Report on racism in Europe published with support of ENAR Foundation
The ENAR Foundation supported the publication of the European Network Against Racism’s latest Shadow Report on racism in Europe, covering 2010-2011. This report is produced yearly to fill the gaps in the official and academic data, to offer an alternative to that data and to give an NGO perspective on the realities of racism in the EU and its Member States. It identifies communities vulnerable to racism and presents an overview of manifestations of racism in a range of areas, as well as an assessment of the legal and political context.
The report concludes that racism and discrimination continue to affect many people in all walks of life throughout Europe. This is evident in a broad range of areas, from employment to education, and from housing to policing.
Certain trends can be seen across all EU Member States. The economic crisis has a negative impact on migrants and ethnic minorities, making them particularly vulnerable to unemployment and precarious working conditions. In Spain for instance, the highest unemployment rates are found among migrants from Morocco and Sub-Saharan countries (with figures close to 50% during the second quarter of 2010). Economic downturn also creates fears among the general public that incite racist behaviour, while it has led to financial cuts to anti-racism activities in many countries. In Lithuania, for instance, the national anti-discrimination programme for 2009-2011 received less than 1% of the funding which was initially planned for 2010. In addition, racially motivated violence committed both by neo-Nazi groups and other perpetrators is on the rise.
The report also highlights that people of African descent are particularly vulnerable to racism and racial discrimination in several EU Member States, and their visibility heightens this vulnerability. In the United Kingdom for instance, black people are at least six times more likely to be stopped and searched than a white person. In Latvia, most members of the African community hold university diplomas but few are able to find a job that corresponds to their educational level. Other groups vulnerable to racism and racial and/or religious discrimination in Europe include migrants (both EU and third country nationals), Roma, Muslims and Jews.
