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Secretary-General’s Message for 2012
Building tolerance and understanding is fundamental for the twenty-first century. In an increasingly globalized world – in which societies are growing more diverse – tolerance is central to living together.
Yet tolerance is being tested. In the face of economic and social pressures, some seek to exploit fears and highlight differences to stoke hatred of minorities, immigrants and the disadvantaged. To counter the rise of ignorance, extremism and hate-based political appeals, the moderate majority must speak up for shared values and against all forms of discrimination.
Our goal must be more than peaceful coexistence. True tolerance requires the free flow of ideas, quality education for all, respect for human rights, and the sharing of cultures for mutual understanding. As we advance these values, let us draw strength and guidance from the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity.
Tolerance is both a condition of peace and an engine for creativity and innovation. In our evermore interconnected world, promoting tolerance is the way to build the harmony we need to address pressing challenges and secure a better future.
Ban Ki-moon
How Can Intolerance Be Countered?
- Fighting intolerance requires law:
Each Government is responsible for enforcing human rights laws, for banning and punishing hate crimes and discrimination against minorities, whether these are committed by State officials, private organizations or individuals. The State must also ensure equal access to courts, human rights commissioners or ombudsmen, so that people do not take justice into their own hands and resort to violence to settle their disputes. - Fighting intolerance requires education:
Laws are necessary but not sufficient for countering intolerance in individual attitudes. Intolerance is very often rooted in ignorance and fear: fear of the unknown, of the other, other cultures, nations, religions. Intolerance is also closely linked to an exaggerated sense of self-worth and pride, whether personal, national or religious. These notions are taught and learned at an early age. Therefore, greater emphasis needs to be placed on educating more and better. Greater efforts need to be made to teach children about tolerance and human rights, about other ways of life. Children should be encouraged at home and in school to be open-minded and curious.Education is a life-long experience and does not begin or end in school. Endeavours to build tolerance through education will not succeed unless they reach all age groups, and take place everywhere: at home, in schools, in the workplace, in law-enforcement and legal training, and not least in entertainment and on the information highways.
- Fighting intolerance requires access to information:
Intolerance is most dangerous when it is exploited to fulfil the political and territorial ambitions of an individual or groups of individuals. Hatemongers often begin by identifying the public’s tolerance threshold. They then develop fallacious arguments, lie with statistics and manipulate public opinion with misinformation and prejudice. The most efficient way to limit the influence of hatemongers is to develop policies that generate and promote press freedom and press pluralism, in order to allow the public to differentiate between facts and opinions. - Fighting intolerance requires individual awareness:
Intolerance in a society is the sum-total of the intolerance of its individual members. Bigotry, stereotyping, stigmatizing, insults and racial jokes are examples of individual expressions of intolerance to which some people are subjected daily. Intolerance breeds intolerance. It leaves its victims in pursuit of revenge. In order to fight intolerance individuals should become aware of the link between their behavior and the vicious cycle of mistrust and violence in society. Each one of us should begin by asking: am I a tolerant person? Do I stereotype people? Do I reject those who are different from me? Do I blame my problems on ‘them’? - Fighting intolerance requires local solutions:
Many people know that tomorrow’s problems will be increasingly global but few realize that solutions to global problems are mainly local, even individual. When confronted with an escalation of intolerance around us, we must not wait for governments and institutions to act alone. We are all part of the solution. We should not feel powerless for we actually posses an enormous capacity to wield power. Nonviolent action is a way of using that power-the power of people. The tools of nonviolent action-putting a group together to confront a problem, to organize a grassroots network, to demonstrate solidarity with victims of intolerance, to discredit hateful propaganda-are available to all those who want to put an end to intolerance, violence and hatred.
Refugee Week is all about having fun, broadening horizons and breaking down barriers. Every June the week long UK-wide festival of arts, cultural and educational events celebrates contributions refugees have made to the UK, and promotes understanding about why people seek sanctuary.
No one wants to become a refugee. No one should have to endure this humiliating and arduous ordeal. Yet, millions do. Even one refugee forced to flee, one refugee forced to return to danger is one too many.” Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
Each year Refugee Week grows and increases in profile, making its mark on the UK’s cultural calendar. This year’s theme Spirit captures:
- Spirit of survival and the individual – the determination needed to flee persecution and rebuild your life
- Community spirit – the connections between refugees and local communities
- Scotland’s spirit – the cultural diversity of Scotland today
The Refugee Week Programme (3.7Mb, PDF) details many events, most of them in Glasgow, some in Edinburgh.
East Lothian Learning Partnership have produced New Arrival? Your A-Z Guide to East Lothian
A few facts about refugees (who are often confused with economic migrants):
- People seeking asylum make up just one per cent of the total population of Glasgow, Scotland’s largest and most diverse city.
- Most of the people who arrive in Scotland seeking sanctuary are from Somalia, China, Eritrea, Iraq, Iran and Zimbabwe. They have come here fleeing war, torture or persecution.
- Most of the world’s refugees are given sanctuary in the world’s poorest countries. The UK hosts only two per cent of some 10 million refugees worldwide.
