[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 256 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 256
Recognizing people of African descent and Black Europeans.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 26, 2019
Mr. Hastings (for himself, Ms. Moore, Mr. Lewis, and Mr. Meeks)
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee
on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing people of African descent and Black Europeans.
Whereas the 109th Congress passed H. Con. Res. 60 and S. Con. Res. 90,
recognizing African descendants in Latin America and the Caribbean,
raising awareness of the racism and discrimination faced by those
communities, and leading to numerous public and private sector
initiatives between the United States and Latin American and Caribbean
countries to improve the situation of African descendants;
Whereas the persistence of racism and discrimination in Europe similarly
necessitates congressional action to raise awareness and promote public
and private sector initiatives to stem this trend;
Whereas the May 19, 2018, royal wedding of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, the
Duke of Sussex, raised awareness of the long history and situation of
African-descent populations in Europe;
Whereas the terms ``Afro-European'', ``African European'', or ``Black European''
refer to people of African ancestry or descent born in, citizens of, or
living in Europe;
Whereas an estimated 15,000,000 to 20,000,000 Black Europeans live in and have
long had a presence in Europe, forming an influential part of the
African diaspora;
Whereas the story of Black Europeans remains widely untold, rendering many of
their past and present contributions to the political and social life of
Europe invisible or forgotten;
Whereas unlike more contemporary figures, largely unknown Blacks have made
significant contributions to European history and culture, including
Spanish poet Juan Latino, Italian Duke Alessandro Medici, French
novelist Alexandre Dumas, German scholar Anthony William Amo, French
Composer Le Chevalier de St. George, British abolitionist Oladuah
Equiano, and Russian General and Governor Abram Hannibal, great-
grandfather of Russian poet Aleksandr Pushkin;
Whereas the largest estimated populations of Black Europeans can be found in
France (approximately 2,500,000), the United Kingdom (approximately
1,500,000), and the Netherlands (approximately 500,000), in addition to
sizeable populations in Germany, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, Norway,
Ireland, Russia, Switzerland, Spain, Belgium, Denmark, and Austria;
Whereas the presence of Blacks in Europe can be traced to voluntary and forced
migration resulting from the geographical proximity of Europe to Africa
and the Middle East, including the transatlantic slave trade, the
colonization of Africa and the Caribbean, African and African-American
military deployments, the movement of refugees and asylum seekers, and
educational and other professional exchanges;
Whereas although Black Europeans have made significant achievements in and
contributions to European society, large numbers have and continue to be
more likely than the general population to experience discrimination and
be underrepresented in leadership roles in the public and private sector
as a result of the color of their skin and ancestry;
Whereas racism has long been, and continues to be, a problem in Europe;
Whereas, on April 29, 2008, before the Commission on Security and Cooperation in
Europe, at a hearing entitled ``The State of (In)visible Black Europe:
Race, Rights, and Politics'', Dr. Philomena Essed stated, ``Probably the
only common European experience among many, if not all, Afro-descendants
is their exposure to [. . .] racism and systemic discrimination,
regardless of country, socio-economic conditions, gender, age, or level
of education.'';
Whereas, as early as 1997, the European Commission opinion poll entitled
``Racism and Xenophobia in Europe'' reported a ``worrying level of
racism and xenophobia in [European Union] member states, with nearly 33%
of those interviewed openly describing themselves as `quite racist' or
`very racist'.'';
Whereas annual reports of the European Union Fundamental Rights Agency (EUFRA)
and both the 2009 and 2018 European Union Minorities and Discrimination
Survey (EU-MIDIS I and II), the first European Union-wide surveys of
ethnic minority and immigrant groups' experiences of discrimination and
victimization in everyday life in the 28 member states of the European
Union, found that persons of African descent experience high incidents
of discriminatory treatment, racist crime, and victimization, and lacked
an awareness of their rights, often underreporting cases of hate crimes
and other forms of discrimination to law enforcement and human rights
agencies, and that the situation has not drastically improved in the
years between the two reports;
Whereas, in November 2018, the European Union Fundamental Rights Agency (EUFRA)
launched ``Being Black in the EU: Second European Union Minorities and
Discrimination Survey'', and called for member states to develop
specific solutions and guidance to address findings that 30 percent of
respondents had been racially harassed, 5 percent physically attacked,
25 percent discriminated against at work or when looking for work, up to
76 percent faced unemployment in some countries, and were experiencing
high rates of discrimination in housing and in the justice system,
