# data[].attributes.headline
"Discovering" Abya Yala (Americas) & Oppression of people indigenous to the land

# data[].attributes.subject
"Discovering" Abya Yala (Americas) & Oppression of people indigenous to the land

# data[].attributes.headline
Charles I of Spain & transatlantic slave trade

# data[].attributes.subject
Charles I of Spain & transatlantic slave trade

# data[].attributes.body
After Charles I of Spain signed an edict launching the transatlantic slave trade, human cargo on transatlantic voyages spiked nearly tenfold. In August 1518, King Charles I authorized Spain to ship enslaved people directly from Africa to the Americas.

# data[].attributes.headline
Pioneers of the Enslavement of (Black) Africans in Europe

# data[].attributes.subject
Pioneers of the Enslavement of (Black) Africans in Europe

# data[].attributes.body
In the fifteenth century, Portugal became the first European nation to take significant part in African slave trading. The Portuguese primarily acquired enslaved Africans for labor on Atlantic African island plantations, and later for plantations in Brazil and the Caribbean, though they also sent a small number to Europe.

# data[].attributes.headline
Racism & Xenophobia - Police Brutality & over policing of racial minority groups

# data[].attributes.subject
Racism & Xenophobia - Police Brutality & over policing of racial minority groups

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/01/spain-video-lavapies-madrid-police-violence-unarmed-black-men

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Arab rulers dominated nearly all of the Iberian Peninsula for about 700 years [Juan Garcia Garcia/Al Jazeera]

Elda, Spain - Wearing a fake plastic animal skull and long black feathers in her headdress, Cristina Morcilla holds a spear and looks like she is going to war for an African tribe.

By day, she works in an import-export business, but tonight she is dressed up for the fiesta of the Moros y Cristianos, Spanish for Moors and Christians, which celebrates the reconquest of Iberia by Christian armies over Arab forces more than 500 years ago.

Keep reading

The streets of Elda, a city of about 50,000 people, best known for making women's shoes, are transformed once a year into a cross between a drama from the Middle Ages and a huge fancy dress party.

Like scores of other towns in southeastern Spain, Elda marks the battles of the past with a very 21st century festival.

Arab rulers dominated nearly all of the Iberian Peninsula for about 700 years and the modern-day links with this historical chapter abound, from place names or words in modern Spanish.

The four-day pageant in Elda involves groups divided into Moors and Christians who march through the streets dressed in elaborate costumes to the sound of booming bands.

On the final day, there is a mock re-enactment of the reconquest when Christians win back Elda from its Arab rulers.

A huge plastic castle takes the place of Elda Castle, which lies in ruins.

The crowds dress up in yellow or red loon pants and colourful tunics.

No offence

Cristina Morcilla says it is just an excuse for a fiesta, something which Spaniards revel in.

"This is about a party. This has nothing to do with offending Muslim people or Moroccans. I don't think people are offended by the fiesta," she tells Al Jazeera, from behind her mask.

Brandishing a pistol and wearing a sprinkling of white and yellow make-up, Juanjo Verdu-Martinez is dressed in a flamboyant white corsair costume as he is supposed to be a pirate.

"This cost me about 600 euros [$643] to rent but we do this once a year and it is important for us. Thousands of people come for a night out or to take part. I don't think it has much to do with history, but people just want to have fun," Verdu-Martinez, 17, a school pupil, told Al Jazeera.

The Reconquista - or reconquest - is known in Spain as a period in history covering the military campaigns of Christian kingdoms against the Moors, a term applied to Arabs, North African Berbers and European Muslims, from the eighth century to 1492.

It started with the Battle of Covadonga in 718 or 722, in which an Asturian army achieved the first Christian victory in 1492 with the fall of the Nasrid kingdom in Granada to the Spanish Crown of Ferdinand II and Isabella I of Castile.

Controversy

The festival is not without controversy as the word moro is seen by some of Spain's sizeable Muslim population as an insult as it refers to someone from North Africa.

Moroccans are the largest group of foreign nationals, with more than 872,000 citizens, according to Spanish government figures for 2021.

In the vast parade, some of the troupes portray Moors wearing "blackface" make-up along with their exotic costumes.

Organisers deny this is racist and insist make-up is only used to portray Africans who lived within the Arab kingdom.

Pedro Serrano, president of the Moors and Christians organising festival in Elda, said despite the black face make-up, the festival was "inclusive".

"We welcome all parts of the community. This make-up is only used to reflect Black people who were part of the Moors community," he told Al Jazeera.

Younger members of the small Muslim community take part in the parades.

Aziz Masdour, who runs the Annor Halal butchers in Elda, said Muslims in the town were not offended by the use of the term moro.

"For us, it is a festival. Everyone enjoys themselves and comes into my shop and spends a lot of money. I am happy," he told Al Jazeera.

Last year, the festival in the town of Orihuela near Alicante was criticised as racist, because Black people were pulling a carriage in which the Moorish ambassador - or leader - was white.

Marta Guillen, a former councillor, said on Twitter: "I cannot believe what I am seeing in Orihuela."

No doy crédito a lo que acaba de pasar en Orihuela. El embajador moro ha desfilado en una carroza porteada por personas negras. pic.twitter.com/OMcGVjJwof

- Marta (@_marguillen) July 16, 2022

The Reconquista was seized on as a liberation war during the rise of Spanish nationalism in the 19th century and used during the long dictatorship of General Francisco Franco between 1939 and 1975 as a symbol of Spanish state-building.

Now, the far-right Vox party, the third largest in the Spanish parliament, is using it for political ends, calling on Spaniards to treasure the glories of the past.

Culture wars like this may become real for modern-day Spaniards because Vox is poised to play kingmaker in the July 23 snap general election.

The moderate conservative People's Party is likely to win the most of the votes, according to a poll published by El Pais newspaper on Monday, but is also likely to need to form a pact with Vox to govern.

Back in Elda, each side is divided into troupes, including the Moors, Christians, Moroccans, Gypsies and Pirates.

Make-up artists like Rosanna Aroca spend two hours a day transforming 15 men into Moors with red, white and black faces.

Elda, like scores of other towns in southeastern Spain, spends an entire year planning this party, which organisers insist bears little resemblance to the bloody battles of the Middle Ages.

Pepe Blanes, a historian of the Moors and Christian festival in Elda, said the festival started in the Valencia, Alicante and Albacete area in the 19th century.

"In the age of Romanticism in the 19th, these fiestas began when people looked to the past. They looked at the Reconquista but the fiesta has little to do with what actually happened during those wars," he said.

"Until the great error of expelling the Muslims after 1492, life in Spain was one of living together between Christians and Muslims."

Blanes conceded that at times the fiesta has been controversial.

"The word moro can be disrespectful towards people from North Africa or Morocco but this is not the case in the fiesta of Moors and Christians," he said.

After the 2015 attack on the offices of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, in which 12 people were killed, organisers of the Moros y Cristianos festival in the Alicante area met with local imams to gauge their sentiments.

Muslim leaders said the festivities did not cause offence.

"This is not a religious or historical fiesta, this is about living together. It is a privilege to be part of the Moors group in the fiesta. It is a great celebration of getting on," Blanes said.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Party with controversy: Spain's festival of Moors and Christians

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Some see the annual festival marking the reconquest of Iberia from Arab rulers as racist and disrespectful.

# data[].attributes.headline
Inequalities in the policing system- violence against women and racial inequality

# data[].attributes.subject
Inequalities in the policing system- violence against women and racial inequality

# data[].attributes.body
Met Police officer Wayne Couzens has been sentenced to a whole-life term for the murder of Sarah Everard, in a case that sparked national outrage and calls for more action to tackle violence against women.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Sarah Everard: The Search for Justice review – this film will make you furious, but don’t look away

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Made with the blessing of Everard’s parents, this stomach-churning documentary about her murder doesn’t shy away from all the disturbing facts. It is both unbearable and heart-rattlingly urgent to watch

# data[].attributes.body
Panels made from plastic and aluminium were installed on the sides of Grenfell Tower to make it warmer and drier. But the cladding has been blamed for helping flames to spread when fire broke out in June 2017, resulting in 72 deaths.

Hundreds of thousands of people are living in buildings with similar cladding, which must now be removed at enormous cost, resulting in a crisis in building safety.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The Grenfell Foundation was set up at the request of some survivors and bereaved families following the Grenfell Tower fire on 14 June 2017. We provide independent support and advocacy for the former residents of Grenfell Tower and the bereaved families and dependents.

In the weeks and months after the Grenfell fire, people across the country showed incredible generosity to everyone affected and that continues to this day.

The Grenfell Foundation helps to channel that spirit and the funds raised by the Foundation to projects that will provide support to those affected by the Grenfell Tower tragedy for the long-term, as well as to initiatives that support awareness of what happened and change to ensure nothing similar happens again.

As the timelines towards any sort of Justice keep extending, it is important we carefully plan how to raise and utilise our funds to ensure we can maintain a subtle but supportive presence for years to come.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Grenfell Foundation was set up at the request of some survivors and bereaved families following the Grenfell Tower fire on 14 June 2017. We provide independent support and advocacy for the former residents of Grenfell Tower and the bereaved families and dependents.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The current cost of living crisis affects us all, but the impact is disproportionately felt by those of us who are already struggling to make ends meet.

The cost of living crisis refers to a period of time during which the cost of everyday essentials like food and bills increases more quickly than average household income. The UK has been experiencing a cost of living crisis since late 2021.

Although the cost of living crisis affects us all, those of us on lower incomes are disproportionately impacted.

We all need a safe place to call home. It's not right that those of us who are already struggling to find a secure and stable place to live, have to deal with the cost of living crisis too. Crisis research published in March 2022 showed that families on the breadline are facing an average £372 deficit between their Local Housing Allowance and the cost of the cheapest rents in their local areas.

This current crisis combined with existing issues such as rising rents, low wages and a lack of affordable housing has created a perfect storm for people who were already struggling with unrelenting pressure.

With little to no social housing to go around, more and more of us are living in the private rented sector paying record high rents which is eating up over 30% of income. When coupled with rising costs of household bills and necessities, these factors increase the risk of someone being forced into homelessness.

With inflation hitting a 41-year high and the energy price cap due to rise yet again in the Autumn, the situation looks desperate, with no end in sight.

The support package announced in the May 2022 budget was aimed at helping those on low incomes, but the cost of living crisis will continue piling on an extra financial burden for many people. As a society, we can and must do more to ensure that this crisis does not lead to people losing their homes because they cannot afford to pay their bills.

Cost of Living Crisis Research

With the cost of living crisis soaring, Crisis conducted research last year to better understand if and how it was pushing people into homelessness.

Read the research

Over the difficult months ahead, we will be supporting people at the sharp end of the cost of living crisis, including those who might be facing the terrifying prospect of becoming homelessness for the very first time.

Our services operate out of our 11 Skylight centres across the UK, where we work with thousands of people who are at risk of or currently experiencing homelessness every year. Although our services are already seeing an increased demand from people who need our help, we will continue to be there for everyone that needs us.

Our front line teams are working flat out trying to find affordable places for our members to live in a situation where rising rents and shortfalls in housing benefit, along with landlords being less willing to rent properties with bills included, are preventing people from finding a secure home that they can afford. Our specialist teams will keep working to negotiate more affordable rents on behalf of members, and we will offer financial support to cover deposits and pay rent in advance if needed.

We will continue to advocate on behalf of our members to ensure that they have access to a proper home they can afford. Our dedicated welfare advisors will be providing expert advice on member's benefits so that they can access support available to them, including financial support such as emergency funding from local councils and loans and grants provided by Crisis. This includes our Housing Access Fund, which provides members with a stipend that they can use to purchase household items needed for their new home.

We will be working closely with food banks across all our services, making as many referrals as possible so that people are not going without essentials they can no longer afford. We will also be taking on more referrals from food banks to our services for people in need of housing support.

How you can help

As an independent charity, we receive almost no government funding. The generosity of our supporters, including our corporate partners and philanthropy supporters, is what allows us to continue to be there for everyone that needs us, and it is especially important during these tough times.

Your support allows us to deliver a range of our front line Skylight services that support people experiencing homelessness. This includes our engagement and assessment teams, the first port of call for people approaching crisis for the first time, and our lead workers, who work side-by-side with our members, helping them with everything from jobs to supporting them into secure housing.

We're all finding this time difficult but if you're able to give something, then you could stand with someone facing homelessness. No one should have to go without a safe and stable home and with your help we can make sure they don't have to.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Find out what the cost of living crisis means for those of us experiencing or at risk of homelessness and how Crisis and its supporters are helping.

# data[].attributes.headline
Inequity in policy: anti-LGBT+ policies in schools 

# data[].attributes.subject
Inequity in policy: anti-LGBT+ policies in schools 

# data[].attributes.body
https://mermaidsuk.org.uk/news/trans-schools-guidance-explainer/

There are multiple examples of anti-LGBT+ policy proposals within education: historically with section 28 and more recently with the trans* guidance in UK schools. Both disrupt inclusive practice for LGBT+ pupils and staff and perpetuate inequality.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
La Audiencia Provincial de Madrid ha concluido que el joven mantero de origen senegalés Mame Mbaye no falleció a causa de una persecución policial en Lavapiés sino "por causas naturales", según el auto al que ha tenido acceso laSexta Noticias.

Además, ha rechazado que éste hubiera recibido una atención médica deficiente por parte de SAMUR. De esta manera ha avalado el archivo del caso juzgado en 2018 por el juzgado 48 de Madrid y exculpado a los agentes que intervinieron en la redada, tras concluir que tampoco hubo una deficiencia en la atención sanitaria.

La ONG SOS Racismo, que llevó el caso a los tribunales, sostenía que la persecución por parte de la Policía había provocado la muerte de Mbaye. No obstante, varios análisis médicos revelaron que el joven tenía una " patología cardíaca estructural asentada en el ventrículo izquierdo" que le había provocado un parada cardiorespiratoria.

Tampoco consta que el fallecido " hubiese sido perseguido por la policía en ningún momento" tras el testimonio del hombre que acompañaba a Mame.

Los jueces han calificado las acusaciones de la organización de " afirmaciones apodícticas y especulaciones o conjeturas carentes de sustento objetivo".

