonization -- Great Britain -- Armed Forces, Great Britain -- Armed Forces -- Race relations, Great Britain -- Armed Forces -- Minorities , Soldiers, Black -- Great Britain, Racism -- Great Britain -- Armed Forces
Journal or Publication Title: International Affairs
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISSN: 0020-5850
Official Date: March 2021
Dates:
DateEvent
March 2021Published
8 March 2021Available
3 December 2020Accepted
Volume: 97
Number: 2
Page Range: pp. 443-461
DOI: 10.1093/ia/iiab001
Status: Peer Reviewed
Publication Status: Published
Publisher Statement: This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in International Affairs following peer review. The version of record Anthony King, Decolonizing the British Army: a preliminary response, International Affairs, Volume 97, Issue 2, March 2021, Pages 443–461, is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1093/ia/iiab001
Access rights to Published version: Restricted or Subscription Access
Description:

Free access

Related URLs:
  • Publisher

Request changes or add full text files to a record

Repository staff actions (login required)

View Item View Item
twitter

Email us: wrap@warwick.ac.uk
Contact Details
About Us