including profiling by law enforcement;
Whereas the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Office for
Democratic Institutions and Human Rights' (OSCE/ODIHR) most recent 2017
hate crimes report found more than 1,608 racist and xenophobic
incidents, including a number targeting Black Europeans, while OSCE
reports in previous years found a number of deaths and violent assaults
against people of African origin, and that persons of African descent
are often targets of racist and antimigrant violence, especially in
Eastern Europe, yet in many countries hate crimes are underreported and,
legal assistance and financial support for victims while recovering from
violent attacks does not exist;
Whereas prejudice and discrimination toward Black Europeans has also been linked
to changes in immigration and asylum laws as a result of antiterrorism
initiatives and the growth and mainstreaming of nationalist and anti-
immigrant political parties and groups, including neo-Nazis and
skinheads;
Whereas the Open Society Justice Initiative in an initial 2009 report, entitled
``Ethnic Profiling in the European Union'', and subsequent reports have
found that police officers in the United Kingdom, France, Italy,
Germany, and the Netherlands routinely use racial profiling, including
targeting African descendants, when deciding whom to target for stops,
searches, raids, and surveillance, leading to some of the first
Europeanwide grassroots and legal efforts to end racial profiling in
France, Germany, and elsewhere in Europe, and over a decade of pan-
European antiracism and empowerment initiatives supported by Open
Society Foundations;
Whereas there have been numerous efforts by the public and private sector to
address racial discrimination and inequality in Europe, including the
introduction of antidiscrimination and equality laws that include the
legal support for special measures or positive (affirmative) action,
creation of equality bodies, media campaigns, and efforts to increase
minority political participation, and campaigns to end the use of
stereotypes and derogatory terms to refer to Blacks in everyday
language, the media, and textbooks;
Whereas these efforts include the United Nations designation of 2011 as the
International Year for People of African Descent and 2015-2024 the
International Decade for People of African Descent in an effort to
strengthen national actions to ensure that people of African descent
enjoy economic, cultural, social, civil, and political rights, as well
as promote a greater knowledge of and respect for their diverse heritage
and culture;
Whereas these efforts also include the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's (PA)
adoption of Resolutions: ``A Call for OSCE Action to Address Violence
and Discrimination'' in 2016, ``Addressing Racism and Xenophobia
Affecting People of African Descent in the OSCE Region'' in 2012, and
``Strengthening Efforts to Combat Racism and Xenophobia and Foster
Inclusion'' in 2011 that included recognition of the International Year
for People of African Descent, and calling for the OSCE to implement
several strategic initiatives to address racial and ethnic
discrimination in the OSCE region;
Whereas, in 2011, OSCE/ODIHR held its first ``Roundtable on the contemporary
forms of racism and xenophobia affecting Peoples of African Descent in
the OSCE region'', and has since annually hosted antidiscrimination
initiatives focused on People of African Descent including focused on
hate crimes, women, political participation, strengthening civil
society, and other issues;
Whereas these efforts also include transatlantic meetings of Black and other
diverse legislators held annually at the European Parliament in
Brussels, Belgium, and in the United States Congress in Washington, DC,
including the April 17-19, 2009, ``Black European Summit: Transatlantic
Dialogue on Political Participation'' and adoption of the Brussels
Declaration on political participation; and subsequent ``Transatlantic
Minority Political Leadership Conferences'';
Whereas, as part of the March 24, 2011, Transatlantic Minority Political
Leadership Conference (TMPLC), legislators and minority leaders from
North America and Europe held a Parliamentary Forum at the European
Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, to discuss a ``Joint Action Plan on
Racial and Ethnic Equality and Inclusion'' between the European Union
and United States;
Whereas, in 2011, Members of the Transatlantic Minority Political Leadership
Conference worked in partnership with the German Marshall Fund, the
Department of State, and other stakeholders to found the Transatlantic
Inclusion Leaders Network (TILN) to increase diverse representation in
policymaking;
Whereas, in October 2013, European Parliamentarians in partnership with the
European Network Against Racism (ENAR) held ``(In)visible Diversity'' a
series of debates in the European Parliament, including a debate
entitled, ``People of African Descent and Black Europeans: Realities of
Afrophobia'' and in 2015 released the first pan-European policy guide
reviewing the current situation entitled, ``ENAR Anti-Racism in Focus 2
- InvisibleVisible Minority: Confronting Afrophobia and Advancing
Equality for People of African Descent and Black Europeans in Europe'';
Whereas, in January 2017, the European Network Against Racism published,
``Towards an EU Framework for National Strategies to Combat Afrophobia