Tras el fallecimiento del joven en marzo de 2018, el barrio de Lavapiés fue testigo de protestas y disturbios entre los manteros y la Policía Nacional además de varios contenedores calcinados.

Aunque al día siguiente el Ayuntamiento de Madrid había confirmado que el fallecido no fue perseguido, numerosas asociaciones responsabilizaron de su muerte a "la persecución y acoso" a la que se enfrentan a menudo los manteros.
Disturbios, quema de contenedores y desperfectos en Lavapiés tras la muerte de un mantero

Muere un mantero por una parada cardíaca en Lavapiés: los vecinos denuncian que se debe a una persecución policial

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
La Justicia concluye que el mantero Mame Mbaye murió por causas naturales en Lavapiés

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Tras varios informes médicos la Audiencia Provincial ha revelado que el joven sufrió una parada cardiorespiratoria debido a una "patología cardíaca en el ventrículo izquierdo".

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Um em cada 73 cidadãos dos PALOP está preso. É dez vezes mais do que a proporção que existe para os portugueses. Magistrados e outros agentes do sistema judicial reconhecem que há duas justiças, uma para negros e outra para brancos. Esta é a primeira reportagem da série Racismo à Portuguesa

Há uma marca no rosto de Diogo do tempo em que ele esteve na prisão. Livre há apenas uns meses, prefere não explicá-la. Com voz pausada, Diogo lembra a vida que o conduziu para trás das grades durante três anos e seis meses, justamente numa altura em que até tinha começado a trabalhar e em que não cometia crimes. Cumpriu a pena praticamente até ao fim, mas saiu do Estabelecimento Prisional de Leiria sem perspectivas.

Encontramo-nos na estação de comboios na Amadora de onde todos os dias segue para Lisboa. Passámos já pelos grandes outdoors da autarquia que anunciam um sistema de videovigilância. Todas as pessoas que no anúncio aparecem a vigiar são brancas.

Sentado num banco de jardim entre prédios, Diogo conta que já conseguiu um trabalho mas que é precário. E conseguiu-o por causa de uma ópera onde participou como recluso, apresentada na Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian, em Lisboa.

Racismo à Portuguesa

A série Racismo à Portuguesa começa hoje com um trabalho sobre o sistema judicial português. Ao longo das próximas semanas, ao sábado, iremos publicar artigos sobre como se manifestam as desigualdades raciais em Portugal em diversas áreas, da habitação, ao emprego ou à educação.

Falámos com procuradores, advogados, professores, activistas, investigadores, artistas. Analisámos estatísticas, recolhemos testemunhos de quem se sente vítima de diversas formas de racismo, cerca de 50 pessoas de várias classes sociais. Encerramos com uma reflexão sobre as marcas do colonialismo em Portugal.

Esta é, assim, a segunda parte da série Racismo em Português com reportagens sobre o colonialismo em África. Centra-se, por isso, no racismo contra os negros

Apesar de ter nascido em Portugal, não é português. É cabo-verdiano no passaporte, sem nunca ter ido a Cabo Verde. Como foi condenado a uma pena superior a três anos, está impedido de pedir a nacionalidade portuguesa.

Sempre viveu com autorização de residência permanente. Quando saiu da cadeia em Setembro, ficou em situação ilegal. O Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras (SEF) cancelou a sua residência. "Nasci cá. Já cumpri a minha pena, já fiz porcaria, mas já paguei. Estou a trabalhar. Exigem mais porquê? Se não tiver trabalho o que faço?" Tem a sensação de que, ao encurrala-lo assim, o sistema pressiona-o para que vá de novo para a cadeia.

Diogo foi um dos jovens dos Países Africanos de Língua Oficial Portuguesa (PALOP) que engrossou as estatísticas prisionais. Um em cada 73 cidadãos dos PALOP com mais de 16 anos em Portugal está preso. É uma proporção dez vezes maior do que a que existe para os cidadãos portugueses - onde um em cada 736 cidadãos na mesma faixa etária está detido. O número sobe para 1 em 48 quando se trata de cabo-verdianos, a comunidade africana mais expressiva em Portugal: ou seja, 15 vezes mais.

Mais um dado: se tivermos apenas em conta os homens, que constituem, na verdade, o grosso da população prisional, concluímos que um em cada 37 cidadãos dos PALOP está preso versus um em cada 367 homens portugueses (e uma em cada 1071 mulheres dos PALOP versus uma em cada 6732 portuguesas).

Estes números resultam de um cruzamento feito pelo PÚBLICO a partir de informação da Direcção-Geral de Reinserção e Serviços Prisionais (DGRSP) relativa a 31 de Dezembro de 2016 e do Censos 2011. Os cálculos recorrem a uma fórmula usada pelo instituto de pesquisa americano Pew Research Center, um dos mais conceituados dos Estados Unidos (ver nota metodológica na infografia).

As diferenças entre as taxas de encarceramento acentuam-se nos concelhos onde a percentagem de imigrantes dos PALOP é mais alta, como Amadora ou Sintra. Na Amadora, uma em cada 49 pessoas dos PALOP está presa, comparando com um rácio de um em cada 392 cidadãos portugueses. Em Sintra não é muito diferente: na população dos PALOP, a relação é de um para 50; entre a comunidade portuguesa, de um para 492.

O hiato agrava-se se focarmos só a comunidade cabo-verdiana, a segunda nacionalidade de imigrantes mais representada no país: na Amadora e em Sintra, um cabo-verdiano tem 19 vezes mais de probabilidade de estar detido do que um português.

Já no Porto, onde a população dos PALOP é pouco expressiva, a diferença de taxas de encarceramento entre portugueses e cidadãos dos PALOP é muito menor do que no resto do país e do que nos concelhos referidos: fica-se apenas pelo dobro.

Os cidadãos de Angola, Moçambique, Cabo Verde, Guiné-Bissau e São Tomé e Príncipe representam menos de 1% da população em Portugal.

"Uma diferença abismal"

Estas estatísticas podem ter várias interpretações, e também ser analisadas do ponto de vista racial, já que a maioria da população destes países é negra - por não existirem dados étnico-raciais em Portugal, há sociólogos que usam a variável imigração dos PALOP como método de aproximação à questão racial. Os resultados seriam diferentes - e, acreditam os especialistas contactados pelo PÚBLICO, a desproporção aumentaria - se houvesse dados sobre portugueses negros, que aqui aparecem diluídos no grupo de portugueses.

Para ter uma ideia da expressividade desta informação: comparando com os Estados Unidos, os afro-americanos têm cinco vezes mais de probabilidades de estar na prisão, diz o mais recente estudo feito pelo think tank The Sentencing Project. Ou seja, metade dos valores registados em Portugal quando se analisa os cidadãos dos PALOP.

O procurador Alípio Ribeiro, que já esteve na direcção nacional da Polícia Judiciária, não tem dúvidas: as taxas de encarceramento apuradas pelo PÚBLICO mostram uma "diferença abismal" entre presos dos PALOP e portugueses. E confirmam uma intuição que tinha, a de que "há uma justiça para portugueses e uma justiça para estrangeiros, uma justiça para brancos e uma justiça para negros".

"Há uma justiça para portugueses e uma justiça para estrangeiros, uma justiça para brancos e uma justiça para negros"

Alípio Ribeiro, procurador

O procurador, também inspector, defende que "não se pode tirar destes números a conclusão de que os PALOP são mais criminosos". Pelo contrário: "O que posso dizer é que o sistema permite isto. Parece-me que há uma pro-actividade em relação a estes indivíduos."

A discriminação racial na justiça traduz-se em outros aspectos, afirma. A sua percepção é a de que "é preciso menos provas para incriminar um negro". Porque "há uma desconfiança inicial em relação ao negro que não há em relação ao branco". Em geral, afirma, a justiça é "mais dura em relação aos negros".

Pelos números, prossegue Alípio Ribeiro, também fica claro que há "faixas de população mais vulneráveis, mais 'perseguidas' do ponto de vista policial e relativamente às quais é possível uma actuação de força que não será possível em relação a outros".

E a defesa?

Já em 2014 um estudo do Observatório da Imigração, Monitorizar a Integração de Imigrantes em Portugal, mostrava que as taxas de condenação, nos mesmos tipos de crime, eram mais elevadas para estrangeiros.

Se analisarmos a duração de penas, com base nos dados que o PÚBLICO compilou da Direcção-Geral da Política de Justiça (DGPJ) de 2015, e pegando em três crimes apenas como exemplo - furto simples e qualificado e violência doméstica -, os cidadãos africanos estão também em desvantagem em relação aos portugueses: são o dobro as percentagens de presos com as penas máximas (de entre 15 a 20 anos e de entre 20 a 25 anos) e metade com as penas mais baixas de entre um a três anos. Ou seja, 6,8% dos reclusos africanos têm pena máxima contra 3% dos portugueses. Inversamente, 12,4% têm uma pena de um a três anos, enquanto essa percentagem para os portugueses é de 25,3%.

As discrepâncias também se encontram nas condenações pelos mesmos tipos de crimes, com clara desvantagem para africanos. As proporções são estas: há nove vezes mais condenados dos PALOP por roubo e violência do que portugueses; oito vezes mais por resistência e coacção sobre funcionário; seis vezes mais por desobediência. Estes dois últimos crimes implicam interacção com a polícia. "Aqui o anacronismo ainda é mais visível", continua Alípio Ribeiro.

Ao procurador João Rato, da comarca de Aveiro, preocupa a qualidade da defesa que muitos destes cidadãos não estão a ter. Interroga-se sobre a capacidade que têm de interpor recurso e se lhes é dada a possibilidade de cumprirem as penas em liberdade condicional. "Os dados são impressivos. A sensação que tive quando fiz trabalhos de inspecção nas comarcas de Lisboa Oeste e Norte foi que, para os mesmos crimes, as penas eram mais leves para cidadãos portugueses. Parece que há um código para uns e um código para outros."

Como inspector, não se coloca à margem da possibilidade de praticar actos discriminatórios. Diz, aliás, que a sua obrigação é interpelar os outros e a si próprio sobre os preconceitos inconscientes, que são os que "mais o preocupam", afirma. "O importante é não fugirmos a esta questão."

Celso Manata, que está à frente da DGRSP, recusa a ideia de que no sistema judicial haja discriminação. "Seria uma injustiça dizê-lo." Reconhece que há uma sobre-representação da população negra nos estabelecimentos prisionais que dirige, não porque tenha números, pois eles não são recolhidos, mas porque conhece a realidade de perto. Porém, explica-o com o facto de "as pessoas de raça negra, em muitas circunstâncias, terem condições sociais, de trabalho, e um enquadramento mais desfavorável do que a população branca". Estas "ambiências são mais propiciadoras a atitudes criminais do que morar no Bairro Azul ou nas Avenidas Novas" de Lisboa, considera. Ou seja: não se pode ligar a cor da pele das pessoas ao facto de estarem presas mas a estarem excluídas.

"Há cadeias, como o Linhó, onde só há praticamente reclusos negros e muitos são portugueses", lembra o sociólogo António Pedro Dores, que já fez várias denúncias de violações de direitos humanos nas prisões. "Toda a gente percebe que tanto a polícia, como os tribunais e as prisões, fazem uma distinção entre grupos de pessoas, nomeadamente africanos".

"Prisão não é hotel"

Numa sociedade cujos "mecanismos estão montados para vigiarem uma determinada população", "é claro que o número de reclusos vai ser mais expressivo" nessas populações, comenta, por outro lado, o advogado José Semedo Fernandes. "Quando alguém chega ao 5.º ano e não tem nacionalidade portuguesa, não lhe dão a residência, não consegue trabalhar só vê muros e não tem alternativas", afirma este jurista que durante anos trabalhou no Centro Nacional de Apoio ao Imigrante (CNAI). "O sistema judicial e o carcerário são muito mais agressivos com os cidadãos negros. As pessoas não têm a noção do quanto é. Isso vê-se também no facto de o cidadão negro, na maioria das vezes, ultrapassar os dois terços da pena ou cumprir a pena toda."

Manuel, nome fictício, não tem dúvidas. Depois de cumprir a sua pena, sabe que "a população" da sua cor "está em massa nas prisões".

"A sensação que tive quando fiz trabalhos de inspecção nas comarcas de Lisboa Oeste e Norte foi que, para os mesmos crimes, as penas eram mais leves para cidadãos portugueses. Parece que há um código para uns e um código para outros"

João Rato, procurador

Com quase 40 anos, e a viver em Portugal há 17, na linha de Sintra, é um angolano pai de uma filha de sete anos, portuguesa. Foi Manuel quem se entregou à polícia por crimes de burla e falsificação. Mas acredita que o facto de ser negro influenciou o seu percurso: não contou com atenuante na pena aplicada, de seis anos e sete meses, cumpriu-a praticamente até ao fim e sem conseguir gozar de qualquer precária, mesmo tendo sido um "recluso exemplar".

"Encontramos o racismo mais puro dentro do sistema prisional", afirma. "Pedi uma saída. Sendo recluso primário, com um quarto da pena cumprida, por ser desta cor não me deram."

Quando entram na prisão, os reclusos estrangeiros perdem a autorização de residência e não a conseguem renovar. "O juiz dizia que não me dava a precária porque os meus documentos estão caducados. Se quem me privou da liberdade foi a justiça, a justiça é que tem que ver se eu estou preparado para a precária, não é o SEF. Onde é que estão os direitos humanos?"

Os dados, por isso, não o espantam e mostram que, como ele, muitos não tiveram acesso a uma boa defesa, permanecem mais tempo encarcerados e ficam com maiores hipóteses de reincidência. Se em Portugal se defende a democracia, então ela deveria chegar ao sistema prisional, conclui: "Prisão não é hotel. É preciso algum sofrimento. Mas um indivíduo também não pode ser esfolado ou asfixiado."

Alípio Ribeiro analisa: "Em todos os países há fenómenos de discriminação racial nos sistema judicial. Porque não haveria de existir em Portugal?" Não tem dúvidas: "Há um preconceito racial, que as pessoas não assumem." E ele "invade o polícia, o procurador, o cidadão comum". Por isso é importante saber se "nós, que trabalhamos neste sector" estamos preparados para o "ultrapassar". "Temos estes números [do PÚBLICO] que são muito significativos e um bom ponto de partida para começarmos a estudar este fenómeno."