- An asylum seeker is someone who has made an application for asylum, or sanctuary, and hopes to be recognised as a refugee. Everyone in the world has the right to claim asylum in another country if needed.
- A refugee is someone whose application for asylum has been successful and who has been recognised as having a well-founded fear of persecution in their home country, as described by the United Nations Refugee Convention.
- Persecution happens when someone is imprisoned, threatened or made a target because of their religion, race, beliefs or belonging to a certain group.
- While they are waiting to hear if they can stay, people seeking asylum aren’t allowed to work and depend on small amounts of state support.
- Most people seeking asylum do want to work, and many are professionally trained with lots of skills to offer.
- Almost one third of refugees have contributed to society by doing voluntary work since arriving in the UK.
Ten simple things YOU can do to celebrate:
- Visit an art exhibit or a museum dedicated to other cultures.
- Invite a family or people in the neighborhood from another culture or religion to share a meal with you and exchange views on life.
- Rent a movie or read a book from another country or religion than your own.
- Invite people from a different culture to share your customs.
- Read about the great thinkers of other cultures than yours (e.g. Confucius, Socrates, Avicenna, Ibn Khaldun, Aristotle, Ganesh, Rumi).
- Go next week-end to visit a place of worship different than yours and participate in the celebration.
- Play the “stereotypes game.” Stick a post-it on your forehead with the name of a country. Ask people to tell you stereotypes associated with people from that country. You win if you find out where you are from.
- Learn about traditional celebrations from other cultures; learn more about Hanukkah or Ramadan or about amazing celebrations of New Year’s Eve in Spain or Qingming festival in China.
- Spread your own culture around the world through our Facebook page and learn about other cultures.
- Explore music of a different culture.
There are thousands of things that you can do, are you taking part in it?
Racism, xenophobia and intolerance are problems prevalent in all societies. Each and every one of us plays a role in either contributing to or breaking down racial prejudice and intolerant attitudes.
Send a message that racism is unacceptable. Download a postcard and send it to your friends.
Share this page with your social networks and ask what others are doing to fight racism.
Get involved
Tell us what you are doing to combat racism on the Let’s Fight Racism Facebook page or via Twitter using #FightRacism.
See what actions others are taking on the Let’s Fight Racism Storify page.
Take a stand against racism in your community. Join a group advocating for the rights of racial or other minorities in your own community and volunteer to help, including through online volunteering.
Learn more
Seek different perspectives through reading the writings of authors of other races or ethnicity. Read real life stories about overcoming racial discrimination.
Take this quiz to test your knowledge on human rights and discrimination and to celebrate the human rights defenders who have fought for the rights of others.
Check out the UN’s global action plan to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.
Click on a thumbnail above to share an image with your friends. Ask them what they see – is there more than meets the eye?
East Lothian
The East Lothian Diversity Network brings together individuals, community organisations and groups that are interested in equality and diversity issues. Everyone is welcome to join and take part in our events!
Key focuses of the Diversity Network
- Celebration: celebrating East Lothian’s rich diversity
- Policy: helping to shape our services and practices
- Information: gathering information about the needs and ambitions of minority groups
- Campaigns: improving the understanding of equality and diversity amongst the residents of East Lothian
Become a member
You can become a member of the Network. Here are some of the benefits of signing up:
- you get to take part in a variety of events to celebrate East Lothian’s diversity
- you will learn more about equality and diversity
- you can raise issues that are of concern to you
- you can help to shape public services by sharing your experiences with policymakers
Best of all, it’s free to join!
Email equalities@eastlothian.gov.uk to register
The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed annually on 21 March. On that day, in 1960, police opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful demonstration in Sharpeville, South Africa, against the apartheid “pass laws”. Proclaiming the Day in 1966, the General Assembly called on the international community to redouble its efforts to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination (resolution 2142 (XXI)).
Since then, the apartheid system in South Africa has been dismantled. Racist laws and practices have been abolished in many countries, and we have built an international framework for fighting racism, guided by the International Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The Convention is now nearing universal ratification, yet still, in all regions, too many individuals, communities and societies suffer from the injustice and stigma that racism brings.
The first article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights”. The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination reminds us of our collective responsibility for promoting and protecting this ideal.
The East Lothian Diversity Network brings together individuals, community organisations and groups that are interested in equality and diversity issues. Everyone is welcome to join and take part in our events!
Key focuses of the Diversity Network
- Celebration: celebrating East Lothian’s rich diversity
- Policy: helping to shape our services and practices
- Information: gathering information about the needs and ambitions of minority groups
- Campaigns: improving the understanding of equality and diversity amongst the residents of East Lothian
Become a member
You can become a member of the Network. Here are some of the benefits of signing up:
- you get to take part in a variety of events to celebrate East Lothian’s diversity
- you will learn more about equality and diversity
- you can raise issues that are of concern to you
- you can help to shape public services by sharing your experiences with policymakers
Best of all, it’s free to join!
Email equalities@eastlothian.gov.uk to register.