and Promote Inclusion of People of African Descent and Black Europeans''
to urge EU member states to adopt ``strong and specific policies to
address Afrophobia, including its structural dimensions and impact on
economic and social outcomes for people of African descent and Black
Europeans, including in employment, housing, education, health,
political participation, criminal justice and other sectors'';
Whereas, on July 25, 2017, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights
stated, ``The position of Black people in Europe needs to be
strengthened, irrespective of whether it concerns recent migrants from
Africa or already established Black communities [. . .] European states
must first come to terms with their own past [including] publicly
acknowledge that slavery, the slave trade and colonialism are among the
major sources of current discrimination against Black people.'', and
recommended European states implement strategies across health,
education, justice, employment, and other sectors;
Whereas, in October 2017, the United Kingdom Prime Minister released the Race
Disparity Audit ``examin[ing] how people of different backgrounds are
treated across areas including health, education, employment and the
criminal justice system'', which found inequalities in education,
housing, income and employment, justice, and health between persons of
African and Caribbean background and others, and has since published the
findings online, appointed a Special Advisor, created a Race Disparity
Advisory Group, and announced 90 million British pounds to implement
strategies to address disparities found by the audit;
Whereas, in 2018, Polish Sejm member Killion Munyama, Rapporteur of the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Committee on Equality
and Non-Discrimination authored measures that were adopted on
``Promoting diversity and equality in politics'' that identified
challenges to political participation faced by visible minorities and
due to skin color;
Whereas, on May 13 through 17, 2018, the European Parliament and European
Economic and Social Committee, under the leadership of European
Parliamentarian Cecile Kyenge of Italy, hosted the inaugural People of
African Descent Week (PAD Week) in Brussels, Belgium, in partnership
with the European Parliament Anti-Racism and Diversity Intergroup
(ARDI), Transatlantic Minority Political Leadership Conference (TMPLC),
Each One Teach One (EOTO), the European Network Against Racism (ENAR),
and supported by congressional Members of the United States Helsinki
Commission;
Whereas PAD Week featured over a hundred experts, activists, and policymakers to
increase awareness of people of African descent living in Europe and to
discuss solutions to address the racial discrimination and violence they
face;
Whereas Member of the European Parliament Cecile Kyenge stated, ``In addition to
honouring the history and contribution of Europe's Black population, the
People of African Descent Week reaffirms European values by developing
strategic and coherent responses to make our society more inclusive in
the face of rising racial prejudice and violence across Europe.'';
Whereas PAD Week final recommendations call on European Union institutions and
national governments to specifically adopt a set of initiatives for
Black Europeans, including--
(1) recognize past injustices and contributions; adopt a European Black
History Month and Remembrance Day for Victims of Colonialism and
Enslavement;
(2) fund Black European led initiatives to address continuing
disparities and discrimination, and support empowerment initiatives through
the creation of caucuses, civil society funds, and fellowships;
(3) adopt a Parliamentary Resolution and EU Framework for National
Strategies for Inclusion of People of African Descent in Europe; and
(4) support transatlantic exchanges to support common solutions to
common issues of racial prejudice and discrimination; and
Whereas in addition to EU institutions affiliated with PAD Week, international
entities, such as the OSCE Personal Representative on Combating Racism,
Xenophobia and Discrimination and OSCE/ODIHR Tolerance and Non-
Discrimination Unit, EUFRA, the COE Human Rights Commissioner and ECRI,
and the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial
Discrimination, Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Racism,
Independent Expert on Minority Issues, and Experts Working Group on
People of African Descent, have documented ongoing racism and
xenophobia, and racial and ethnic discrimination, and called for an
increase in initiatives to combat racism and inequality and foster
inclusion: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) encourages the recognition and celebration of the
collective history and achievements made by people of African
descent;
(2) reaffirms the importance of inclusion and the full and
equal participation of people of African descent around the
world in all aspects of political, economic, social, and
cultural life;
(3) recognizes that, as a result of their skin color and
ancestry, many Black Europeans have wrongfully experienced
injustices in the public and private sector;
(4) welcomes parliamentary activities, including those of
the European Parliament (EP), Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Parliamentary Assembly,
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), and
United States Congress, to engage in efforts to promote racial
equality and combat racial discrimination through efforts such