A ministra da Justiça, Francisca Van Dunem, não quis comentar.

O eterno problema dos dados

Apesar da recomendação da ONU para que o faça, e de insistência de associações de afrodescendentes, em Portugal não há recolha oficial de dados étnico-raciais, por isso alguns cientistas sociais usam dados das populações PALOP. É uma limitação, até pela associação que assim se cria entre negros e imigrantes, mas também uma forma de aproximação. O retrato da desigualdade racial só seria feito se a estes dados conseguíssemos acrescentar os portugueses negros.

Não deixa de ser curioso que o sistema que não permite a recolha oficial faça o registo individual sobre a raça, em determinadas instituições públicas. Basta ler autos da polícia, relatórios médicos de ocorrências em esquadras para perceber que a etiqueta "indivíduo de raça negra" é comum. Ao contrário do que quem se opõe às estatísticas étnico-raciais defende, ter dados ajudaria mais do que estigmatizaria as populações racializadas, acredita o procurador Alípio Ribeiro. "Porque nos daria uma percepção mais real da sua situação na sociedade, nomeadamente na justiça." E permitiria desenhar políticas de natureza criminal para estes grupos.

O facto de não existirem dados étnico-raciais já mostra alguma coisa, diz, por seu lado, a procuradora Rita Sousa: a negação de uma tendência ou o desinteresse pelo estudo da realidade das populações negras. "Parece que há uma intolerância para com estas populações, mas era necessário fazer um estudo mais amplo." Mais dados, de mais anos, comparação entre decisões e factos semelhantes, e cruzamento de outros factores seriam um passo necessário para trazer mais robustez às conclusões, diz. "Apesar disso, não nos podemos esquecer que actuamos com um inconsciente colectivo que é o de um país que foi colonizador."

Ler o resto do trabalho em
Mulheres também se queixam de violência policial "Quando era miúdo um polícia disse-me: um preto é sempre suspeito" Onde se lia: "Inversamente, 12,4% têm uma pena de três a seis anos, enquanto essa percentagem para os portugueses é de 25,3%", deve ler-se, "Inversamente, 12,4% têm uma pena de um a três anos, enquanto essa percentagem para os portugueses é de 25,3%".

Metodologia e ficha técnica

Os dados a partir dos quais o PÚBLICO trabalhou foram recolhidos junto da Direcção-Geral de Reinserção e Serviços Prisionais (número de reclusos a 31 de Dezembro de 2016), e da Direcção-Geral da Política da Justiça (2015). Ambos discriminam a nacionalidade (PALOP e portuguesa). Estes valores sobre população prisional foram cruzados com os do Censos 2011 - os últimos que discriminam a população simultaneamente por concelho, nacionalidade e idade. Só foi tida em conta a população com mais de 16 anos porque é a idade a partir da qual um jovem pode ser preso. Para calcular a proporção da população presa foi seguida uma metodologia usada pelo Pew Research Center, especialista em estudos deste género: divide-se o número de residentes PALOP pelo total dos detidos dessas nacionalidades (e o mesmo para os portugueses e depois para os respectivos concelhos). Em relação às penas aplicadas, os dados de 2015 foram fornecidos pela Direcção-Geral da Política da Justiça: calculou-se o quociente das percentagens dos condenados na população entre PALOP e portugueses com mais de 16 anos. Ressalve-se que as estatísticas da imigração variam de ano para ano, há milhares de cidadãos dos PALOP a requerem nacionalidade portuguesa (de 2012 a 2016 foram mais de 44 mil) e a informação fornecida pelos serviços judiciais não separa portugueses negros. Acresce ainda que a população prisional não é estanque.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
A justiça em Portugal é "mais dura" para os negros

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Um em cada 73 cidadãos dos PALOP está preso. É dez vezes mais do que a proporção que existe para os portugueses. Magistrados e outros agentes do sistema judicial reconhecem que há duas justiças, uma para negros e outra para brancos. Esta é a primeir

# data[].attributes.body
The number of hate crimes recorded by the police has more than tripled since the year ending March 2013, from 41,294 offences to 145,214 offences recorded in the latest year. (2022-23)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Frequency of release: Annual

Forthcoming release: Home Office statistics release calendar

Home Office responsible statistician: John Flatley

Press enquires: pressoffice@homeoffice.gov.uk, Telephone: 0300 123 3535

Public enquires: crimeandpolicestats@homeoffice.gov.uk

This release contains statistics about hate crime offences recorded by the police in England and Wales.

In line with our published Revisions and Corrections policy, we have updated this statistical bulletin to incorporate revised data for Nottinghamshire Police relating to religious hate crimes for the year ending March 2023. The revision by Nottinghamshire Police means that the total number of religious hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales in the year ending March 2023 has been revised down from 9,387 to 8,241 offences.

This means there was a 4% fall in religious hate crimes across England and Wales compared with the previous year, rather than an increase of 9% as previously stated. The associated Data and Appendix tables have also been revised.

Key results

in the year ending March 2023, there were 145,214 hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales (excluding Devon and Cornwall), a 5% decrease compared with the previous year

this was the first annual fall since the Home Office began collecting comparable data in the year ending March 2013

increases in police recorded hate crime prior to this year were thought to have been driven by improvements in crime recording by the police and better identification of what constitutes a hate crime

as in previous years, the majority of hate crimes were racially motivated, accounting for over two-thirds of such offences (70%; 101,906 offences)

racially motivated hate crime decreased by 6% over the last year, this was driven by a decrease in racially or religiously aggravated public fear, alarm or distress offences

1. Introduction

1.1 Overview

This statistical bulletin provides information on the number of hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales in the year ending March 2023. Data for Devon and Cornwall Police have not been included in this bulletin as they have been unable to supply data following the implementation of a new IT system in November 2022.

Police forces have made significant improvements in how they record crime since 2014. They have also improved their identification of what constitutes a hate crime. Because of these changes, police recorded crime figures do not currently provide reliable trends in hate crime. Figures from the police should also not be seen as a measure of prevalence of hate crime. The figures do, however, provide a good measure of the hate crime-related demand on the police. For more information, see section 3: Police recorded hate crime data sources and quality.

1.2 Hate crimes recorded by the police

Hate crime is defined as 'any criminal offence which is perceived, by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice towards someone based on a personal characteristic.' This common definition was agreed in 2007 by the police, Crown Prosecution Service, Prison Service (now the National Offender Management Service) and other agencies that make up the criminal justice system. There are 5 centrally monitored strands of hate crime:

race or ethnicity

religion

sexual orientation

disability

transgender identity

In the process of recording a crime, the police can flag an offence as being motivated by one or more of these 5 monitored strands (for example, an offence can be motivated by hostility towards the victim's race and religion). For more information, see section 3 - Police recorded hate crime data sources and quality. Hate crime figures in this bulletin are therefore dependent on a flag being correctly applied to an offence that is identified as a hate crime.

The College of Policing ( CoP) published updated guidance on how the police should respond to hate crime in October 2020. The Authorised Professional Practice guidance on hate crime includes information on what can be covered by hate crime. The guidance states:

A hate crime is any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim or any other person to be motivated by a hostility or prejudice based on:

a person's race or perceived race, or any racial group or ethnic background including countries within the UK and Gypsy and Traveller groups; this includes asylum seekers and migrants

a person's religion or perceived religion, or any religious group including those who have no faith

a person's sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation, or any person's sexual orientation

a person's disability or perceived disability, or any disability including physical disability, learning disability and mental health or developmental disorders

a person who is transgender or perceived to be transgender, including people who are transsexual, transgender, cross dressers and those who hold a Gender Recognition Certificate under the Gender Recognition Act 2004

The inclusion of migrants within the first category listed above means that offences with a xenophobic element (such as graffiti targeting certain nationalities) can be recorded as race hate crimes by the police).

An offence may also be motivated by hatred towards a characteristic (strand) that is not currently centrally monitored and therefore does not form part of the data collection presented in this statistical bulletin (age or gender, for example).

Hate crimes are taken to mean any crime where the perpetrator's hostility or prejudice against an identifiable group of people is a factor in determining who is victimised. While a crime may be recorded as a 'hate crime', it may only be prosecuted as such if evidence of hostility is submitted as part of the case file.

Terrorist offences may or may not be considered a hate crime depending on the circumstances. A terrorist attack may be targeted against general British or Western values rather than one of the 5 specific strands. Attacks of this nature are therefore not covered by this statistical bulletin, although they will clearly be motivated by hate. However, other terrorist attacks are motivated by a hatred towards one of the centrally monitored hate crime strands covered by this statistical bulletin. For example, the Finsbury Park Mosque attack in June 2017 has been classified as a hate crime because the victims were thought to be targeted because of their religious affiliation.

The Law Commission published recommendations in December 2021 to reform hate crime laws to remove the disparity in the way hate crime laws treat each protected characteristic - race, religion, sexual orientation, disability and transgender identity. In April 2023, the Government published a response to Recommendation 8 of the Law Commission's review, agreeing with the recommendation that sex or gender should not be added as a protected characteristic for the purposes of aggravated offences and enhanced sentencing. This report can be found here: Government response to recommendation 8 of the Law Commission's review of hate crime legislation. The Government will respond to the remaining recommendations made by the Law Commission shortly. The report can be found here: Hate crime laws: Final report

1.3 Hate crimes and racially or religiously aggravated offences

There are some offences in the main police recorded crime collection which have specific racially or religiously motivated elements defined by statute. These constitute a set of offences which are distinct from their non-racially or religiously aggravated equivalents (the full list of these is shown in table 1.1). These racially or religiously aggravated offences are, by definition, considered to be hate crimes. Around a half (49%) of hate crime offences were recorded as one of these racially or religiously aggravated offences.

Table 1.1 The 5 racially or religiously aggravated offences and their non-aggravated equivalents

Racially or religiously aggravated offences

Non-aggravated equivalent offences

8P

Racially or religiously aggravated assault with injury

8N

Assault with injury

105B

Racially or religiously aggravated assault without injury

105A

Assault without Injury

8M

Racially or religiously aggravated harassment

8L

Harassment

9B

Racially or religiously aggravated public fear, alarm or distress

9A

Public fear, alarm or distress

58J

Racially or religiously aggravated criminal damage

Criminal damage to a dwelling
Criminal damage to a building other than a dwelling
Criminal damage to a vehicle
Other criminal damage

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office

1.4 Crime survey for England and Wales (CSEW)

The CSEW is a face-to-face victimisation survey and also provides information on hate crimes experienced by people resident in England and Wales. However, the size of the CSEW sample means the number of hate crime incidents and victims estimated in a single survey year is too unreliable to report on. Therefore, 3 annual datasets are combined to provide a larger sample which can be used to produce robust estimates for hate crime. Estimates from the survey were last published in ' Hate crime, England and Wales, 2019 to 2020 '.

The next publication of figures from the CSEW has been delayed because the face-to-face survey was suspended due to public health restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic. CSEW interviews resumed in October 2021. This means that the first 3-year data set from the CSEW will not be available until 2025.

2. Police recorded hate crime

Key results

in the year ending March 2023, there were 145,214 hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales (excluding Devon and Cornwall police), a decrease of 5% from the year ending March 2022 (153,536 offences), the first fall since the comparable time series began in the year ending March 2013

prior to the fall seen this year, police recorded hate crime offences rose between the years ending 2013 and 2022; this prolonged period of increasing offences was thought to have been driven by improvements in crime recording by the police and better identification of what constitutes a hate crime

there were 101,906 race hate crimes, a fall of 6% from the previous year when there were 108,476 offences, this was driven by a decrease in racially or religiously aggravated public fear, alarm or distress offences

as in previous years, the majority of hate crimes were racially motivated, accounting for 7 in 10 of all such offences (70%; 101,906 offences)

religious hate crimes decreased by 4%, from 8,602 to 8,241 offences

sexual orientation hate crimes fell by 6%, to 24,102 offences, while transgender hate crimes increased by 11%, to 4,732 offences

disability hate crimes fell slightly (by 1%) compared with the previous year, at 13,777 offences

over half (51%) of the hate crimes recorded by the police were for public order offences, 41% were for violence against the person offences and 5% were recorded as criminal damage and arson offences

2.1 Prevalence and trends

Hate crimes are a subset of notifiable offences recorded by the police. In the year ending March 2023, 3% of such offences recorded by the police were identified as being hate crimes. This proportion has gradually increased from 1% in the year ending 2013, as the police have improved their identification of what constitutes a hate crime. Improved crime recording is especially thought to have impacted on public order and violence against the person offences which account for 92% of hate crime offences collectively.

There were 145,214 hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales in the year ending March 2023 (excluding Devon and Cornwall), a decrease of 5% compared with the year ending March 2022 (153,536 offences; see table 2.1). Data including Devon and Cornwall for previous years can be found in the 'Hate crime open data' tables
Table 2.1: Hate crimes recorded by the police by monitored strand, year ending March 2019 to year ending March 2023[footnote 3]

Numbers and percentages

England and Wales, excluding Devon and Cornwall

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office
Notes:

1. Total number of offences in the year ending March 2020 includes estimated figures for GMP as they were unable to supply data for the year ending March 2020 following the implementation of a new IT system in July 2019, figures by strand have not been estimated.

2. See Hate crime, England and Wales, 2022 to 2023: data tables; table 2 for detailed footnotes.

It is possible for a crime to have more than one motivating factor (for example, an offence may be motivated by hostility towards both the victim's race and religion). Thus, as well as recording the overall number of hate crimes, the police also collect data on the number of motivating factors by strand as shown in table 2.1. For this reason, the sum of the 5 motivating factors in the above exceeds the 145,214 overall hate crime offences recorded by the police. Of the hate crime offences in the year ending March 2023, 5% were estimated to have involved more than one motivating factor.

As in previous years, race hate crimes accounted for a majority of police recorded hate crimes (70%; 101,906 offences). These offences decreased by 6% compared with the previous year (108,476).

This fall was largely driven by a decrease in racially or religiously aggravated public fear, alarm or distress when flagged as a hate crime, which fell by 8%, from 50,866 to 46,780 offences.

