Youth against Racism in Europe
Youth against Racism in Europe (YRE) is a campaigning international youth organisation, active in 16 countries in Europe. YRE was launched by an international demonstration of 40,000 people against racism, in Brussels in October 1992.[1]
It was a wave of racist attacks in Germany and the success of the Blokbuster Belgian youth movement, opposing the far-right Vlaams Blok, which convinced the Committee for a Workers' International, to work to launch an international youth organization along the same lines.
In 1994, YRE organised an anti-racist camp in Germany of 1,500 young people from all over Europe.
The charity Show Racism the Red Card, founded by Ged Grebby, was inspired by his work and involvement with YRE, particularly the concept of educational packs for schools.
Britain
In Britain, YRE's activity has focused around opposition to the British National Party. In 1987 the BNP moved its headquarters to Welling, in south east London. In the next six years there were four racially motivated murders in the town, including that of Stephen Lawrence in April 1993. The following month, on a demonstration called by YRE and others, including Panther, the black socialist organisation, over 8,000 people marched past the BNP headquarters in protest at the murders and the far-right party's presence in the area.[2] Subsequent larger demonstrations were called, co-organised by YRE, numbering 60,000 and 50,000 respectively, forming part of a successful campaign to shut down the BNP headquarters.
In 2010, the group was at the centre of controversy over undercover policing in Britain, following revelations that YRE had been infiltrated by the Metropolitan Police and accusations that the police sought to discredit the anti-racism movement through the use of agent provocateur tactics.[3]
France
YRE launched in France in 1993, with a tour by a British Panther activist based around the recently released Malcolm X film. YRE gained considerable popularity amongst French youth through notable campaigns in defense of immigrants without working papers and the rights of girls wearing the hijab in Mantes-la-Jolie. YRE's participation in an anti-deportation campaign whose goal was to mobilize the passengers of flights departing from Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport against deportations, earned the organisation the ire of the Minister of the Interior of the time, Jean-Pierre Chevènement.[4]
Greece
The Greek YRE has organised demonstrations with immigrants in support of immigrant workers' rights, as well as campaigning for the provision of facilities for Gypsies in the country.
In recent years, it has worked to oppose the extreme right-wing Golden Dawn, which won its first municipal council seat in 2010 and entered parliament for the first time in 2012. This has included calling for the shutting down of the organisation and its weekly newspaper on the grounds that "they propagate violent messages of hate".[5]
References
- ↑ http://www.yre.org.uk/about.html
- ↑ http://www.socialistparty.org.uk/campaign/Anti-racism/YRE/13470
- ↑ http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/mar/21/activists-demand-inquiry-undercover-police?INTCMP=SRCH
- ↑ http://mondediplo.com/1998/05/13gresh
- ↑ http://www.athensnews.gr/old_issue/13273/17331