OUR WORK >> BY CONCERN

Racism, Discrimination against Ethnic Minorities and Indigenous Communities

The 20^th century bears the tragic mark of different genocides. Among these, the Holocaust of the Jewish people, the Shoah, stands out. At the same time, we see racism in daily life. People are discriminated against because of their ethnicity. While these can commonly be called minority rights, it is not always the case that it is the minority ethnicity, which is discriminated against. Such discrimination is a form of racism, which attacks people's right to well-being on the basis of something which they neither could nor even should want to change: who they are.

Colonisation and its legacy have caused extreme expressions of racism towards indigenous people. In many cases their land, culture, and language were stolen from them. Today the struggle continues for indigenous people to maintain their culture and way of life, while often fighting against poverty, marginalisation, and loss of identity.

Pax Christi International calls for a radical equality and brother and sisterhood among all people, regardless of their race, nation, sex, origin, culture, or class. Any theory or form whatsoever of racism and racial discrimination is morally unacceptable.

Pax Christi International stands in solidarity with those discriminated against on the basis of their ethnicity and culture, and aims to help to build bridges and understanding between different communities.

Highlights

• The ‘All Brothers, All Sisters’ campaign was organised by Pax Christi USA on institutionalised racism, and included the peace movement and Church-related organisations.

• Two two-year projects were conducted on ethnic minority relations in Slovakia-Hungary, and in Poland-Lithuania.

• Peace work co-operation has been carried out by Member Organisations in Australia and Aoteoroa/New Zealand with the Aboriginals and Maori, respectively.

• Pax Christi has made various submissions at the Human Rights Council of the United Nations on rights of indigenous peoples, for instance in West Papua.

• Pax Christi International supports indigenous rights for all those who seek it at the United Nations in New York.