The fall in these crimes coincides with the publication of interim guidance by the College of Policing on the recording of non-crime hate incidents ( NCHIs) in 2022. A NCHI is an act that is motivated by prejudice or hostility towards a person's identity but does not amount to a criminal offence.

The interim guidance instructed officers to consider whether there was genuine hostility in the incident or whether it could be considered freedom of speech or thought. While this guidance was aimed only at the recording of NCHIs, and in no way amended the recording practices, processes or thresholds for hate crimes, it is possible that the guidance in turn may have led to greater scrutiny of the threshold of what constitutes a criminal offence of public fear, alarm or distress. However, the Home Office Counting Rules for the recording of these offences has not changed.

A new statutory Code of Practice and corresponding finalised authorised professional practice on the recording of NCHIs was published in June 2023, after the reporting period for this statistical bulletin.

There were falls in all 5 of the aggravated offences shown in table 1.1 over the last year (data not shown). These offences accounted for around two-thirds (66%) of race hate crimes in the year ending March 2023.

The proportion of hate crimes that were perceived to be racially motivated in nature has steadily decreased from 85% in the year ending March 2013 to 70% in the latest year. This reflects the greater percentage increases in the other 4 strands recorded by the police over the last decade.

The volume of hate crimes motivated by other strands remains relatively low and therefore even small changes in annual numbers can result in apparently large percentage changes.

Religious hate crimes decreased by 4% between the year ending March 2022 and the year ending March 2023 (from 8,602 to 8,241).

Sexual orientation hate crimes fell by 6% (from 25,639 to 24,102 offences). This was the first fall in these offences since the year ending March 2013.

Disability hate crimes decreased by 1% (from 13,905 to 13,777) over the last year, the first fall in since the time series began in the year ending March 2012.

Transgender identity hate crimes rose by 11% (from 4,262 to 4,732) over the same period, the highest number since the time series began in the year ending March 2012. Transgender issues have been heavily discussed by politicians, the media and on social media over the last year, which may have led to an increase in these offences, or more awareness in the police in the identification and recording of these crimes.

The number of hate crimes recorded by the police has more than tripled since the year ending March 2013, from 41,294 offences to 145,214 offences recorded in the latest year.

The increases in police recorded hate crime in recent years were thought to have been driven by improvements in crime recording by the police. This followed a critical review by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) on how the police were recording crime in 2014, which, in part, led to the removal of the designation of police recorded crime as National Statistics. It is also thought that growing awareness of hate crime was likely to have led to improved identification of such offences.

Hate crime offences by crime type

Section 2.2 shows that 92% of hate crimes in the year ending March 2023 were for either public order or violence against the person offences, continuing the pattern seen in previous years. These 2 offence groups were thought to have been previously subject to relatively high levels of under-recording and thus improvements in crime recording are likely to have had a larger impact on these groups than other offences.

Figure 2.1 shows the indexed trend in overall violent and public order offences since the year ending March 2013 compared with all hate crime offences over the same period. As can be seen, there is a strong correlation between the increase in overall public order and violence against the person offences and hate crime. While hate crimes have fallen in the latest year, the overall number of violence against the person and public order offences was similar to the previous year.
Figure 2.1: Indexed trends in the number of police recorded violence against the person and public order and hate crime offences, England and Wales, excluding Devon and Cornwall, the year ending March 2013 to the year ending March 2023 (2012/13 = 100)

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office
Notes:

1. Figures exclude Devon and Cornwall Police.

2. Total number of offences in the year ending March 2020 includes estimated figures for GMP as they were unable to supply data for the year ending March 2020 following the implementation of a new IT system in July 2019.

There have also thought to have been short-term genuine rises in hate crime following certain trigger events in recent years. Increases in hate crime were seen around the EU Referendum in June 2016 and the terrorist attacks in 2017. There was also an increase in public order hate crimes during the summer of 2020 following the widespread Black Lives Matter protests and far-right counter-protests.

Hate crime data by Police Force Area from the year ending March 2012 to the year ending March 2023 can be found in the Hate crime open data tables.

Religious hate crimes

In April 2016, the Home Office began collecting information from the police on the perceived religion of victims of religious hate crime. By perceived, we mean the religion targeted by the offender. While in the majority of offences the perceived and actual religion of the victim will be the same, in some cases they will differ. For example, if anti-Muslim graffiti is sprayed on a religious temple of another faith, this would still be recorded as an offence of racially or religiously aggravated criminal damage and identified by the respective police force as a religious hate crime against Muslims.

There are 9 different perceived religion flags in this collection, which match those reported upon in the 2021 Census:

Of the 8,241 religious hate crimes recorded by the police in the year ending March 2023, information on the targeted religion was provided in 7,756 of the offences (94%).

In some cases, more than one perceived religion had been tagged on one offence (for example, a piece of graffiti may have targeted more than one religion). All police forces sent data on the perceived religion of the victims of religious hate crimes. Across all forces, in 19% of offences, the targeted religion was not known, but for some forces the number of offences recorded with 'unknown religion' was relatively high.

In the year ending March 2023, where the perceived religion of the victim was recorded, over 4 in 10 (44%) of religious hate crime offences were targeted against Muslims (3,400 offences). The next most commonly targeted group were Jewish people, who were targeted in around 1 in 5 (19%) of religious hate crimes (1,510 offences). Information on the other targeted religions for the year ending March 2023 can be found in table 2.2 below.
Table 2.2: Number and proportion of religious hate crimes recorded by the police¹, by the perceived targeted religion, year ending March 2023
Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office
Notes:

1. In some offences more than one religion has been recorded as being targeted, therefore the sum of the proportions do not add to 100%.

2. Figures exclude Devon and Cornwall Police.

3. See Hate crime, England and Wales, 2022 to 2023: data tables; table 4 for detailed footnotes.

Racial or religiously aggravated offences

The data the Home Office receives in the main police recorded crime return for racially or religiously aggravated offences are available on a monthly basis whereas data for all hate crimes for all forces are only available annually. This allows analysis of in-year trends in these offences. An indexed chart of these offences and their non-aggravated equivalent offence are shown in (Figure 2.2).

There were 4 clear spikes in these aggravated offences which were not seen in the non-aggravated offences:

July 2016, following the EU Referendum

July 2017, following the terrorist attacks seen in this year

Summer 2020, following the Black Lives Matter protests and far-right counter-protests following the death of George Floyd on 25th May in the United States of America

the fourth spike in the summer of 2021 was largely due to an increase of racially or religiously aggravated public fear, alarm or distress offences; these offences have fallen in the latest year by 7% (from 55,470 to 51,331); the fall in these offences is discussed above

Figure 2.2: Indexed number of racially or religiously aggravated offences recorded by the police by month, England and Wales, excluding Devon and Cornwall, April 2015 to March 2023

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office
Notes:

Figures exclude Devon and Cornwall Police.

2.2 Hate crimes by type of offence

Just over half (51%) of the hate crimes recorded by the police in the year ending March 2023 were for public order offences and over one-third (41%) were for violence against the person offences (Figure 2.3; Hate crime, England and Wales, 2022 to 2023: appendix tables; table 6. Together, these offence categories accounted for just over 9 in 10 (92%) of all hate crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales.
Figure 2.3: Distribution of offences flagged as hate crimes, England and Wales, excluding Devon and Cornwall, the year ending March 2023

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office
Notes:

Figures exclude Devon and Cornwall Police.

The distribution of hate crime offences differs markedly from overall police recorded crime. Theft offences accounted for just under one-third (31%) of all recorded crime in the year ending March 2023, for information on offences for all police recorded crime see: Crime in England and Wales - Office for National Statistics; these offences would be less likely to involve a motivating factor against a monitored strand. In contrast, public order offences accounted for just 11% of all notifiable offences compared with 51% of hate crime offences (figure 2.4).
Figure 2.4: Breakdown of hate crimes and overall recorded crime by selected offence types, England and Wales, excluding Devon and Cornwall, the year ending March 2023

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office
Notes:

Figures exclude Devon and Cornwall Police.

Figure 2.5 shows what type of offences were recorded for each monitored strand. As in previous years, public order offences were the most common category to be recorded for all strands except for disability-targeted hate crime. Stalking and harassment offences were the most commonly recorded for disability-targeted hate crimes.
Figure 2.5: Breakdown of hate crime by selected offence types and monitored strand, England and Wales, excluding Devon and Cornwall, year ending March 2023

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office
Notes:

Figures exclude Devon and Cornwall Police.

2.3 Hate crime outcomes

The Home Office collects information on the investigative outcomes of police recorded offences, including those that are identified as hate crimes. For further information on outcomes see Crime outcomes in England and Wales: 2022 to 2023.

This section covers how the police have dealt with hate crimes recorded in the year ending March 2023. This analysis is based on the outcomes assigned to crimes recorded in the year ending March 2023 at the time the data were extracted (July 2023) for analysis. Some offences will not have been assigned an outcome at this time and therefore these figures are subject to change.

Racially or religiously aggravated offence outcomes

Data presented in this section is for racially or religiously aggravated offences. This data was available for all police forces (excluding Devon and Cornwall). Data on outcomes for all hate crime offences, which was available for 30 of the 44 police forces, is presented in the next section.

At the time this data was extracted, 88% of racially or religiously aggravated offences had been assigned an outcome, compared with 94% of their non-aggravated counterparts, see police recorded crime 'Outcomes open data year ending March 2023' data tables.

Figure 2.6 shows that racially or religiously aggravated public order and assault offences were more likely to be dealt with by a charge/summons than their non-aggravated counterparts, reflecting the more serious nature of racially or religiously aggravated offences. For example, 3 times the proportion of racially or religiously aggravated public fear, alarm and distress offences had been dealt with by charge/summons than the non-aggravated equivalent offences (9% and 3% respectively). In contrast, this trend was reversed for criminal damage, where non-aggravated offences were more likely to result in a charge or summons than aggravated offences (4% and 3% respectively).
Figure 2.6: Percentage of racially or religiously aggravated offences and their non-aggravated equivalents recorded in the year ending March 2023 resulting in charge/summons, by offence type, England and Wales, excluding Devon and Cornwall

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office
Notes:

Figures exclude Devon and Cornwall Police.

The overall proportion of racially or religiously aggravated offences resulting in a charge and or summons was, at 8%, the same proportion as the year ending March 2022 at the time of publication last year. This halts the long-term downward trend seen since the introduction of the Outcomes Framework in year ending March 2015, when, for example, 30% of racially or religiously aggravated public fear, alarm or distress offences were resolved by a charge and or summons, in line with non-aggravated offences. This trend is likely to have been influenced by the changing caseload and crime mix being dealt with by the police.

Flagged hate crime offences - Home Office Data Hub

The Home Office Data Hub ( HODH) is a record level dataset of offences recorded by the police in England and Wales and provides information on how hate crimes have been dealt with by the police. The analyses presented are based on data from 30 of the 44 police forces in England and Wales that supplied adequate data to the Data Hub. These forces data accounted for almost three-quarters (72%) of all police recorded hate crime in the year ending March 2023.

In total, 89% of hate crime flagged offences recorded in the year ending March 2023 had been assigned an outcome at the time the data were extracted for analysis. The remaining 11% were still under investigation. In comparison, 91% of non-hate crime offences had been assigned an outcome at the time of data extraction.

Hate crime, England and Wales, 2022 to 2023: appendix tables; table 4 shows that 7% of all hate crime flagged offences had been dealt with by a charge or summons. This was lower than the figure of 9% in the year ending March 2022. Over the last year, the proportion of cases recorded where victims did not support police action and cases where no suspect was identified increased. As explained in Crime outcomes in England and Wales: 2022 to 2023, these trends may have been influenced by the changing caseload and crime mix being dealt with by the police.

Figure 2.4 shows that violence against the person, public order offences and criminal damage and arson offences comprised 96% of hate crime flagged offences. This proportion was the same for the 30 forces included in this analysis, suggesting that these forces may be broadly representative of all.

The proportions of outcomes assigned varied by offence type ( Hate crime, England and Wales, 2022 to 2023: appendix tables; table 5; figure 2.7):

in the latest year, 5% of violence against the person hate crime flagged offence were dealt with by a charge or summons, a similar proportion to non-flagged offences (5%); these proportions have moved closer in recent years

a greater proportion (9%) of hate crime flagged public order offences had been dealt with by a charge or summons compared with non-hate crime flagged public order offences (6%)

a similar proportion of hate crime and non-hate crime flagged criminal damage offences were dealt with by charge or summons, 4% for both; in previous years flagged offences were more likely to be dealt with by charge or summons than non-flagged offences

Figure 2.7: Percentage of selected offences resulting in charge/summons, by hate crime strand, offences recorded in the year ending March 2023, England and Wales, 30 forces

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office Data Hub
Notes:

Forces included are: Avon and Somerset, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, City of London, Cleveland, Cumbria, Derbyshire, Dorset, Durham, Essex, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Kent, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Merseyside, Metropolitan Police, North Wales, North Yorkshire, Northamptonshire, Northumbria, South Wales, South Yorkshire, Surrey, Sussex, Thames Valley, Warwickshire, West Mercia and West Yorkshire.

The most frequent outcome recorded for violent offences was "evidential difficulties as the victim does not support action"; this was the outcome for 32% of hate crime flagged violence against the person offences compared with 43% of non-hate crime flagged offences ( Hate crime, England and Wales, 2022 to 2023: appendix tables; table 5).

Figure 2.8 shows the proportion of hate crimes that were dealt with by charge or summons for each of the 5 hate crime strands for three offence groups. While the proportions for race, religious and sexual orientation hate crimes tended to be higher than for non-hate crimes, the figures for disability and transgender hate crime were lower.
Figure 2.8: Percentage of selected offences resulting in charge/summons, by hate crime strand, offences recorded in the year ending March 2023, England and Wales, 30 forces

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office Data Hub
Notes:

Forces included are: Avon and Somerset, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, City of London, Cleveland, Cumbria, Derbyshire, Dorset, Durham, Essex, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Kent, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Merseyside, Metropolitan Police, North Wales, North Yorkshire, Northamptonshire, Northumbria, South Wales, South Yorkshire, Surrey, Sussex, Thames Valley, Warwickshire, West Mercia and West Yorkshire.

