International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, celebrated on 21 March, reminds us of the importance of actively defending pluralism, tolerance and non-discrimination.
Berit Kessler / Adobe Stock
Due to increased hate speech and hate crime, particularly against Jewish and Muslim communities, the European Commission published a communication called ‘No place for hate: a Europe united against hatred’ in December 2023. It will strengthen efforts to fight hatred in all its forms; for example, it includes a commitment to upgrade the Code of Conduct on countering illegal hate speech online.
The communication emphasises the important role education has to play in raising awareness and people’s readiness to react against prejudices, extremist narratives, conspiracy thinking and ideologies that drive discrimination and hatred. The European Education Area contributes to this, since building more resilient and inclusive national education and training systems, which can offer equal opportunities to all regardless of their background or status, is one of its main objectives.
Teaching resources for educators
The Anne Frank House offers versatile teaching materials related to history, prejudice, discrimination and democracy. Its ‘Stories that Move’ is a free online tool for teaching about diversity and discrimination.
Guidelines developed by the OSCE help educators counter intolerance and discrimination against Muslims, while UNESCO has created teacher training materials and online learning materials to address antisemitism.
A recent Erasmus+ project created tools to prevent racism and enhance multiculturalism in vocational colleges in four countries.
The EU’s Learning Corner has published Kalopsia, a story book about discovering why diversity is good for us, to be used with primary school children.
On this International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, it should be remembered that the commitment to end discrimination goes beyond legislation. Embracing diversity and ending discrimination are an overarching, shared responsibility for the whole of society.
Further reading
EU Anti-racism Action Plan 2020-2025 – European Commission
Combating anti-Muslim hatred – European Commission
Press release: Commission calls for a Europe united against hatred
Combating hate speech and hate crime – European Commission
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