Greetings from the UNITED network!
We hope you have been keeping a safe distance, yet in solidarity with all during this last month. We at UNITED have adjusted to this new reality, and adapted the ways in which we work, and will continue to do so in the future.
News from the secretariat
Webinar
Last month we held our webinar on internationalistic responses to the COVID-19 crisis, holding a wide range of discussions on civic organizing during times of a pandemic. Speakers from across Europe, and attendees from across the world, engaged in a lively discussion on building a pan-European movement that turns obstacles into opportunities.
You can watch the entire webinar for yourself: day 1, and day 2.
Upcoming conference
Meanwhile, we have more plans brewing - save the date! September 30th to October 2nd, UNITED will be hosting its next conference in Norway. The conference will cover youth, women, LGBTQI+, refugees and minorities, NGOs, and intersectionality. It will respond to the context of COVID-19, and how the virus has impacted each. We are hard at work, hammering out the details - the programme, speakers, nominations, etc. - but will periodically keep you posted via our e-news and our social media. Looking forward to seeing you there!
World Refugee Day
Along with this conference, June 20th is around the corner, and this is the World Refugee Day. Our ongoing signature campaign, the death list continues. This list monitors the fatal results of the policies summarized as the building of Fortress Europe. Having been the primary feature in campaigns in over 48 countries across Europe, this list shows the harrowing indifference with which states have treated the lives of civilians. We continue to monitor and update this list.
This year, we are planning to go a step ahead. Want to know more? Take a look at our website, and join the campaign.
🙌🏽 Become Delegate for #UNITED! 🙌🏽
UNITED for Intercultural Action is looking for Human Rights advocates to contribute to the advocacy actions of our 560-member-strong network.
To further strengthen our work on #antiracism and #diversity in Europe, we have launched the call for UNITED Delegates. The pool of UNITED Delegates consists of experts and activists, who act as the ambassadors of the network, and represent UNITED at various international meetings and events – #online and #offline. Join us and support knowledge sharing, advocacy and policy impact for #HumanRights for all!
#UNITEDforHumanity #StayUNITED
Have questions? Write us us at [email protected]
Apply here by May 1st: www.unitedagainstracism.org/united-delegate-application-form
News from the network
Despite lockdowns, our friends continue to resist.
May 16th is Romani Resistance Day. This day marks the ocassion when, in 1944, SS Guards surrounded a “Gypsy Camp” with machine guns, ready to mass-murder nearly 7,000 people. Romani Holocaust survivor Hugo Höllenreiner’s father shouted out: “'We're not coming out! You come in here! We're waiting here! If you want something, you have to come inside!” A standoff ensued, and eventually, the SS guards retreated. It’s a remarkable story of resistance - one that should be celebrated.
In commemoration, the Traveller Pride is running an online campaign, asking for images of Romanies and allies to hold up signs with “My Resistance is…” and an example of their Romani Resistance. We encourage you to participate! More information here!
In addition, ternYpe is running an online campaign called “voices of resistance:, and asks for submissions from young Roma facing discrimination, fighting oppression, struggling for dignity. Interested in taking part? More information here.
Immediately after this, on May 17th, is the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia. This is a day to celebrate sexual and gender diversities around the world, and is marked by solidarity events across the world: “In our families, in our social circles, at work, in our sports clubs, for many of us our Sexualities, Gender Identities or Sex Characteristics must be hidden. We wander through most of our lives with the stigma of feeling ashamed of who we are.”
This year, due to global lockdown, all events will be held online: follow their Facebook page, and join the global noise!
Reading material
We are all struggling to comprehend the scale of this phenomenon. We are all stuck inside. UNITED has compiled thought-provoking reading material and online events for you, all of which help make sense of the pandemic, and its effects on all strata of people. We hope you will enjoy...and continue to stay safe, stay UNITED.
Transnational Sister Solidarity? How Covid-19 Sheds Light on the Invisible 99%
“Covid-19 has indiscriminately shed light on the most vulnerable, undervalued, and underpaid of our society: migrant women working in the care sector. A new regime of inequality is observed at home, one between women – a regime that has been fueled by the failure of mono-dimensional policies to address gender equality across Europe.”
“Covid-19 Denialism and Xenophobia. How Corona Denialists harm migrants”, by Edna Bonhomme.
“This is a time for solidarity and to fight back – to figure out a cure for this and to avoid the scapegoating of migrants or ethnic minorities. [...] Solidarity must be intersectional, which means that every person’s health must be supported, and that health must be viewed as a collective good, across divisions of race, nation, and gender.”