Figure 2.9 shows the median number of days taken, from the date the crime was recorded until it was closed with a final outcome, for selected hate crime and non-hate crime offences. Hate crime offences, on average, took longer to be assigned a final outcome than non-hate crime offences. For example, the median number of days taken for criminal damage and arson hate crime offences was 29 days, compared with 5 days for non-hate crime offences. Similarly, it took longer to compete an investigation of violence against the person hate crime offences (median=52 days) than for non-hate crime flagged violent offences (median=24 days). This suggests more investigative effort being devoted to hate crime offences reflecting the more serious nature of these crimes.
Figure 2.9: Median number of days taken to assign an outcome, hate crime flagged and non-hate crime flagged offences, outcomes recorded in the year ending March 2023, England and Wales, 30 forces

Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office Data Hub
Notes:

Forces included are: Avon and Somerset, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, City of London, Cleveland, Cumbria, Derbyshire, Dorset, Durham, Essex, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Kent, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Merseyside, Metropolitan Police, North Wales, North Yorkshire, Northamptonshire, Northumbria, South Wales, South Yorkshire, Surrey, Sussex, Thames Valley, Warwickshire, West Mercia and West Yorkshire.

Experimental statistics: Ethnicity of victims in racially or religiously aggravated crimes - Home Office Data Hub

From April 2021, it became a requirement for forces to provide the Home Office with the ethnicity of victims of racially or religiously aggravated offences. This data continue to be published as 'experimental statistics', which are official statistics that are in the testing phase and not yet fully developed. Home Office Statisticians will continue to monitor this data in the future and will work with police forces to improve data quality. Data for 37 of the 44 police forces[footnote 10], is presented in the next section. These 37 forces represented 88% of racially or religiously aggravated crimes recorded by the police in the year ending March 2023.

Of the 74,235 racially or religiously aggravated crimes recorded by the police in the year ending March 2023, information on the victim ethnicity was provided in 38,994 of the offences (53%).

In the year ending March 2023, where the ethnicity of the victim was known, the victim was identified by the police as being white in around one-third of offences (34%). Just under one-third of victims were identified as black (29%), a similar proportion to Asian victims (30%); table 2.3). These proportions were similar to the previous year. It is likely that offences against white victims will include xenophobic abuse against people not born in the UK.

However, accounting for different population sizes, black and Asian victims had far higher rates of victimisation than white people. In the year ending March 2023, based on the published population figures by ethnicity from 2021, white victims had a rate of 3 aggravated offences per 10,000 population compared with 50 per 10,000 population for black victims and 25 per 10,000 population for Asian victims.

However, given the relatively high proportion of offences where the ethnicity of victim was not recorded, these figures should be taken as indicative only.
Table 2.3: Proportion of racially and religiously aggravated offences recorded by the police, by victim ethnicity (where known), the year ending March 2023, England and Wales, 37 forces
Source: Police recorded crime, Home Office Data Hub
Notes:

Forces included are: Bedfordshire, British Transport Police, Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, Cleveland, Cumbria, Derbyshire, Dorset, Durham, Dyfed-Powys, Essex, Gloucestershire, Greater Manchester, Gwent, Hampshire, Hertfordshire, Kent, Lancashire, Merseyside, Metropolitan Police, Norfolk, North Yorkshire, Northamptonshire, South Wales, South Yorkshire, Staffordshire, Suffolk, Surrey, Sussex, Thames Valley, Warwickshire, West Mercia, West Midlands, West Yorkshire and Wiltshire.

3. Police recorded hate crime data sources and quality

3.1 Introduction

In January 2014, the UK Statistics Authority published its assessment of the Office for National Statistics (ONS) crime statistics. It found that statistics based on police recorded crime data, having been assessed against the Code of Practice for Official Statistics (now the Code of Practice for Statistics), did not meet the required standard for designation as National Statistics.

Police forces have made significant improvements in how they record crime since 2014. They have also improved their identification of what constitutes a hate crime over this time period. Due to these improvements, police recorded crime figures do not currently provide reliable trends in hate crime. The figures do, however, provide a good measure of the hate crime-related demand on the police.

The UK Statistics Authority published a list of requirements for these statistics to regain the National Statistics accreditation. Some of the requirements of this assessment were to provide more detail on how data sources were used to produce these statistics, along with more information on the quality of the statistics. Additionally, there was a requirement to provide information on the process used by police forces to submit and revise data, and the validation processes used by the Home Office. To ensure that this publication meets the high standards required by the UK Statistics Authority, details are provided below.

In May 2022, the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) wrote to the Home Office following their compliance review into published hate crime statistics across the UK. The OSR recognised the difficulties in measuring hate crime but found a range of positive features that demonstrate the value and quality of the published statistics in their review. Additionally, they recognised the difficulty in presenting data on police recorded hate crime without the CSEW estimates to provide context to the numbers, meaning "it is difficult to determine whether police recorded hate crime is increasing". They stated that they had heard from users of a 'perception problem', where "the public is likely to see police recorded crime as the main data source, despite ongoing concerns about data quality" and asked the Home Office to make clear in this publication the limitations of police recorded crime data. We have added on the uncertainty of police recorded crime trends in response to this recommendation.

3.2 Police recorded crime data sources and validation process

Hate crime data are supplied to the Home Office by the 43 territorial police forces of England and Wales, plus the British Transport Police. Devon and Cornwall Police have not been able to supply data for the year ending March 2023 following the implementation of a new IT system in November 2022. Greater Manchester Police were not able to supply hate crime data for the year ending March 2020 following the implementation of a new IT system in July 2019.

Forces either supply the data at least monthly via the Home Office Data Hub ( HODH) or on an annual basis in a manual return. For forces with data on the Data Hub, the Home Office extracts the number of offences for each force which have been flagged by forces as having been motivated by one or more of the monitored strands. Therefore, counts of hate crime via the HODH are dependent on the flag being used for each hate crime offence. It is then possible to derive the count of offences and the monitored strands covered.

In the manual return, police forces submit both the total number of hate crime offences (that is a count of the number of unique offences motivated by one or more of the 5 monitored strands) and the monitored strands (or motivating factors) associated with these offences. From the year ending March 2016, police forces who returned data manually were required to provide an offence group breakdown for recorded hate crimes; prior to the year ending March 2016 only an aggregated total of hate crimes for each of the 5 strands was asked for. It is possible for more than one of the monitored strands (motivating factors) to be assigned to a crime. For example, an offence could be motivated by hostility to race and religion, so would be counted under both strands but would only constitute one offence.

It is known that for some police forces, the addition of tags to crime records could be improved. For example, there may be crimes that are operationally treated as a hate crime but were not correctly identified as a hate crime on their crime recording system. In July 2018, His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services ( HMICFRS) published a report on how the police deal with hate crime, including how crimes are flagged. Findings included a lack of recognition in forces about how important the flagging of hate crimes is and concerns around the lack of effective audit arrangements to check flags had been applied correctly.

The full report can be found here: Understanding the difference: the initial police response to hate crime.

Further information on how the police record hate crime can be found in the College of Policing's Authorised Professional Practice guidance on hate crime publication launched in October 2020.

At the end of each financial year, the Home Office carry out a series of quality assurance checks on the hate crime data collected from the police forces (either by aggregate return or via the HODH).

These checks include:

looking for any large or unusual changes in hate crimes from the previous year

looking for outliers

checking that the number of hate crimes by strand is higher than the total number of offences

Police forces are then asked to investigate these trends and either provide an explanation or resubmit figures where the reconciliation identifies data quality issues.

The data is then tabulated by monitored strand and year and sent back to forces for them to verify. At this stage, they are asked to confirm in writing that the data they submitted is correct and if it is not, then they have the opportunity to revise their figures.

From April 2016, the Home Office began collecting information from the police on the perceived religion of victims of religious hate crimes - that the religion targeted by the offender. While in the majority of offences the perceived and actual religion of the victim will be the same, in some cases this will differ. For example, if anti-Muslim graffiti is sprayed on a religious temple of another faith, this would be recorded as an offence of racially or religiously aggravated criminal damage and flagged by the respective police force as a religious hate crime against Muslims. This collection was voluntary in the year ending March 2017 and made mandatory for the year ending March 2018.

From April 2021, the Home Office has begun the collecting the ethnicity of the victims of racial hate crimes recorded by the police. These were published for the second time as experimental statistics in this statistical bulletin.

3.3 Understanding differences between the CSEW and police recorded hate crime

Statistics on police recorded hate crime are published on an annual basis, with estimates from the CSEW published every third year. However, due to the suspension of the face-to-face CSEW due to public health restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, the next estimates from the CSEW will be delayed until 2025.

Trends in police recorded and CSEW hate crime have been notably different over recent years. Police recorded hate crime has risen, while the CSEW has shown a fall over the longer-term. The main reason for this difference will be due to the improvements to recording processes and practices made by the police since 2014. HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services ( HMICFRS) have conducted a range of inspections related to police forces' crime and incident recording practices in recent years. In 2014, Crime recording: making the victim count concluded that 33% of cases involving violence were not recorded by the police in England and Wales. Improvements made by the police were identified in their report State of policing: 2019, where a lower proportion (12%) of violent offences reported to the police went unrecorded.

These improvements have made substantial contributions to rises in recorded crime over recent years. This effect has been more pronounced for some crime types, such as violence against the person and public order offences. These offences account for 9 in 10 police recorded hate crimes, meaning police figures do not currently provide reliable trends in hate crime. The absence of CSEW estimates means it is harder to determine with increased in police recorded hate crime are genuine, or a continuation of recording improvements.

Additionally, there are a number of differences in the coverage of the CSEW and police recorded crime.

The CSEW is a victimisation survey which covers adults aged 16 and over resident in households in England and Wales. Police recorded crime figures includes crimes against people of all ages, against society (crimes where there is not a direct victim, such as public order offences) as well as businesses and institutions. This is a key difference for hate crime offences as public order offences are not well covered by the CSEW, as many of these offences will not involve a specifically identifiable victim. Conversely, public order offences account for over a half of police recorded hate crime.

The sources cover different time periods. The most recently available CSEW data was for the combined 3 annual datasets - the year ending March 2018 to the year ending March 2020. Furthermore, as respondents are interviewed throughout the survey year for their experiences of crime in the year to interview, the 3-year survey period actually relate to a near 4-year period. This is required to produce more robust estimates on numbers of hate crimes per year from the survey. The CSEW will therefore only give a very broad estimate of the level of hate crime in England and Wales across these 4 years and will not provide any information on whether the level of hate crime has changed in this period.

Police recorded hate crime data is available on an annual basis. In addition, for racially or religiously aggravated offences, data is available for all police forces in England and Wales on a monthly basis, so trends in these crimes around events such as the EU Referendum and the terrorist attacks in 2017 can be examined. However, as mentioned above it is known that police recorded crime data has been heavily affected by improvements in crime recording by the police over recent years, so data from the police is limited in assessing longer-term trends in hate crime.

Other differences in coverage include:

respondents to the CSEW might misunderstand the survey questions; when they are asked whether they think a crime was committed because of a motivating factor, they may instead be responding based upon their perceived vulnerability; this is likely to be a reason why the estimate of disability hate crime is much higher in the CSEW than the number of these offences recorded by the police

the respondent is asked in the survey whether the hate crime incident came to the attention of the police and, not whether the police actually recorded a crime (the police may witness an incident and decide that a crime was not committed, for example)

similarly, while a respondent might say the crime did come to the attention of the police, the survey does not ask whether the respondent told the police that they thought it was motivated by one of the 5 hate crime strands; it is possible that some offences estimated by the survey may have been recorded by the police as a crime, but not specifically as a hate crime

in the recording of a crime, it might not become apparent that there was a motivating hate factor, meaning that police may not ask the direct question whether the victim thought that the crime was a hate crime

4. Further information

Accompanying tables

The data tables can be found here:
Hate crime, England and Wales, 2022 to 2023

Previous hate crime statistical bulletins published by the Home Office are available here:
Hate crime statistics

The Office for National Statistics publishes quarterly publications on crime in England and Wales:
Crime and justice

Information on crime outcomes can be found here:
Crime outcomes in England and Wales statistics
Police recorded crime and outcomes open data tables The True Vision website contains more information about hate crime and how to report it
The Crown Prosecution Service website also carries information about hate crime, including policy and guidance and performance information, which can be found here:
CPS hate crime

The government's plan for dealing with hate crime in England and Wales can be found here:
Hate crime action plan 2016 to 2020

Hate crime statistics for Northern Ireland can be found here:
Police service of Northern Ireland: Hate motivation statistics

Hate crime statistics for Scotland for 2022 to 2023 can be found here:
Hate crime in Scotland 2022 to 2023
(figures published by the Scottish Government are based on the number of offenders charged, rather than police recorded crime)

Feedback and enquiries

We welcome feedback on the annual statistics release. If you have any feedback or enquiries about this publication, please contact crime and policing statistics via crimeandpolicestats@homeoffice.gov.uk.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Hate crime, England and Wales, 2022 to 2023 second edition

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Frequency of release: Annual Forthcoming release: Home Office statistics release calendar Home Office responsible statistician: John Flatley Press enquires: pressoffice@homeoffice.gov.uk, Telephone: 0300 123 3535 Public enquires: crimeandpolicestats@homeoffice.gov.uk This release contains statistics about hate crime offences recorded by the police in England and Wales.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Uma sala de aula com filas atrás para os negros e à frente para os brancos. Uma professora com dificuldade em acreditar que a aluna merecia mesmo 18. "Obviamente que somos muito mais analisados, avaliados e escrutinados"

Em São Domingos de Rana, na linha de Cascais, fica o bairro das Faceiras, construído no início dos anos 1980 para acolher população retornada das ex-colónias e famílias de origem cabo-verdiana.

Neste conjunto de prefabricados, as crianças brincavam na rua. Cristina Roldão, 37 anos, era uma delas. Também a socióloga, à medida que ia avançando no percurso, se lembra de questionar sobre o porquê de alguns dos mais inteligentes amigos irem ficando para trás. A investigação académica que desenvolve acaba por ir ao encontro dessa inquietação. Será que hoje continua a ser assim? Na tese de doutoramento centrou-se nos jovens de origem africana de contextos desfavorecidos que chegam ao ensino superior. "É preciso muita coisa confluir, e em várias fases da vida." Não se espere "o jovem resiliente que 'vem desde o início' com o sonho de chegar à faculdade".

