Institutional Racism
Institutional racism is a special form of racism. It received its name because it occurs in institutions, such as governmental and public organizations, commercial companies, educational establishments, etc. As opposed to individual racism, or some other forms of racism, institutional racism is unique in terms of being more open to the public. While other forms of racism occur between individuals or groups of individuals outside workplace or another institution, people involved in institutional racism express their discriminatory attitudes literally in front of the eyes of the public or members of the institution, although they might try doing it secretly. Thus, institutional racism can be traced and proven, which is the best part about the actual concept. 
Back in 1960’s the founder of the term, Stokely Carmichael, defined institutional racism as “the collective failure of an organisation to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their colour, culture or ethnic origin” (Wiki, 2006). The most prominent case of institutional racism, at least brought to the public, was the murder of a black teenager in London in 1993. An 18-year old Englishman of Jamaican origin, Stephen Lawrence was waiting at a bus stop when he was suddenly attacked and stabbed to death. The Metropolitan Police did investigate this case and did put effort to finding the guilty, but according to Sir William Macpherson, this investigation had been “incompetent,” and officers “committed fundamental errors including failing to give first aid when they reached the scene, failing to follow obvious leads during their investigation, failing to arrest suspects” (Wiki, 2006). Stephen Lawrence Report, also called Macpherson report, revealed that Metropolitan Police exhibited numerous cases of institutionalized racism, due to which the murderers of Stephen Lawrence have not been found. 
Following Macpherson report was the turmoil in Police Department, basically associated with the accusations and blames of being involved in institutional racism. However, Macpherson (and later the police) stated that not only the police, but many other institutions like British Civil Service, British National Health Service, and other establishments are involved in racial discrimination and racism on a daily basis.
However, some specialists believe that Macpherson and his report had a negative effect on the public and the efficiency of police. According to Robert Skidelsky, 
“the Report may do more harm than good. […] It has firmly inserted the slippery concepts of ‘institutional’ […] racism into public discourse, from where they will be very difficult to dislodge […] It diverts attention from the real lesson of the inquiry, which is the urgent need to improve the quality”
Skidelsky did accept that Macpherson report has acquired the status of the “Holy Spirit,” but unlike the rest, he realizes that the investigating the murder of poor Lawrence is much more important than the allegedly proven facts of institutional racism in Metropolitan Police. 
Currently, the term “institutional racism” is used very widely in Britain. Chairman of Commission for Racial Equality Gurbux Singh said that, “institutional racism is an overly-used label,” which has obviously become some popular after the publications of Macpherson report. Currently, Mr. Singh reports, the issues of ethnic minorities in British politics are disappearing, and House of Lords is nowadays Britain’s “most representative democratic institution in terms of ethnic minorities.  
Ultimately, institutionalized racism is a form of racism that occurs in institutions. This form of racism can be spotted and revealed to the public. The Lawrence case is the most prominent case of institutional racism in United Kingdom, and probably in the world too. The case had shown to the public the discriminatory attitudes of Metropolitan police officers towards the late victim and his family. Although Macpherson’s report had a negative impact on society and the actual investigation, British authorities derived the most from it.
Bibliography
1.	Wikipedia contributors (2006). Stephen Lawrence: Macpherson Report. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved January 25, 2006 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Lawrence.
2.	Wikipedia contributors (2006). Institutional racism. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved January 25, 2006 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institutional_racism.
3.	Skidelsky, R., Green, D., and Ignatieff, M. (2000). Institutional racism and the police: Fact or fiction? Institute for the study of civil society, London. Electronic copy retrieved January 26, 2006 from http://www.civitas.org.uk/pdf/cs06.pdf
4.	Institutional racism tag 'over-used.' (2000). BBC News. Retrieved January 26, 2006 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/ 1038703.stm