The year ahead and looking back: ENAR’s impact in 2018 and plans for 2019

Collectively, as ENAR and with our partners, we achieved four milestones in 2018: Afrophobia is increasingly recognised as an issue at European level; the EU further commits to work on Islamophobia; ENAR is among the key drivers of the conversation on intersectionality at European level and the European Commission published guidelines on how to improve combating racist crimes, taking into account ENAR’s recommendations. Years of determined work are yielding fruits which will offer increased leverage to improve the situation of people with a diverse ethnic background in Europe. This is good news at a time when voices supporting progress and equality for all are increasingly pushed back in the political arena.

2019 will be a year of awareness raising and consolidation of our work. The European Parliament elections of May 2019, with all the challenges they bring, will be a key moment to broadcast our proposals. As an anti-racism movement, we have to be ready for any scenario: in case of a progressive parliament, we have our proposals ready. In case of a parliament largely hostile to equality, we will have to go even further in resistance mode: reinforce coalitions to protect the “acquis”, develop new strategies to keep drilling this wall of opposition through small steps politics. But in any case, never give up moving forward. We owe this to the victims of discrimination, racism, violence and their communities. Consolidation also because we have pocketed progress and good measures. Because we are strong. Together. And adversity will make us even stronger. Because we have no choice. Anti-racism, for people with a diverse ethnic or religious background, is not a matter of choice or a hobby. It is a matter of life and death, of safety and risk, of protection and vulnerability. We will keep demanding and making equality happen. Together. That is our promise.

Michaël Privot, ENAR Director

 

KEY HIGHLIGHTS IN 2018 EU GUIDELINES ON COMBATING RACIST CRIME

The European Commission in December 2018 published a guidance document on the practical application of the Framework Decision on racism and xenophobia. The guidance document reflects ENAR’s calls for EU Member States to center the victims’ approach in recording and investigating racist crimes, and for an intersectional approach to recognition of protected grounds. These recommendations will support our members’ advocacy efforts at national level to ensure racist crime legislation is implemented.

INCREASED RECOGNITION OF AFROPHOBIA

2018 was a pivotal year for the EU recognition of Afrophobia as a specific form of racism. ENAR was a main organiser of the first EU People of African Descent Week in the European Parliament, which put forward key recommendations for the improvement of the situation of Black people in Europe. The European Parliament also tabled a Resolution on the fundamental rights of People of African Descent and Black Europeans in Europe, as a result of ENAR advocacy.

OUR PLANS FOR 2019 EU COMMITMENT TO FIGHTING ISLAMOPPHOBIA

ENAR’s advocacy and media efforts in collaboration with a stronger coalition of European and national NGOs against Islamophobia led to the organisation of an EU high level meeting on anti-Muslim hatred in December, attended by Member State representatives. Concrete recommendations were put forward, and as a result, the Netherlands encouraged Member States to follow these, and Spain committed to organise a follow-up conference on combating against Islamophobia.

INTERSECTIONALITY IN THE SPOTLIGHT

ENAR’s European symposium on intersectionality gathered +100 participants from European Union institutions, NGOs, equality bodies, governments, and academia. It produced concrete steps to initiate intersectional approaches in policy making and coalition building, profiling ENAR as a central contributor to the European conversation on this issue. RACIST CRIME We will advocate for the recognition of institutional racism in law enforcement as a barrier to access to justice for victims of racist violence. We will continue to monitor racist crime across Europe, including by publishing our shadow report on racist crime, which will include a focus on the recording, investigation and sentencing of hate crimes with a racial bias.

COMBATING STRUCTURAL RACISM AND SPECIFIC FORMS OF RACISM

We will advocate for EU standards on National Action Plans Against Racism which address specific forms of racism, including Afrophobia, Antigypsyism, Islamophobia, Antisemitism and anti-migrant racism, and contribute to advocacy and civil society mobilisation on National Action Plans Against Racism in some Member States. We will disseminate a book on Antigypsyism and ensure combating Antigypsyism is central to future EU Roma Integration Strategies post-2020. We will ensure the European Parliament takes a stand on combating Afrophobia in the European Union. We will work on a reference paper on Islamophobia, in cooperation with a civil society coalition working to combat Islamophobia. We will advocate for EU institutions to adopt an intersectional approach in policy making and publish a policy paper on intersectionality of racism and other forms of discrimination

RACIST CRIME

We will advocate for the recognition of institutional racism in law enforcement as a barrier to access to justice for victims of racist violence. We will continue to monitor racist crime across Europe, including by publishing our shadow report on racist crime, which will include a focus on the recording, investigation and sentencing of hate crimes with a racial bias.

MIGRATION

We will work to ensure non-discrimination and equal rights are key elements of integration and employment standards and policies, such as the EU Blue Card Directive for highly qualified migrant workers. We will follow discussions about the future of the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund and monitor the implementation of national action plans for integration of third country nationals.

SECURITY

We will continue to call for human rights impact assessment of security policies. We will conduct research on the impact of counter-terrorism measures on groups at risk of racism in five EU Member States and publish a comparative report. ENAR is also a partner of the pan-European “Dialogue About Radicalisation and Equality" (DARE) project, which investigates young people’s encounters with agents of radicalisation. It aims to broaden understanding of radicalisation, demonstrate that it is not located in any one religion or community, and to explore the effects of radicalisation on society.

MOBILISATION

We will strengthen the ENAR network, including by developing a network development strategy to build the anti-racism movement. We will support national projects by ENAR members on our strategic priorities. A key moment for the network will be the European Parliament elections in May, and we are aiming to unite advocacy and campaigning efforts of different anti-racism and civil society organisations in light of increased far-right influence.

COMMUNICATIONS

We will continue to make strategic use of traditional and social media to communicate our messages to our key audiences. We will strengthen our communication strategy, including through effective messaging and framing to shape media and political discourses on racial equality, in particular ahead of EU elections.

EMPLOYMENT

We will continue to call for the removal of labour market barriers affecting ethnic and religious minorities and migrants, including those working in the EU institutions. We will publish a toolkit for employers on race and mental health in the workplace. We will hold our annual Equal@work seminar with private and public employers, trade unions and NGO partners.

EQUALITY DATA

We will continue to advocate and build capacity of civil society organisations to advocate for the collection of safe and inclusive data to measure discrimination and positive equality policies to address racial inequalities.

Viešoji įstaiga Romų visuomenės centras nuotrauka.

Viešoji įstaiga Romų visuomenės centras nuotrauka.

Viešoji įstaiga Romų visuomenės centras nuotrauka.