Racial and ethnic minorities face discrimination and its consequences on a daily basis. The exact scale of the problem is hard to gauge owing to a lack of data and general under-reporting of racist incidents.The pandemic has seen a major increase in reports of racist and xenophobic incidents, however, while racial and ethnic minority groups have been disproportionately affected by the crisis, with higher death and infection rates.Although since 2000 the European Union has introduced legislation to combat racial and xenophobic discrimination, the problem persists, with the need for new measures recently highlighted by the global Black Lives Matter protests.

EPRS podcast - Policy: EU legislation and policies to fight racial and ethnic discrimination

January 27 has been designated by the United Nations General Assembly as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Every year, the European Parliament holds a commemoration ceremony to mark the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau and to honor the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust, along with the millions of other victims of Nazism.

Holocaust Remembrance Day: a story dedicated to its six million victims

In a November plenary vote Parliament demanded&nbsp;a robust and multifaceted approach to combat all forms of racism and discrimination, including structural and institutional racism, in the EU.

In a resolution&nbsp;Parliament strongly condemned&nbsp;that minorities and migrants, including LGBTQI persons, face structural racism, discrimination, hate, sustained inequalities, difficulties in accessing the justice system, and violence by the police.

As reported by the 2019 Eurobarometer, over half of Europeans believe that racial discrimination is widespread in their country, with “Being Roma” (61% of respondents), “Ethnic origin” (59%) and “Skin colour” (59%) being the top three grounds for discrimination.

On 18 September 2020, the European Commission published its communication “A Union of equality: EU anti-racism action plan 2020-2025”. Concretely, the Action Plan calls for better enforcement of EU law; closer coordination, including through the appointment of a Coordinator for Anti-racism; the adoption of national action plans against racism and racial discrimination; more efforts in preventing discriminatory attitudes by law enforcement authorities; and increased diversity of staff in the EU institutions. Equality is one of the fundamental values on which the EU is founded.

It is duly reflected in the Treaties and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU. International agreements, such as the European Convention on Human Rights also prohibit discrimination on various grounds, with limited exceptions in justified cases. With regard to the fight against racism and xenophobia, the main EU instrument is the Framework Decision on combating certain forms and expressions of racism and xenophobia by means of criminal law. This framework decision harmonises criminal definitions and sanctions.&nbsp;

Fight against racism and xenophobia

Equality and non-discrimination are core EU values and fundamental rights, enshrined in the Treaties and in the Charter of Fundamental Rights. However, research by the EU's Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) shows that discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, non-binary, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) people persists across the EU.

The Commission presented the 'LGBTIQ Equality Strategy 2020-2025' on 12 November 2020. This was&nbsp;the first ever full EU strategy in this area and is intended to build on the lessons learned from the European Commission's previous actions to advance LGBTI equality from 2015-2019.

In recent years, social acceptance of LGBTIQ people has declined in some Member States. Gaps remain in the EU's legislative framework for combating discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity and sex characteristics. Combating discrimination has become part of EU internal and external policies, and is the subject of numerous resolutions of the European Parliament. In response to the backsliding of LGBTIQ rights in some EU countries, notably Poland and Hungary, MEPs&nbsp;declared the EU an “LGBTIQ Freedom Zone”.

In 2021 Parliament “condemned&nbsp;in the strongest possible terms” the anti-LGBTIQ legislation and denounced&nbsp;the dismantling of democracy and the rule of law in Hungary.&nbsp;In a resolution&nbsp;MEPs described the Hungarian law as being in clear breach of fundamental rights enshrined in the EU Charter of fundamental rights, the Treaties and EU internal market legislation.

LGBTIQ freedom in the EU

In the face of persistent discrimination, Parliament calls for common rules to ensure that the rights of all national minorities are redressed and respected across the EU.

The rules stipulate that people belonging to national minorities are entitled to equal cultural, linguistic and educational rights, and member states are urged to end discriminatory practices.

MEPs call on the European Commission to draft a directive on minimum standards for minorities in the EU, including benchmarks and measures.

Parliament is also calling on EU countries to end statelessness for Roma people and to guarantee that this minority group enjoys full human rights.

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EP Plenary session - Racial justice, non-discrimination and anti-racism in the EU

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EP Plenary session - Role of culture, education, media and sport in the fight against racism

With hate speech and hate crime consistently rising in Europe, the deteriorating situation in Israel and Gaza has prompted a surge in islamophobic and anti-Semitic incidents across member states, according to media and civil society reports. MEPs discuss the deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans. Opening statement by Margaritis SCHINAS, Vice-President of the European Commission

Deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans: closing statement by Margaritis SCHINAS, Vice-President of the European Commission

With hate speech and hate crime consistently rising in Europe, the deteriorating situation in Israel and Gaza has prompted a surge in islamophobic and anti-Semitic incidents across member states, according to media and civil society reports. MEPs discuss the deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans. MEPs debate

Deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans: MEPs debate

Deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans: opening statement by Margaritis SCHINAS, Vice-President of the European Commission

The report by Salima YENBOU (Greens/EFA, FR) intends to be a first step towards the full realisation of a fair, inclusive and just society by tackling racism and discrimination in the field of culture, education, sports and media. Closing statement by Mariya GABRIEL, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth.

Role of culture, education, media and sport in the fight against racism: closing statement by Mariya GABRIEL, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth

The report by Salima YENBOU (Greens/EFA, FR) intends to be a first step towards the full realisation of a fair, inclusive and just society by tackling racism and discrimination in the field of culture, education, sports and media.

Role of culture, education, media and sport in the fight against racism: MEPs debate

The report by Salima YENBOU (Greens/EFA, FR) intends to be a first step towards the full realisation of a fair, inclusive and just society by tackling racism and discrimination in the field of culture, education, sports and media. Opening statement by Mariya GABRIEL, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth.

Role of culture, education, media and sport in the fight against racism: opening statement by Salima YENBOU (Greens/EFA, FR), rapporteur and by Mariya GABRIEL, European Commissioner for Innovation

The CULT (Culture and Education) Committee has voted in favor of a report that intends to be a first step towards the full realisation of a fair, inclusive and just society by tackling racism and discrimination in the field of culture, education, sports and media. Salima YENBOU (Greens/EFA, FR) is the rapporteur and asks for more representation and diversity in History books, calls member states to monitor diversity on the media.

The role of culture, education, media and sport in the fight against racism: statement by Salima YENBOU (Greens/EFA, FR)

During the plenary session of the European Parliament in Brussels (08-11 March 2021), MEPs debate on the declaration of the EU as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender/transsexual, intersex and queer/questioning (LGBTIQ) Freedom Zone: MEPs debate part 2

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