Belfast: 'People are having to leave their home due to racism'

Many ethnic minority residents of Belfast still face "racism, isolation and poverty," according to a new report.

Many of them also view local politics as "inaccessible and irrelevant" due to a "green/orange emphasis".

The research examined the experiences of Black, Asian, ethnic minority and Traveller people living in Belfast.

It was commissioned by Belfast City Council, the Public Health Agency and the Belfast Health Trust.

Their report also said the experiences of ethnic minorities and migrants were often "side-lined" in government policy-making.

But three-quarters of ethnic and migrant residents interviewed during the research were optimistic about their future in Belfast.

There are almost 125,000 people from minority ethnic communities living in Northern Ireland, in addition to an increasing number of asylum seekers and refugees.

There are now many second and third generation Chinese and Indian communities in Northern Ireland, and the number of people of African descent is also growing.

Read more: Belfast's ethnic minorities face racism, says report