É o seu caso: foi trabalhadora-estudante e "não era evidente que ia para a universidade", conta. Mas candidatou-se. Quando aos 19 anos o seu nome apareceu nas pautas de entrada na faculdade, em Sociologia e Planeamento, no ISCTE, "andou meses em estado de graça".

Ao atravessar a rua para ir à escola primária, José Semedo Fernandes ficava de costas para Santa Filomena, na Amadora, onde cresceu. Hoje, aquele bairro de construção informal já não existe. Nem a escola. Mas perdura a memória da sala de aula: "Havia uma fila de portugueses, outra fila vazia a separar, e nós (negros) começávamos a partir da terceira fila. Os professores davam aulas para os alunos da frente."

Na sala e no recreio, a maioria das crianças era do bairro, habitado por cabo-verdianos. Quanto mais avançava na escolaridade, menos colegas negros tinha: "Parece que há uma pressão que nos faz sentir não pertencer àquele mundo."

José Semedo Fernandes, hoje com 38 anos, começou a sentir a segregação "logo na primária": "Quiseram mostrar que o meu lugar era lá atrás. A mim estava reservada a construção, e não precisava de me esforçar muito."

Ao entrar na faculdade, Cristina Roldão sentiu que tinha finalmente encontrado um espaço de discussão sobre temas em que há muito a interpelavam. Na altura, falava-se de desigualdades ligadas às migrações. Isso fazia sentido para a geração dos seus pais, mas não para a sua, nem para a da irmã, 12 anos mais nova, ambas nascidas em Portugal. "Porque sou daqui, sou negra."

Pelo caminho, conheceu académicos e pensadores que reconheciam as desigualdades e a exclusão de "filhos de imigrantes", mas quando chegava o tema do racismo "ninguém queria falar" dele.

Isto é, explicava-se muitas vezes que "há estruturas sociais que operam de forma a segmentar e a polarizar a sociedade, que há questões de classe, mas que se os negros tivessem capacidade económica, [as desigualdades] não existiam". Durante um período, Cristina Roldão "quis acreditar nisso".

No entanto, olhava à volta e era a única aluna negra da turma na universidade nascida em Portugal. Nunca teve professores negros. Nunca lhe foram referenciados sociólogos negros para estudar. "Dentro da faculdade, as pessoas com quem tinha experiência mais próxima eram as senhoras da limpeza."

Já um pouco mais velho, os amigos da escola não iam a casa de José Semedo porque tinham medo do bairro, e raramente era convidado a ir a casa deles. Devia ter à volta de 12 anos quando um colega o escondeu no armário do quarto até o pai sair. "Porque dizia que o pai era racista e não queria que convivesse com africanos."

Não era novidade. Um dos episódios que o marcaram foi uma criança na rua a apontar para ele: "Olha o macaco."

A memória de discriminações de Cristina Roldão é antiga. Na creche, se havia piolhos, as primeiras cabeças a serem inspeccionadas eram as dos miúdos negros do bairro; nas peças de teatro, ficava com os papéis de rocha, de árvore ou masculinos; e, por ser boa aluna, havia desconfiança.

Mais velha, sentiu por vezes que queriam colocá-la "na posição de negro especial": alguém que se torna "a prova de que é possível existirem negros que têm boas notas e que, quando se portam bem", se transformam num "'caso' para mostrar que a escola também está aberta", analisa.

Na escola, na vida fora do bairro, "a partir do 5.º ano", o papel de José Semedo foi desmistificar o que é o "outro". Não sofria de bullying porque encontrou mecanismos de defesa, mas também não era aquele aluno que se escolhia para um trabalho de grupo.

Quando escolheu Direito, fê-lo porque desde muito cedo percebeu as dificuldades dos negros em defenderem-se: "Havia abusos e não tínhamos voz nem mecanismos para nos proteger."

Na cerimónia de entrega da cédula pela Ordem de Advogados, ele e outro jovem foram os únicos negros em centenas.

Num colégio também acontece

Durante os oito anos em que esteve no Planalto, em Lisboa, um colégio católico só para rapazes, William Fernandes, 25 anos, conviveu com uns quatro alunos negros.

Pouco tempo depois de entrar no colégio estava na fila do refeitório e um aluno mais velho quis passar à sua frente. Começou a chamar-lhe "preto" e a insultar a mãe. "Senti que tinha de me defender e que não ia aceitar esse tipo de comportamento. Acabei por metê-lo no chão e andámos um bocado à pancada. Chorei, estava tão nervoso."

A direcção da escola não lhe aplicou castigo. William também não se lembra se alguém condenou o colega racista. O resto do percurso escolar fez-se sem outros incidentes violentos, mas "havia aquelas bocas", e alunos mais novos que lhe chamavam "preto, preto, preto". "Aprendi a lidar com isso, ignorava porque eram crianças e os pais e professores é que deviam saber educá-los."

Ouviu anedotas racistas, ouviu bocas, ouviu colegas a dizerem que nunca iriam namorar com uma mulher negra. Um professor começou a mandá-lo sistematicamente para fora da sala. "Na altura não sabia bem o que era racismo. Senti que ele não tinha paciência. Não percebia." Lembra-se de ir defender o irmão mais novo, no mesmo colégio, de situações em que lhe chamavam "preto".

O ponto de interrogação desde o infantário

Não estudou num colégio como o Planalto, estudou em Alverca, na zona de Vila Franca de Xira: a historiadora Joacine Katar Moreira, a terminar o doutoramento no ISCTE, sempre teve bons resultados escolares, mas nem por isso se livrou de preconceitos. Por exemplo, lembra-se de no liceu ter tido 18 valores num teste de História e, na hora de lhe dar a nota, a professora quis esperar pelo teste seguinte. "Ou seja, precisava de comprovar se o 18 era efectivamente meu. Como era uma negra, era preciso verificar. Obviamente que somos muito mais analisados, avaliados e escrutinados. Há uma interrogação em relação às nossas capacidades e potencialidades desde o infantário."

A interrogação número um é: "De onde és?" Isto é uma pergunta que os negros em Portugal passam "a sua existência a responder", comenta. Estarem a ser confrontados com este "'de onde és?' é racismo, é negação do outro enquanto indivíduo com as mesmas possibilidades", explica. "Quando te consideram estrangeiro, consideram que não estás ao nível de usufruir dos direitos e das hipóteses que os nacionais têm."

É, de facto, na educação que há um racismo institucional mais estruturante, defende Joacine Moreira, uma das vozes que têm reflectido sobre racismo em Portugal. "A expectativa que se deposita nos afrodescendentes é a da escolaridade mínima obrigatória."

Desde 2015 que Cristina Roldão participou em mais de 30 conferências internacionais e nacionais, debates não académicos, no centro e na periferia de Lisboa, para falar sobre os afrodescendentes no sistema educativo. Os dados que analisou mostram que 80% dos alunos com nacionalidade de um dos Países Africanos de Língua Oficial Portuguesa (PALOP) seguem as vias vocacionais no ensino secundário, o dobro dos portugueses (ver texto ao lado).

Muita da tónica das suas conclusões tem sido colocada no racismo institucional. "Quando um professor tem baixas expectativas sobre um aluno, isso tende a ser incorporado por ele, que, por sua vez, ajusta o seu nível de desempenho e de rendimento escolar às expectativas do professor - é o amplamente conhecido 'Efeito Pigmaleão' ou a profecia que se auto-realiza", explica. "Não está em causa a relação entre duas pessoas, mas entre um professor e um aluno, no seu papel institucional: aquele professor tem o poder, que lhe é atribuído pelo Estado, de condicionar o futuro" do aluno.

Cristina Roldão sugere ainda olhar-se para o racismo institucional na educação como resultado da combinação de três factores: políticas públicas, estratégias de recrutamento das escolas e estratégias de procura escolar das famílias. "Quando se decide que determinadas populações serão realojadas nos confins de um território, criam-se nesse espaço escolas segregadas que vão receber quase em exclusivo as crianças e os jovens desses bairros", descreve. "As famílias de classe média, por sua vez, fugirão dessas escolas, potenciando ainda mais a segregação dos primeiros."

No fundo, "mesmo sem existir uma directiva legal que promova a segregação étnico-racial", a forma como a escola funciona contribui para a reprodução das desigualdades, analisa. "Se em Portugal não temos tanta consciência disso, em parte é porque existe uma política de não recolha de dados étnico-raciais. Porque é que o Estado, que tem a obrigação constitucional de promover a igualdade e a não discriminação, não tem instrumentos capazes de avaliar se esses princípios estão a ser cumpridos?" A socióloga defende "uma mudança de paradigma de combate às desigualdades", feita em várias frentes, criando quotas de raça, género, classe. "O racismo é uma questão estrutural, ultrapassa a intencionalidade dos indivíduos."

Isto não está estudado em profundidade em Portugal, mas recentemente, quando Cristina Roldão se candidatou a uma bolsa de pós-doutoramento da Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia com um projecto de investigação sobre a segregação de afrodescendentes no ensino, justificaram a recusa: "Não era original."
Ler textos complementares Há uma geração a ser encaminhada para as vias vocacionais Com que direito se apagam as crianças não-brancas dos manuais?
"A presença de negros na academia é nula"

Série racismo à portuguesa

A série Racismo à Portuguesa é um trabalho sobre como se manifestam as desigualdades raciais em Portugal em diversas áreas, da habitação, ao emprego ou à educação.

Falámos com procuradores, advogados, professores, activistas, investigadores, artistas. Analisámos estatísticas, recolhemos testemunhos de quem se sente vítima de diversas formas de racismo, cerca de 50 pessoas de várias classes sociais. Encerramos com uma reflexão sobre as marcas do colonialismo em Portugal.

Esta é, assim, a quarta parte da série Racismo em Português com reportagens sobre o colonialismo em África. Centra-se, por isso, no racismo contra os negros

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Dos afrodescendentes espera-se que não passem "da escolaridade obrigatória"

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Uma sala de aula com filas atrás para os negros e à frente para os brancos. Uma professora com dificuldade em acreditar que a aluna merecia mesmo 18. "Obviamente que somos muito mais analisados, avaliados e escrutinados"

# data[].attributes.headline
La moda de las violaciones grupales en España

# data[].attributes.subject
La moda de las violaciones grupales en España

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Last week, the Community Security Trust (CST), which tracks antisemitic incidents across the UK, said 4,103 attacks were recorded against members of the Jewish community in 2023.

Two thirds of these occurred on or after October 7 - marking an almost six-fold increase in cases compared to the same period in 2022.

"The war unfortunately is impacting our communities here in the UK," Ms Atta said.

"Muslim communities, Jewish communities are picking up the brunt of the war.

"Emotions are running very high, but one thing both communities agree on is that we all need to be able to go around our day-to-day basis feeling safe, feeling that we're not going to be targeted for who we are.

"A Muslim woman should not have to take off her headscarf just because she doesn't want to be targeted, nor a Jewish person should have to hide their Star of David because they don't want to be targeted."

The government said it condemned the recent rise in reported anti-Muslim hatred and antisemitism, adding there was "no place for hate in our society".

"We expect the police to fully investigate all hate crimes and work with the CPS to make sure the cowards who commit these abhorrent offences feel the full force of the law," a spokesperson said, adding that further funding had been made available to communities to provide additional security at places of worship and faith schools.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Anti-Muslim cases surge in UK since Hamas attacks, charity finds

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A charity says there have been 2,010 Islamophobic incidents in the last four months.

# data[].attributes.headline
Triunfo de un modelo extractivista, concentrado y segregador

# data[].attributes.subject
Triunfo de un modelo extractivista, concentrado y segregador

# data[].attributes.body
Chile es un país que históricamente ha vivido segregación y conflictos sociales marcados por la marginación (EXTERMINIO) de grupos minoritarios (mapuches, mestizaje, comunismo, disidencias).

La escuela y la segregación social se hacen causa y consecuencia de la inequidad en Chile y reproducen las diferencias socio-económicos.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Duas pessoas ficaram feridas esta quarta-feira em Lisboa na sequência de um foco de incêndio numa loja transformada em habitação num edifício de três pisos na Rua Santo António dos Capuchos, disse à Lusa fonte da Câmara Municipal.

Segundo adiantou à Lusa a diretora do Serviço Municipal de Proteção Civil, Margarida Castro Martins, o incêndio causou dois feridos, não se sabendo ao certo quantas pessoas estavam no interior da loja, uma vez que abandonaram o local na altura da ocorrência.

O incêndio ocorreu pelas 2h00 num edifício de habitação de três andares e águas furtadas, sendo que no piso térreo existem duas lojas. "O incêndio ocorreu numa loja ocupada por nove camas e seis residentes, que, de acordo com informação da Polícia de Segurança Pública, são todos residentes do Bangladesh", indicou.

Na origem do pequeno foco de incêndio esteve um curto-circuito, não se tendo as chamas propagado às outras habitações.

Os dois feridos, do sexo masculino de 24 e 34 anos, sofreram queimaduras nos membros inferiores e vias aéreas e foram transportados ao Hospital de São José.

Ainda segundo Margarida Castro Martins, um dos feridos já teve alta, pelas 7h20, e foi assistido apenas por inalação de fumos. O outro ferido está internado no hospital, com queimaduras no pé esquerdo e antebraço direito.

Em 4 de fevereiro de 2023, duas pessoas morreram e 14, todas de nacionalidade estrangeira, ficaram feridas num edifício na Mouraria, em Lisboa. O incêndio afetou 27 residentes, tendo provocado a morte a duas pessoas de nacionalidade indiana (um menor de 14 anos e um homem adulto). No imóvel particular residiam 24 pessoas, 22 das quais ficaram desalojadas: dois cidadãos portugueses, dois belgas, dois argentinos, três bengalis e 15 indianos.

Todos os desalojados do incêndio na Mouraria são estrangeiros. Morreram duas pessoas e há 14 feridos

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Dois feridos em incêndio em loja transformada em habitação em Lisboa

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
O incêndio foi causado por um curto-circuito. Na loja do piso térreo na Rua Santo António dos Capuchos residiam seis cidadãos do Bangladesh, mas não se sabe quantas pessoas estavam no local.

