Black people in the EU are experiencing higher levels of harassment and discrimination than they did six years ago, with the highest level of anti-Black racism in Germany, according to Deutsche Welle.
The EU published a report on Wednesday that racism against Black people has reached a new level in the European Union. Reports of racial harassment and discrimination are most prevalent in Austria and Germany.
The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) conducted a survey among first- and second-generation Black immigrants in 13 EU countries. It was found that about a third of respondents experienced racial discrimination over the past 12 months, up 10 percentage points from the previous survey six years ago.
About two-thirds of respondents, 64 per cent, reported racial discrimination in Austria and Germany. The previous survey showed that 33 per cent of respondents had felt racial discrimination, which is almost half the current figure.
It is shocking to see no improvement since our last survey. Instead, people of African descent face ever more discrimination just because of the color of their skin.
The highest level of racist harassment was observed in Germany, where 54 per cent of respondents reported racial abuse in the last five years. It also was found in Austria and Finland, while the lowest level of racial oppression was observed in Portugal, Sweden and Poland.
The FRA report showed that 30 per cent of respondents across the EU had experienced racial persecution in the past year, but few reported it. The most likely victims were young women, people with higher education and people wearing religious clothes.
A third of respondents stated that they felt racially discriminated against when looking for a job. 31 per cent claimed feeling the same way when trying to find a place to live.
FRA called on EU Member States to take steps to reduce racist harassment and discrimination, including proper enforcement of anti-discrimination legislation, the detection and punishment of hate-motivated crimes, and the prevention and eradication of institutional discrimination, such as in policing.
