Barcelona’s religious communities stand against racism and discrimination
The Barcelona City Council's Office of Religious Affairs (OAR) is organising the activity “Barcelona’s Religious Communities: Standing Against Racism and Discrimination”, which will be taking place at 5.30 pm on Wednesday 27 November at the Pati Llimona Civic Centre. There will be two round tables, where civil organisations and religious and spiritual communities will discuss their role as agents involved in the fight against racism.
The initiative is part of a series of activities taking place alongside the 4th UNESCO Global Forum against Racism and Discrimination, aimed at putting the fight against racism at the top of international agendas in order to achieve concrete commitments.
From 9 to 11 December 2024, Barcelona will be hosting the UNESCO Global Forum against Racism and Discrimination, an event that will bring international leaders, activists and experts together to discuss the most effective strategies in the fight against racism and all forms of discrimination. Barcelona City Council wants to spotlight the city’s anti-racism projects by programming activities during the months of November and December that focus on the issue. The agenda includes some sixty activities, including cultural events, talks, workshops, debates, conferences, film forums, performing arts shows, reading clubs, exhibitions and more, proposals designed in collaboration with social and anti-racism organisations in the city, and from different municipal areas to help build a fairer society.
Religious beliefs are one of the reasons for discrimination in Barcelona, as shown by the reports issued by the Barcelona Discrimination Observatory. Most cases involve Islamophobia or anti-Muslim racism, antisemitism, and to a lesser extent, Christianophobia. At the same time, religion is embedded in other spheres of society that have an impact on the access to, and effective guarantee of, fundamental rights such as education and health care. For this reason, religious communities and society at large need to be involved in order to turn this situation around.
On the other hand, for years, religious communities in the city have been making significant commitments in the fight against racism and discrimination through their social and educational initiatives. Through anti-discrimination and hosting projects, these communities stand as agents of change, and disseminators of anti-racism messages. It’s important to bear in mind the prominent role played by religious communities as a point of reference for substantial numbers of Barcelona residents, 51% of whom identify themselves as ‘religious’ according to the 2021 interculturality survey. At present the city has around 1,000 religious communities and organisations representing 36 different religious and spiritual traditions, and 508 places of worship.
The OAR is organising an activity on 27 November that will include two round tables where the issues will be addressed. These will be led by Mery Loor, a political scientist specialising in migration and intercultural perspectives. Houssam Bakkali, member of the Bayt al-Thaqafa Foundation, and Paul Sánchez, chair of the board of the Jewish cultural association Mozaika will be taking part, presenting their projects and talking about how both organisations are working to combat racism. The second round table will be looking at racism from the perspective of different religious traditions. Representatives from different communities will be sharing their views on the fight against racism from the perspective of their own faith. There will be a dialogue between Emilio Egea, secretary of the Barcelona Bahá’í Centre, Sara El Bahri Zaidi, member of the ‘Entre Joves’ section of the Union of Islamic Communities of Catalonia (UCIDCAT), Guillem Correa, general secretary of the Evangelical Council of Catalonia (CEC), and Peio Sánchez, rector of the parish of Santa Anna, who all represent communities that implicated in, and affected by, these issues.
With this initiative, the OAR seeks to promote anti-racism projects and make a contribution to the international pro-human rights and equality agenda, taking advantage of the impact of the UNESCO Global Forum against Racism and Discrimination, which is to be held in Barcelona.
Round tables “Barcelona’s Religious Communities: Standing Against Racism and Discrimination”:
- Day: Wednesday 27 November, 2024
- Time: 5.30 pm
- Venue: Sala Maria Aurèlia Capmany, Pati Llimona Civic Centre (C/ Regomir, 3)
- Registration: Free activity. Limited capacity, prior booking required. Please contact oar@bcn.cat
See you there!