WHY 21 MARCH?

The General Assembly of the United Nations declared 21 March the International Day for the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination. This day was implemented as a reaction to the brutal murder of 69 anti-apartheid demonstrators in Sharpeville (South Africa) in 1960. Apartheid was a legal system of systematic racial segregation and inequality enforced by the government of South Africa from 1948 up to 1990.

EUROPEAN ACTION WEEK AGAINST RACISM

Since the early 1990s, UNITED coordinates every year around 21 March the European-wide Action Week Against Racism. Activists, NGOs, universities, schools, municipalities and a wide variety of different organisations carry out hundreds of activities all around Europe in order to bring an end to racism, discrimination and intolerance. The actions actively engage and involve 10.000s of people all over Europe to take a stand for diversity. The activities range from poster actions in schools, public transport and working places, to intercultural youth festivals, street actions, lectures, human libraries, film screenings, conferences, multicultural football games, making murals for diversity, or cleaning the walls from racist graffiti, presenting reports on racism, and many, many more.

Take this opportunity and become a part of the 2019 European Action Week Against Racism. Organise your own activity and help to make our message visible: All over Europe we will stand Hand in Hand for Diversity. Together we will have an enormous impact on creating cohesion and spreading our antiracist agenda.