Racism, religion and ethnic discrimination
Understanding and stopping racism.
Racism is based on a false belief that some groups of people are superior to others because of a different skin colour, nationality, religion, ethnic or cultural background.
If you are discriminated against because you're from a different country, your nationality is different, your skin colour is different or your culture, values and customs are different then you are a victim of racism or ethnic discrimination. You can also be discriminated against because of your religion or the religion of your family.
It doesn't matter if you've lived in Ireland all your life or have the same lifestyle as your friends, you might still be discriminated against if someone believes you belong to a different group.
Racism can be seen in different ways. It might mean not having the same education or employment opportunities, being denied housing, not allowed into shops or pubs or being threatened, teased or humiliated. It can also include deliberate snubbing or exclusion, offensive jokes, hurtful remarks or insults.
Racism is a criminal offence and it is also illegal to encourage other people to be racist. This could include writing or publishing racist leaflets, racist slogans or graffiti on walls or buildings or distributing racist information.
Reporting racist incidents
Organisations and individuals reporting racist incidents are encouraged to report the incident to the relevant authority responsible for investigating and addressing the complaint, for example, the Garda (racist crime), the Equality Authority (discrimination in the workplace and in the provision of goods and services etc.) and local authorities (graffiti, harassment on local authority housing estates etc.).
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