[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 165 (Tuesday, November 19, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1703-E1704]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 INTRODUCING A RESOLUTION IN RECOGNITION OF PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT 
                       AND BLACK EUROPEAN LEADERS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 19, 2013

  Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a 
resolution recognizing people of African descent, and particularly 
Europe's Black community and political leaders, as we welcome a 
delegation of Black European Rights Leaders representing 10 European 
countries to Washington, DC this week, and continue working to address 
issues of inequality, discrimination, and inclusion in the 57 North 
American and European countries that make up the region of the 
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
  An estimated seven to ten million individuals of African descent 
currently live in Europe, particularly in France, the United Kingdom, 
and the Netherlands, and form an influential part of the African 
diaspora. From labor and scholarship to politics and civil rights, they 
have contributed greatly to European history and culture over the past 
several centuries. However, 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. 
Furthermore, similar to the experiences of many African Americans, they 
have increasingly become the targets of discrimination, pernicious 
racial profiling, and violent hate crimes impacting equal access to 
housing, employment, education, and justice.
  On April 29, 2008, I chaired a U.S. Helsinki Commission hearing 
entitled, ``The State of (In)visible Black Europe: Race, Rights, and 
Politics,'' which focused on bringing to light the daily challenges of 
racism and discrimination encountered by Black Europeans, specifically 
with regard to their representation in leadership positions and 
political participation. Since

[[Page E1704]]

then, I have worked with minority and other European legislators to 
convene annual events in Brussels, Belgium at the European Parliament 
to address these issues, including the 2009 Black European Summit: 
Transatlantic Dialogue on Political Inclusion and the 2010 and 2011 
Transatlantic Minority Political Leadership Conferences. Follow-on 
initiatives from these events have included the Transatlantic Inclusion 
Leaders Network in cooperation with the State Department and German 
Marshall Fund, which works to advance young, diverse, and inclusive 
leaders on both sides of the Atlantic.
  This resolution acknowledges the findings from the OSCE's Annual Hate 
Crimes Report and European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights' (EUFRA) 
2009 European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey (EU-MIDIS), as 
well as initiatives such as the June 2013 European Network Against 
Racism's ``People of African Descent and Black Europeans'' Policy Paper 
and Open Society Justice Initiative 2009 report, entitled ``Ethnic 
Profiling in the European Union,'' which reveal systemic discrimination 
against Black Europeans in housing, education, health care, employment, 
the criminal justice system, and access to political participation. 
Moreover, recent racist acts towards Black European cabinet-level 
officials highlight continuing issues of racism and national extremism, 
and the need to increase the awareness of rights and protection for 
Black Europeans.
  Cooperation is key to addressing the global problems of racism and 
discrimination. As we continue working to build on past and current 
initiatives, I encourage my colleagues to join me in recognizing and 
celebrating the collective history and achievements made by people of 
African descent. This resolution 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. To that end, Congress should welcome increased 
parliamentary activities, including those of the OSCE Parliamentary 
Assembly, 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 
racial minorities, and working with Black European and other minority 
communities to develop relevant policies.
  Europe today grapples with complex questions at the intersection of 
national identity, decreasing birth rates, increasing immigration, 
security concerns, and a rise in extremist political parties and 
vigilantism. In this context of changing demographics and attitudes, 
the experiences of Black Europeans increasingly serve as a measure of 
the strength of European democracies and commitments to human rights. 
Following the 2011 Transatlantic Minority Political Leadership 
Conference, U.S. and European parliamentarians called for a Joint US-EU 
Action Plan to work on transatlantic solutions to address bias and 
discrimination and foster inclusion--much the way we work jointly on 
counterterrorism, trade, and other issues. The adoption of such an 
initiative would significantly increase the tools our governments have 
to address common issues, develop proactive policies to meet changing 
demographics leading to increased diversity in our societies, and 
ultimately ensure the long-term stability and prosperity of our 
democracies.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge the adoption of a Joint Action Plan in addition 
to immediate actions by 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 in Europe. In the interim, 
our government can do more to partner with European public and private 
sectors and Black and migrant communities to advance human rights and 
inclusion in Europe, including appointing at the State Department and 
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Senior Advisors on 
Afro-descent peoples and establishing a State Department Fund for the 
Inclusion of Racial and Ethnic minorities modeled after the 
Department's International Fund for Women and Girls and Lesbian, Gay, 
Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Global Equality Funds.

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