# data[].attributes.headline
62,8% de jóvenes gitanos de 16 a 24 años no se gradúan en ESO

# data[].attributes.subject
62,8% de jóvenes gitanos de 16 a 24 años no se gradúan en ESO

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
El 62,8% de jóvenes gitanos de 16 a 24 años no se gradúan en ESO, frente al 4% de la población general

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
“Los niveles educativos de la población gitana siguen muy alejados de la media del resto de la población y, en consecuencia, se continúa agrandando la brecha educativa ”

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Pelo menos 100 imigrantes estavam a ser explorados no Baixo Alentejo

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Pelo menos uma centena de imigrantes estava a ser vítima de exploração em propriedades agrícolas do Baixo Alentejo, informou esta terça-feira a Polícia Judiciária (PJ), na sequência de uma operação que levou à detenção de 28 pessoas.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
La brecha salarial de género en España es del 28,21%. La desigualdad salarial española deja a nuestro país en la bancada, siguiendo el último informe Global Gender Gap 2022. Si la igualdad de hombres y mujeres continúa avanzando a la velocidad actual, tendrían que pasar 132 años para alcanzar la paridad total. España ocupa el puesto número 17 del mundo en cuanto a paridad de género (su puntuación es de 0,788 sobre 1, donde 1 es la paridad completa).

Analizando los indicadores, vemos cómo en el caso de nuestro país el salario percibido por un trabajo similar se aleja mucho de este marcador. Una puntuación de 0,616 lleva a nuestro país hasta el 89 puesto mundial. Una situación parecida sucede con el ingreso estimado total que ocupa la posición 58 con un indicador de 0,674. Un contexto tan crítico que viene reforzado por otro dato: sólo una de cada tres personas de las juntas empresariales son mujeres (32,60%).

La Organización Internacional del Trabajo (OIT) calcula que las mujeres cobran un 20% menos que los hombres en todo el mundo. La brecha salarial entre hombres y mujeres se ha reducido en algunos países, mientras que en otros apenas se han producido cambios. Según Eurostat, son 47 los días que las mujeres de la Unión Europea (UE) trabajan gratis al año con respecto a los hombres.

1. Frente a la desigualdad salarial, WEPs

2. Beneficios de la diversidad de género

3. Iniciarse en la lucha contra la brecha salarial de género

4. Acelerar la plena inclusión salarial de género

1. Frente a la desigualdad salarial, WEPs

El problema de la desigualdad salarial es un problema persistente y universal. Parte de esta diferencia puede explicarse por la formación, experiencia laboral, tamaño de la empresa y presencia sindical. Además de otros como la existencia de estereotipos de género y valor correspondiente del trabajo. El principio de igualdad de remuneración por trabajo igual o equivalente significa que no debe de haber una diferencia de salario basada en el género por el desarrollo de una misma labor.

Bajo este contexto, los Principios para el Empoderamiento de las Mujeres (WEPs por sus siglas en inglés) ofrecen una guía para que las empresas sostenibles promuevan la igualdad de género y el empoderamiento de las mujeres. Los WEPs han sido creados por ONU Mujeres y el Pacto Mundial de la ONU. Se basan en las normas internacionales de trabajo y derechos humanos. El Principio 2 de los WEPs " Tratar a todos los hombres y mujeres de forma equitativa en el trabajo sin discriminación" anima a pagar la misma remuneración por un trabajo de igual valor.

2. Beneficios de la diversidad de género

Cada vez existen más evidencias entre una mayor diversidad de género y un mayor desempeño en materia ambiental, social y de gobernanza. Sí, hablamos de los criterios ASG. En el área de género del SDG Ambition. Guía de referencias empresariales, por ejemplo, vemos cómo contar con más mujeres en puestos de liderazgo se asocia con una reducción de emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero, relaciones más sólidas con la plantilla y un menor fraude.

Con motivo del Día Internacional de la Mujer, hemos traducido una nueva referencia empresarial que complementa la gestión basada en ODS. Se trata de la referencia sobre la Igualdad de remuneración por trabajo de igual valor, que ayuda a las organizaciones a garantizar que las mujeres y los hombres que trabajan en empleos idénticos o similares reciban la misma remuneración. Esta referencia empresarial, está pensada para ejercer cambios en los procesos que actúen favorablemente sobre los ODS 1 y ODS 10, pero especialmente sobre el ODS 5: Igualdad de género y el ODS 8 Trabajo decente y crecimiento económico. ¿Cómo impacta favorablemente en el valor empresarial? Al trabajar estos pilares:

Respetar los derechos humanos y el compromiso con el trabajo decente. Reconociendo las competencias de las mujeres y valorando las tareas que realizan. La igualdad salarial también consiste en eliminar estereotipos de género.

Mejorar la reputación de la empresa interna y externamente. Las empresas que promueven la igualdad salarial tienen fama de innovadoras y excelente lugar para trabajar.

Atraer y retener al mejor talento. Las personas trabajadoras eligen alinearse con organizaciones que tienen valores iguales a los suyos. Casi dos tercios (61%) de las mujeres tienen en cuenta la brecha salarial de género cuando solicitan empleo.

3. Iniciarse en la lucha contra la brecha salarial de género

Existen múltiples herramientas para cerrar la brecha salarial, sin embargo, hemos querido destacar algunas acciones preliminares que acelerarán estos procesos de empoderamiento e igualdad:

Planificación de los recursos financieros y humanos que serán necesarios para cerrar la brecha salarial. Las empresas deberán asignar un presupuesto para eliminar gradualmente las diferencias de remuneración entre mujeres y hombres.

Establecimiento de los procedimientos de la formación que se va a impartir. La igualdad salarial también se lucha promoviendo el conocimiento relacionado con la discriminación, los estereotipos y los prejuicios.

Establecimiento de una estrategia de comunicación. Una buena estrategia nos ayudará a reducir los miedos de la plantilla sobre un tema de la igualdad salarial para evitar rumores o incertidumbres.

Evaluación del valor de los trabajos. Los puestos pueden ser diferentes entre sí, en términos de habilidades, cualificaciones, responsabilidades, esfuerzo y condiciones de trabajo. Se puede examinar mejor listando los puestos de trabajo y viendo si se encuentran ocupados por mujeres u hombres.

El Ministerio de Igualdad junto con el Instituto de las Mujeres ha puesto esta serie de herramientas para la igualdad que servirán para realizar los planes de igualdad de las diferentes organizaciones.

4. Acelerar la plena inclusión salarial

Los recursos humanos son cruciales para hacer seguimiento y supervisar la remuneración por iguales o trabajos parecidos. Las personas que lideran las empresas deberán involucrar a sus socios para lograr la inclusión con:

Sistemas de remuneración en tiempo real. Crea una visión completa y accesible a puestos con un mismo valor.

Transparencia en la gestión del talento. Garantiza la visibilidad y supervisión de las decisiones de contratación y gestión del talento.

Medición del impacto y mejora continua. Seguimiento del éxito de las iniciativas e identificación de las áreas de oportunidad.

Actualmente, sólo el 35% de las empresas de todo el mundo tienen un proceso de igualdad salarial basado en un sólido enfoque estadístico.

¡Conoce más ejemplos de acciones de buenas prácticas en igualdad de género!
Además, todas las empresas que participan en el Pacto Mundial de la ONU pueden sumarse al programa Target Gender Equality. Una iniciativa para acelerar la igualdad de género en las empresas y liderazgo de las mujeres según la meta 5.5 de la Agenda 2030.
Compartir

Etiquetas

brecha salarial de género española

brecha salarial de género españa

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
La brecha salarial de género es más del 28% en España

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
La desigualdad salarial española deja a nuestro país en la bancada, siguiendo el último informe Global Gender Gap 2022.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Cinco menores detenidos en Getxo por la muerte de un joven de 23 años al que presuntamente apuñalaron

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
La tía de la víctima ha contado que el joven estaba en casa cuando bajó a la calle sin saber por qué y que "20 minutos tocaron la puerta y dijeron que habían apuñalado" a su sobrino con el que vivía en el barrio de Algorta.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Cinco menores detenidos en Getxo por la muerte de un joven de 23 años al que presuntamente apuñalaron

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
La tía de la víctima ha contado que el joven estaba en casa cuando bajó a la calle sin saber por qué y que "20 minutos tocaron la puerta y dijeron que habían apuñalado" a su sobrino con el que vivía en el barrio de Algorta.

# data[].attributes.headline
Decrease in happiness for the marginalized

# data[].attributes.subject
Decrease in happiness for the marginalized

# data[].attributes.body
https://lgbtyouth.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Trans-Report-2024-digital-final-V2.pdf

Poor mental health in marginalised groups (LGBT+ in Scotland)

# data[].attributes.body
Portugal vive atualmente uma situação política complexa e a ausência de políticas ou políticas pouco eficazes têm impacto em várias dimensões: inflação na habitação (é quase impossível alguém conseguir ter uma casa); cabaz alimentar muito caro; salários baixos; exploração de imigrantes que vivem em condições horríveis para satisfazer a luxúria dos mais ricos; pôr em causa os direitos das mulheres, nomeadamente a interrupção voluntária da gravidez; as questões LGBTQIA+ não são bem aceites que sejam faladas nas escolas.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Los cinco menores de edad que este pasado domingo fueron detenidos por su presunta implicación en la muerte de un varón en el barrio getxotarra de Algorta (Bizkaia), no son menores no acompañados 'menas' de origen magrebí, según ha informado el Departamento vasco de Seguridad.

De esta forma, la Consejería de Seguridad ha desmentidos los 'bulos' que se están difundiendo en redes sociales en los que se culparía de esta muerte a menores magrebíes no acompañados. Los arrestados han pasado ante la Fiscalía de Menores en Bilbao a las 9.30 horas de este lunes para prestar declaración por el incidente en el que un joven falleció durante la madrugada del domingo como consecuencia de las heridas recibidas por un arma blanca en el barrio getxotarra de Algorta.

La Ertzaintza, con la colaboración de la Policía Local de Getxo, detuvo a cinco menores de edad y halló en las inmediaciones dos cuchillos con restos de sangre.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Los cinco detenidos por la muerte de un joven en Algorta no son menores magrebíes no acompañados - Onda Vasca

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Los cinco menores de edad que este pasado domingo fueron detenidos por su presunta implicación en la muerte de un varón en el barrio getxotarra de Algorta (Bizkaia),...

# data[].attributes.headline
A día de hoy, todavía adultos desconocen sus orígenes. Los bebés robados del franquismo y las secuelas de la policía de la moral 

# data[].attributes.subject
A día de hoy, todavía adultos desconocen sus orígenes. Los bebés robados del franquismo y las secuelas de la policía de la moral 

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Justo un mes después de que Raquel Castillo cumpliese 16 años, dos policías se presentaron en su habitación. Sin mediar palabra, le pusieron unas esposa s y se la llevaron a un centro de monjas, donde le hicieron una prueba de virginidad y la observaron durante una semana. Su madre la había entregado a las autoridades, simplemente porque no quería hacerse cargo de ella. "Estuve en estado de 'shock', no sabía qué había hecho, no entendía nada...", narra ahora 43 años después, cerca del centro donde vivió su primer encierro, en Arturo Soria, todavía perteneciente a las Trinitarias.

Con la misma edad, Marian Torralbo fue ingresada por una denuncia de su propio hermano en otro reformatorio, en su caso de la orden de las Oblatas. "A mí me gustaba salir y una noche, cuando volvía de fiesta, mi hermano que era de Acción Católica se presentó con mi cuñado y me llevaron a un piso custodiado por monjas. Mis padres renunciaron a mi tutela, y empezó mi infierno". Consuelo García del Cid ni siquiera recuerda cómo llegó a un centro de las Adoratrices en la capital, muy lejos de su Barcelona natal. "Me desperté en una habitación con una pequeña ventana desde donde vi que todos los coches tenían matrícula M, y ya pensé que algo iba mal...".

El Patronato se quedaba con la tutela de las adolescentes de entre 16 y 25 años que consideraba "caídas o en riesgo de caer"

Como ellas, miles de adolescentes fueron encerradas entre 1941 y 1985 en centros de religiosas de toda España bajo la custodia del Patronato de Protección a la Mujer, una institución que se encargaban de controlar la moral de la población femenina. Denominados oficialmente "colegios", eran reformatorios en la práctica que extendieron el yugo de la represión franquista entre las mujeres de entre 16 y 25 consideradas "descarriadas". Denunciadas por desconocidos, familiares o de oficio, el Patronato se quedó con la tutela de incontables mujeres que fueron condenadas sin juicio, y privadas de su libertad. Del Patronato poco se ha sabido tras la dictadura, a pesar de que sus prácticas se extendieron hasta 1985, cuando las tutelas de las menores de edad que quedaban bajo su "protección" se extinguieron y los últimos reformatorios cerraron rodeados de polémica.

Redadas en cines y bares

Rebeldes, prostitutas, lesbianas, campesinas, violadas, embarazadas... Cualquier chica que se alejase de los cánones del único modelo de mujer que contemplaba el franquismo era susceptible de ser encerrada. Ni siquiera hacía falta que hubiese cometido todavía pecado, incluía a todas las "caídas o en riesgo de caer". "Eran cárceles legalizadas, a las que no hacía falta ningún juicio para condenar a todas aquellas que no cumplían lo que en la Alemania nazi se denominaban las 3 K: Kinder, Küche und Kirche (niños, cocina e Iglesia)", explica la abogada Teresa Fernández, de la Fundación Women's Link Worldwide que ha incluido el caso del Patronato como ejemplo de la represión del franquismo con las mujeres en la causa que investiga sus crímenes en Argentina.

Los antecedentes del Patronato franquista se remontan a 1902 cuando se creó el Real Patronato para la Represión de la Trata de Blancas, vigente hasta la segunda república. Sin embargo, es con el franquismo cuando los supuestos se amplían a su máxima expresión y adquiere la misión de "rehabilitación" moral, bajo el paraguas del ministerio de Justicia y la presidencia de Carmen Polo, mujer de Franco. "La existencia de este patronato indica cómo la dictadura, sin abandonar la maquinaria represiva, va poniendo en funcionamiento otros instrumentos y mecanismos de control, socialmente más aceptables y políticamente más rentables que la represión pura y dura", explica Pura Sánchez, investigadora del periodo del franquismo, ha indagado a fondo en los documentos de Sevilla.

