The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed annually on

21 March Events Pre-1600 * 537 – Siege of Rome: King Vitiges attempts to assault the northern and eastern city walls, but is repulsed at the Praenestine Gate, known as the ''Vivarium'', by the defenders under the Byzantine generals Bessas and ...

. On that day, in 1960, police opened fire at a peaceful demonstration in

Sharpeville Sharpeville (also spelled Sharpville) is a township situated between two large industrial cities, Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging, in southern Gauteng, South Africa. Sharpeville is one of the oldest of six townships in the Vaal Triangle. It was na ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, against the

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

pass laws In South Africa, pass laws were a form of internal passport system designed to segregate the population, manage urbanization and allocate migrant labor. Also known as the natives' law, pass laws severely limited the movements of not only black ...

; 69 people were killed, and 180 were injured. Proclaiming the day in 1966, the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...

called on the international community to redouble its efforts to eliminate all forms of

racial A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...

Human Rights Day in South Africa

In South Africa, Human Rights Day is a public holiday celebrated on 21 March each year. The day commemorates the lives of those who died to fight for democracy and equal human rights for all in South Africa during

, an institutionally racist system built upon

racial discrimination Racial discrimination is any discrimination against any individual on the basis of their skin color, race or ethnic origin.Individuals can discriminate by refusing to do business with, socialize with, or share resources with people of a certain g ...

. The

Sharpeville Massacre The Sharpeville massacre occurred on 21 March 1960 at the police station in the township of Sharpeville in the then Transvaal Province of the then Union of South Africa (today part of Gauteng). After demonstrating against pass laws, a crowd o ...

on 21 March 1960 is the particular reference day for this public holiday.

Themes

Every year, the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is under one specific theme: * 2010: ''Disqualify Racism'' * 2014: ''The Role of Leaders in Combatting Racism and Racial Discrimination'' * 2015: ''Learning from tragedies to combat racial discrimination today'' * 2017: ''Racial profiling and incitement to hatred, including in the context of migration'' * 2018: ''Promoting tolerance,

inclusion Inclusion or Include may refer to: Sociology * Social inclusion, aims to create an environment that supports equal opportunity for individuals and groups that form a society. ** Inclusion (disability rights), promotion of people with disabiliti ...

, unity and respect for diversity in the context of combating racial discrimination'' * 2019: ''Mitigating and countering rising nationalist

populism Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...

and extreme supremacist ideologies'' * 2020: ''Recognition, justice and development: The midterm review of the

International Decade for People of African Descent The International Decade for People of African Descent, 2015–2024,

'' * 2022: ''Voices for action against racism''

References

External links

{{commons, Racism, Racism
International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, 21 March
on the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

website
International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
on the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

website Civil awareness days Elimination of Racism International opposition to apartheid in South Africa March observances

Human Rights Day in South Africa

Themes

See also

References

External links