Tagged: hate speech

European Victims of Crime Day (22 February)

VictimOfCrimeDayPic

On the occasion of the European Victims of Crime Day (22 February)

Pro Igual reminds that all victims of hate crime in Spain, irrespective of their legal status, can anonimously share their experiences through its hate crimes survey. There must never be crimes without consequences, or victims without voices. Everyone should be able to report without fear.

OSCE ODIHR has prepared a number of valuable manuals and guides on combating hate crimes, available here. We would also like to present explainer prepared by PICUM (in which Pro Igual participates) for law enforcement actors on The Rights of Undocumented Victims of Crime: What to Know If You’re a Police Officer (available in English, Spanish or German.)

 

Let´s Say No to Hate!

nohatespeech

Three years ago Europe saw up close the ugly face of violent ‪#‎xenophobia‬ & ‪#‎racism‬. Let´s honor the victims of the Utoya massacre by say NO to ‪#‎hatecrimes‬ & ‪#‎hatespeech‬. Please sign the petition to make July 22 the European Day for Victims of Hate Crimes. This initiative is promoted by No Hate Speech Movement in which Pro Igual Participates. Click here to read more.

Eat a banana against racism!

NoHateBanana

Express solidarity with Dani Alves! Eat a banana against racism now! Take a selfie and upload it to the No Hate Speech Movement website: http://www.nohatespeechmovement.org/join-the-movement.

#weareallmonkeys

#somostodosmacacos

Pro Igual´s New Shadow Report on Hate Crimes in Spain

Islamophobic Graffiti

Every year, Pro Igual´s shadow report on hate crimes in Spain focuses on specific aspects of this phenomenon. The theme for the 2013 report, submitted to the OSCE-ODIHR, has been remedies for victims.

The backdrop for hate crimes in Spain is severe economic crisis accompanied by the continuing rise in xenophobia and violent extremism of neo-Nazi groups. Yet remedies available to victims of alleged hate crimes are less than adequate, which explains why the reporting of hate crimes is extremely low, as compared to informal estimates of hate-motivated incidents.

Through combination of media monitoring and field work, the Pro Igual shadow report provides an overview of high profile hate crimes reported across Spain in the course of 2013 and highlights some of good practices reported or launched in 2013. Although Pro Igual´s focus is on xenophobia and racism, hate crimes based on other bias motivation (such as homophobia, disability or political orientation) have also been recorded.

On the basis of those findings, Pro Igual has made the following recommendations, both to the Spanish authorities and to the OSCE-ODIHR TND Hate Crimes unit:

To the Spanish Authorities:

  • Introduce an electronic hate crimes reporting system – similar to the one for reporting terrorism, money-laundering and other crimes.
  • Introduce and widely publicize a hate crimes hotline – similar to the one for reporting gender violence or terrorism.
  • Under no circumstances penalize victims, even those in an irregular administrative situation, who come to report hate crimes.
  • Invite OSCE training for the Spanish police on prosecuting hate crimes and assisting victims.

To the OSCE:

  • Launch OSCE-wide online reporting system for hate crimes victims and witnesses to report such incidents.
  • Encourage OSCE Member States to seek training for the police on prosecuting hate crimes and assisting victims.

The full report in English is available here.

8 April – European Action Day for Solidarity with Roma

RomaDay8April

8th April is International Romani Day. #Nohatespeech movement in which Pro Igual participates supports Roma Rights.

European Action Week against Racism and Discrimination 21-28 March

Following a revision of the European Action Days during the European Campaign Conference, the first European Action Week will take place exactly one year after the No Hate Speech Movement, in which Pro Igual participates, has been launched by the Secretary General. The Action Week deals with the underlying themes of the campaign: racism and discrimination which are the fuel for hate speech, or for which hate speech acts as a form of expression.

Aim and Objectives:

  • To promote and request member states to sign the Additional Protocol to the Budapest Convention within the Council of Europe,
  • To promote the general recommendations on hate speech of United Nations
  • To develop and run awareness raising activities in the member states targeting both policy makers on the need to take action against racism and discrimination, with a particular focus on hate speech role in fueling and promoting the racist ideologies, to have their public commitment on standing against racism
  • To map and raise awareness over the current situation concerning racism in Europe
  • To raise awareness and educate young people on how to counter racism and discrimination
  • To fight against stereotypes and pre-conceived ideas, as well as to de-construct myths created around the discriminated groups at European level
  • To celebrate one year of the campaign by giving visibility to the results and achievements of the campaign and give an overview and visibility for the plans at European and national levels for 2014.

Planned Actions:

1. The Movement (with the help of its activists) is collecting facts about racism, discrimination in Europe and sharing them in an Online Quiz.

2. The Movement is inviting national campaign committees and their partners to share examples of posters to make people think and challenge the attitudes in relation to racism and discrimination. We are organising a European on-line exhibition of all the collected posters.

3. The Movement is producing testimonies (videos and interviews) with young people about their own story and will share them online to make people reflect and introduce change about discrimination. These will be shared on the Facebook Page of the Movement and here on this website.

4. The Movement is encouraging its activists, partners and national committees to write articles in relation to racism and discrimination (stories, good practices, projects, opinions…etc.). These will be shared on the No Hate Speech Movement Blog during the Action Week.

5. The Movement will distribute an Infographic of the Achievements of the fist year of the campaign.

6. The Movement is inviting all its followers to report online hate speech content related to racism and discrimination on the Hate Speech Watch. The online activists will organise online actions about a number of selected reports.