as introducing legislation, speaking out against racism,
increasing the political participation of diverse populations
through initiatives such as the Transatlantic Minority
Political Leadership Conference and Transatlantic Inclusion
Leaders Network, and working with Black European and other
diverse communities to develop relevant policies;
(5) urges European governments and members of civil society
and the private sector, in consultation with Black European
communities, to develop and implement initiatives to combat
racial discrimination and promote racial equality and inclusion
in Europe, by--
(A) drafting and implementing an EU Framework for
National Strategies to Promote Inclusion of and Combat
Discrimination towards People of African Descent and
Black Europeans;
(B) drafting and implementing anti-discrimination,
special measures, hate crimes, migration and
integration, inclusion, and other laws and policies to
address discrimination and disparities and promote
equality, noting the recommendations of the United
Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial
Discrimination, the Experts Working Group on People of
African Descent (WGPAD), the European Union Fundamental
Rights Agency (EUFRA), the United Nations Special
Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Racism and
Independent Expert on Minority Issues, Council of
Europe Human Rights Commissioner and European
Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), and
the OSCE Personal Representative on Combating Racism,
Xenophobia and Discrimination and OSCE/ODIHR Tolerance
and Non-Discrimination Unit;
(C) promoting and funding research, including the
collection of national census data on Black Europeans
and its inclusion in the annual reports of the EUFRA
and other official reporting at the EU and national
levels;
(D) providing technical support, training, and
funding to Black European civil society and private
sector groups and experts working to combat racism,
discrimination, and inequality, uphold basic human
rights in Europe, and to increase economic opportunity
and empowerment;
(E) introducing national measures to counter
stereotypical images of persons of African descent, by
revising textbooks, increasing efforts to include Black
Europeans in history and heritage institutions, and
remembering victims of colonialism, enslavement, and
other atrocities;
(F) developing or increasing financial support for
funds to assist victims of hate crimes with legal
assistance and compensation when incapacitated due to
physical or emotional injuries;
(G) developing specific initiatives that address
the special concerns of Black European men, women, and
youth, including increasing initiatives related to
migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers;
(H) actively promoting racial and ethnic
representation and participation at all levels of
national, regional, and local government through the
education of civil and political rights, including the
legislative process and advocacy of legislative issues
relevant to racial and ethnic communities, development
of targeted professional advancement and hiring
strategies, increased youth and community outreach, and
self-organization and other empowerment initiatives;
and
(I) recruiting, training, hiring, and retaining
Black Europeans for professional positions in support
of these initiatives;
(6) urges the Secretary of State and Administrator of the
United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to--
(A) provide technical assistance and other support
for European governments and members of the civil
society and private sector to fulfill the initiatives
described above, including by expanding United States
Government efforts with the OSCE to increase the
capacity of members of African Descent communities to
address discrimination;
(B) increase support for the WGPAD and
International Decade for People of African Descent; and
(C) by establishing a Global Office of African
Descent Affairs within the Department of State headed
by senior officials to develop and implement global
foreign policy and assistance strategies to improve the
situation of people of African descent around the
world, create a Department of State ``Fund'' to support
antidiscrimination and empowerment efforts by African
descent led civil society organizations around the
world, and include a section on discrimination faced by
people of African descent in the Department of State's
Annual Country Reports Human Rights Practices, and
working with USAID and other United States Government
agencies to implement the strategy;
(7) supports the adoption of a ``Joint Action Plan on
Racial and Ethnic Equality and Inclusion'' between the European
Union and United States modeled after similar United States
agreements with Colombia and Brazil, and implementation of the
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Resolutions on People of African
Descent and addressing racial and xenophobic violence and
discrimination to assist in fulfilling the initiatives above;
and
(8) urges the Secretary of State and the Administrator of
USAID to provide a report to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the
Committee on Appropriations of the Senate on Department of
State and USAID efforts to address global racial and ethnic
discrimination, including any funding efforts or international
exchange opportunities for civil society.
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