7. The Movement is preparing (with the help of its activists and national campaign coordinators) an online MAP presenting relevant information about racism and discrimination in Europe.

8. The Movement is also inviting people to create their own image and videos about racism and discrimination to express their views and challenge others and upload it on the No Hate Speech Movement website.

Original link: http://blog.nohatespeechmovement.org/european-action-week-against-racism-and-discrimination/

Raise Your Voice Against Hate and Intolerance

Campaign No Hate, in which Pro Igual participates, supports the creation of the Council of Victims Against Hate Crimes and Discrimination (the Spanish abbreviation COVIDAD).

The Council´s objectives are: promoting democratic values, sensibilization and civic participation; encouraging solidarity with victims and their legal, social, political and institutional protection; defending the memory of victims of hate crimes; calling for official action to erradicate prejudices, and working towards reaching the implementation of international standards in this field.

The Council could be reached at this email address: covidodATgmail.com

The original link is available (in Spanish) here.

Fascists attack Madrid’s Catalan center on Catalonia Day

By Anne Sewell, 12 September 2013

While Catalonians formed a human chain for independence in their region, a group carrying Spanish and fascist flags interrupted celebrations at the Catalan Government center in Madrid on Wednesday, shouting, tearing down flags and using pepper spray.

Digital Journal reported on the human chain, dubbed the “Catalan Way Towards Independence”, formed by hundreds of thousands of Catalan residents across their region on Wednesday, demanding independence from Spain. However, not everyone was celebrating Catalonia’s national day on September 11.

Six people, believed to be extreme right-wing or fascists, were arrested for their part in an attack which disrupted celebrations at the Blanquerna Cultural Center in Madrid on Wednesday. Read more…

Original article: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/358178

European Action Day for the Victims of Hate Crimes

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The No Hate Speech Movement, in which Pro Igual participates, invites you to join the online and offline actions to commemorate the European Day for the Victims of Hate Crime on July 22. To remind, support and show solidarity with all those people that have suffered aggression because of their skin color, sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnicity, disability, religion and many other characteristics. We will also educate and raise awareness about the consequences of hate speech and hate crime on our societies!

WHAT TO DO?

1. Organise a public action or an educational activity for 22nd July. Here is a guide of what you can do and how. Please post information to this Facebook event about your action!

Don’t forget to REPORT your action with photos and videos on the No Hate Speech Movement platform: http://www.nohatespeechmovement.org/join-the-movement

2. We are launching a petition to establish 22 July as the European Day for the Victims of Hate Crime. It will be ‘live’ only until 9 November, so get busy helping to achieve this task! The petition addresses all the members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the members of the European Parliament! http://blog.nohatespeechmovement.org/petition/

SIGN it! Get your organisation to sign it! Inform others about it!
Write to your representative/s in these European bodies on July 22nd and ask her/him/zee to sign it and support it publicly!
Here’s where you can find their contacts details:
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe: http://assembly.coe.int/ASP/AssemblyList/AL_DelegationsList_E.asp
European Parliament: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/map.html

3. Do you know of a case of hate crime? It is important not to be silent about it. Submit a story to action@nohatespeechmovement.org and on July 22nd we will feature it on the No Hate Speech Movement Platform. Please make sure to send us photos, if possible.

4. Have you witnessed hate speech that incites violence online? Then report it on Hate Speech Watch here: http://www.nohatespeechmovement.org/hate-speech-watch

5. Take action online! Join this event on Facebook! ‘Like’ the Facebook page of the Movement! Invite your friends to do the same!

Share and post the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/nohatespeech?fref=ts

Find out more and participate!
www.nohatespeechmovement.org
www.facebook.com/groups/combatinghatespeech
@nohate_speech #nohatespeech

The Rise of Neo-Nazism in the Party Political System

The recent report by the The World Jewish Congress recorded a disturbing rise in extreme right, xenophobic and anti-Semitic political parties across Europe, echoing with Pro Igual´s own findings of the past years.
The WJC report is available here; the excerpts of the Executive Summary are as follows.
“Parties with neo-Nazi leanings have seen a significant resurgence, particularly in Greece and Hungary where, respectively, Golden Dawn and Jobbik have either achieved double figures in elections or are polling at such levels in opinion surveys. Both have seen their support rise dramatically from small beginnings. …
“There are good reasons for believing that governments are either conflicted or confused in their approach to neo-Nazi parties. In Greece, the government does not appear to know what to do. In Hungary the governing party wants Jobbik’s votes at the next election, and in Germany, where the National Democratic Party does not have wide support but is feared for historical reasons, the government has backed away from outlawing it believing that its efforts would fail at the Constitutional Court.
“Economic crisis is in some cases plainly a contributory factor in the growth of neo-Nazi parties. The Greek economy has declined by 20 percent since the crisis began with general unemployment now standing at over 27 percent and youth unemployment at over 60 percent.
“Anti-Semitism remains a central feature of neo-Nazi parties even though their main focus in many European countries is on non-white minorities. The anti-Semitic rhetoric is often extreme, as when a Jobbik parliamentarian last year called for a list to be drawn up of the country’s Jews in order to assess whether they represented a security risk to Hungary.”
The full report is available here.
CIDDHH Pro Igual es Asociación sin ánimo de lucro registrada en el Ministerio del Interior con el nº 595496.