Al Patronato de Protección a la Mujer se llegaba de muchas maneras. Redadas policiales, entregadas por la propia familia o denunciadas por un vecino afín a la ideología fascista. Pero sobre todo, jugaban un papel fundamental las celadoras, funcionarias de entre 28 y 45 años de "moral intachable y espíritu apostólico", cuya tarea era visitar las zonas "calientes del pecado", como podían ser los cines, bailes, bares o piscinas. "Cuando veían a una menor en actitud que consideraban que no era adecuada para la moral de la época, llamaban a la Policía", explica Consuelo García del Cid, investigadora que ha dedicado un libro solo a esta institución tras su paso por dos de sus centros, ' Ruega por nosotras'. También había asociaciones de voluntarios que hacían este espionaje de manera altruista como la Liga Española contra la Pública Inmoralidad de Barcelona o el Bloque contra la Pública Inmoralidad de Zaragoza.

La institución se organizaba por Juntas Provinciales; al menos una por cada provincia. De algunas de ellas, como la de Sevilla, se conserva numerosa documentación que permite reconstruir una parte de la historia de este instrumento ideológico. Por ejemplo, guardan esperpénticos informes de ingreso de menores por motivos tan dispares como "por haberse ido con las comparsas de la Artista de Cine Marisol" o " por no obedecer a su madre". "Una mujer caída podía ser cualquiera. Besarse en un cine, bailar agarrado, fumar a escondidas, llevar la falda más o menos corta [...] ser víctima de una violación, de un incesto, ser homosexual [...] negarse a rezar [...] ser pobre", narra García del Cid en su libro.

"La mayoría de las mujeres que se atendían en el Patronato eran chicas jóvenes, de 16, 17, 21 años, a las que se califica de "débiles mentales" o 'deficientes mentales'", continúa Sánchez. "De hecho, en las fichas se incluye su coeficiente intelectual. Pero lo común a todas ellas es un ambiente familiar y/o social que se califica de "nocivo" o "pernicioso". En muchas de estas fichas lo que se intuye en realidad es la pobreza y la marginación, consecuencia de la violencia económica y política que la dictadura siguió practicando contra las familias de las y los vencidos. Cada año, las juntas provinciales elaboraban una memoria anual sobre el "estado de la moralidad" de cada región. "El hecho de que se llamara 'de protección' tiene que ver, por una parte, con la ideología patriarcal, católica y conservadora de los vencedores de la guerra, que pensaban que las mujeres, como sujetos débiles, necesitaban protección, pero también reeducación, para tratar de hacer desaparecer, en la población joven sobre todo, los posibles residuos de la 'modernidad republicana".

Gran parte de las adolescentes que pasaron por los reformatorios, donde la mayoría de edad pasaba de ser de los 21 a los 25 años, constaban como 'rebeldes', pero una de las cosas que más sorprende a los investigadores es la cantidad de casos donde era la propia familia la que las ingresaba allí. Esta circunstancia se explica por dos razones. La primera, la labor del Patronato era completamente desconocida, y muchos padres pensaban estar mandado a sus hijas a un internado, sin imaginar las condiciones que allí había. "Mi padre había fallecido ese año y a mi madre le dijeron que lo mejor para mí era ir a un internado. Yo había estado en colegios de monjas y pensé que no sería para tanto, pero no tenía nada que ver. Cuando mi madre me visitaba y le contaba todo, las monjas le decían que eran cosas mías. Y no se las cuestionaba", explica Teresa F. Gismero que estuvo en un centro de las Adoratrices de Madrid en 1977, desde el que la trasladaron a otro en Albacete. "Querían alejarme de mi madre".

Al final, éramos penadas dos veces. Por el propio drama y por el que se imponía institucionalmente en manos del Estado

La segunda razón surgía de la propia familia, ya fuera por abusos sexuales o por pobreza, como era el caso de las chicas procedentes del campo que acabaron en un reformatorio de la capital como única vía de escape de la miseria de los pueblos. "La mayoría estábamos ahí por un problema familiar: abusos, incompatibilidad familiar, pobreza... En realidad tendrían que haber entregado a las familias, porque no tenían capacidad para ocuparse de unas hijas. Podría haber delincuencia, pero yo en Madrid no conocí a ni una que estuviese ahí por eso", asegura Consuelo García del Cid, que fue ingresada por sus padres como interna 'de pago', es decir, sin que perdiesen la tutela, aunque con las mismas condiciones que el resto. "Al final, éramos penadas dos veces. Por el propio drama y por el que se imponía institucionalmente en manos del Estado".

Exámenes de virginidad

La primera parada de las "descarriadas" eran los Centros de Observación y Clasificación (COC). Durante una semana, chicas de todos los perfiles y procedencias compartían espacio mientras eran analizadas por las monjas que decidían a qué centro las enviarían posteriormente. El COC de Madrid está en Arturo Soria y sigue siendo un edificio propiedad de las Trinitarias, la orden que tenía encomendada esa labor de clasificación en la capital. En la parte de arriba del edificio todavía pueden verse las huellas de cemento de las rejas que un día franquearon sus ventanas para evitar fugas. "Me causó muchísimo impacto, era una cárcel, te cerraban la puerta para dormir en una celda con una ventana. Todas las noches venía la Policía a traer prostitutas detenidas, que se quedaban solo una o dos noches", recuerda Raquel a los pies de la fachada. "Yo era una niña y nunca me había mezclado en ambientes así. Recuerdo que me senté donde pude, toda tímida, y me dijo una 'quítate de mi lado que tengo el carné de bollera'. No la entendí, pero por si acaso me quité".

Carlos Álvarez, investigador de la Universidad del País Vasco, ha estudiado concretamente el papel del Patronato en la persecución y encierro de las prostitutas, que suponían una minoría en la población recluida en los centros -entre un 7% y un 10%-. "Su encierro cumplía con dos objetivos: por un lado separarlas del resto de la sociedad para que no influyese en ella, y por otro ser 'rehabilitadas', por el camino de la redención".

Todas las que pasaron por el COC de Madrid narran la monotonía de esos días, recluidas en un salón donde no hacían nada más que fumar y escuchar música. La comida no era mala, pero ninguna olvida los cubiertos de plástico que usaban a diario. "No intimábamos unas con otras, no hablábamos, yo creo que porque estábamos todas en 'shock'". A los días, todas eran sometidas a un examen de virginidad. "Me subieron a un potro y me preguntaron si era virgen. Dije que sí y el doctor me contestó 'sí, eso decís todas', entonces empecé a chillar, porque lo de la virginidad entonces lo llevaba muy adentro porque mi madre era madre soltera. Chillé muchísimo y me puse tan histérica que no me tocó. Y puso 'completa' en el informe". Figurar como completa o incompleta, junto al comportamiento que hubiesen tenido durante esa semana, determinaba la dureza del centro al que eran redirigidas.

Convivíamos con niñas del Tribunal de Menores, y muchas se hacían pis en la cama. Las monjas las castigaban con duchas frías

No se tiene constancia, siquiera de manera aproximada, de cuántos centros podría haber por España, pero sí de que pertenecían al menos a siete órdenes religiosas, cada una especializada en un perfil: el Buen pastor -señalado por muchas como de los más benevolentes a pesar de tener los casos más complicados-, las Adoratrices, las Terciarias capuchinas, las Cruzadas Evangélicas, las Trinitarias, las de María Ianua Coeli y las Oblatas, consideradas de las más duras.

Marian Torralbo pasó por un centro de las Oblatas a principios de los 70 y no ha olvidado todavía los periodos de aislamiento que sufrió allí: "Convivíamos con niñas del Tribunal de Menores, y había muchas que se hacían pis en la cama. Las monjas las castigaban con duchas frías, pero una vez me interpuse y dije que yo limpiaba todo, pero que no castigaran a una niña de 4 añitos. La monja me dio un guantazo y se lo devolví. Por eso me tuvieron un mes encerrada". En otra ocasión estuvo tres meses sin salir de una celda de aislamiento por pelearse con otra interna.

"No había compasión. Cuando llegabas había unos días de licencia para llorar, pero como te pasaras... El llanto podía ir contra ti. Te decían 'anda, llora un poco más que estás muy guapa' o directamente te lo prohibían", explica García del Cid. Era habitual también en algunos centros que a las chicas les rapasen el pelo, ya fuera por higiene o como represalia. "Psíquicamente nos llevaban al límite".

Sin embargo, la experiencia de cada interna varía de unas a otras. Raquel recuerda que su paso por las adoratrices, donde coincidió con Consuelo, fue positivo: "Yo estuve bien, sobre todo porque venía de vivir en una habitación con mi madre, que me había entregado", explica. "Dependía mucho de cada una. Igual que había chicas del campo para las que solo tener agua corriente ya era un lujo". Antes de cumplir los 16 años y poder entrar legalmente en el Patronato, la madre de Raquel intentó entregarla al Tribunal de Menores, quien consideró que no había motivos suficientes y le recomendaron esperar para poder deshacerse de ella con más facilidad en el Patronato, que ponía menos pegas.

Tampoco los centros y su dureza eran iguales. En las Oblatas, por ejemplo, no se impartían clases ni había cursos de formación, como sí tuvieron las Adoratrices. Raquel y Teresa recibieron clases de auxiliar de clínica por parte del doctor Eduardo Vela, investigado por la trama de los bebés robados, e hicieron sus prácticas en la tristemente famosa clínica San Ramón: "Yo nunca vi nada, tampoco lo iban a hacer delante de mí. Lo que sí recuerdo de él es que nunca sonreía", cuenta Raquel.

"Nos levantábamos a las seis de la mañana, íbamos a misa, después desayuno y luego a fregar el suelo de rodillas. Después iban los talleres, rezar el Ave María Purísima y el Ángelus y luego te dejaban 15 minutos para hablar entre nosotras. Cuando acabábamos cada una hacía un poco lo que quería hasta la cena. Para terminar, una reunión en el que se hablaba de lo que había pasado ese día, y a la cama", narra Teresa F. Gismero que pasó por las Adoratrices en 1977.

El funcionamiento de los centros se basaba en tres máximas: f regar, rezar y coser. La mayor parte de la jornada se pasaba en los talleres, donde las internas confeccionaban ajuares para las familias ricas o para marcas como El Corte Inglés. También montaban envases para firmas como rímel Pinaud o el refresco Tang. La explotación laboral era generalizada, por la que no recibían ninguna compensación económica, y gracias a la cual estas órdenes estuvieron lucrándose durante años. Cada centro recibía además 2.000 pesetas por interna y día en la época de los 70 -unos 190 euros con la inflación actual-.

Pero independientemente de las condiciones, todas señalan la pérdida de libertad como lo peor de su paso por la institución que incluía también la confiscación de cartas o escuchas telefónica. "El no entender el porqué, ese no saber, no merecértelo... Eso era lo peor", recuerda Raquel.

Manicomio para las más rebeldes

En la red de centros y órdenes que salpicaba el país, había dos centros considerados como el peor final posible. Uno era el de Baeza en Jaén, con el que eran sistemáticamente amenazadas todas las internas de España, pero del que no se conserva ningún testimonio. "Ninguna ha querido hablar", recoge García del Cid. El otro era el manicomio de Ciempozuelos, a 30 km de Madrid. A este último iban a parar las más difíciles de domar o las que habían caído en depresión. Allí estuvo ejerciendo el psiquiatra Guillermo Rendueles, quien no conocía la existencia del Patronato hasta que empezó a trabajar con él en 1975. "Había chicas que estaban allí por cosas tan tontas como llegar tarde a casa, o tener un novio. Algunas sí tenían trastornos de conducta, pero la propia institución creaba la patología. Era difícil saber lo que era debido al encierro y lo que eran problemas mentales. Pasaba como con los animales: la conducta en el zoo no es la misma que en libertad".

En este manicomio, las internas -apodadas 'las patronatas'- tenían habitaciones individuales "para prevenir la homosexualidad femenina" y recibían algunas de las terapias más punteras de la época. Un trato que contrasta, por ejemplo, con los amarres que sufrían cuando intentaban fugarse. "La mayoría se iban sin dinero ni ropa, así que lo normal era que a los pocos kilómetros algún caminero abusase de ellas y las entregase a la Guardia Civil", afirma Rendueles. El psiquiatra recuerda cómo en una ocasión ayudó a una a escapar de su encierro: "Era un día que estaba muy cabreado con el sistema porque acababan de ejecutar a Puig Antich. Me tocaba guardia de fin de semana en el manicomio y me dedicaba a dar patadas a las puertas cuando percibí cómo una de las patronatas, una de aquellas con poca afición a verbalizar sus problemas, se guardaba mortadela y un bollo de pan mientras me miraba con desconfianza. Un rato más tarde le di mil pelillas, un anorak usado y una bolsa deportiva. No pareció sorprenderse, no me dio las gracias, ni siquiera sonrió. El lunes en el café del cambio de guardia comentaron la fuga y hubo apuestas sobre cuántos días tardarían los guardias en devolverla. Tres meses después yo dejaba de trabajar en Ciempozuelos, todavía no la habían detenido".

Algunas sí tenían trastornos de conducta, pero la propia institución creaba la patología

Al Patronato era fácil entrar, pero muy difícil salir. Los padres que querían recuperar la tutela tardaban meses en conseguirlo, por lo que muchas acababan de sirvientas, dependientas, o amas de casa por encargo.Era habitual que las pusiesen en contacto por carta con hombres solteros de países como Australia, o las exhibiesen y vendiesen al mejor postor, como se hacía en el centro de Peña Grande para embarazadas. También hubo quien se hizo monja, y quien se fugó.

Marian Torralba fue de las que optó por la última opción. "Durante días estuve escondiendo dinero y ropa en el coro de la Iglesia, hasta que un día salí por la puerta. Llevaba un tiempo portándome bien así que cuando me crucé con una monja y le dije que me esperaba mi padre fuera para llevarme al dentista, me creyó. En cuanto pasé la puerta empecé a correr como no he corrido en mi vida".

En el caso de Teresa, hizo una huelga de hambre después de que prohibiesen a todas las internas hablar con ella. "Me ingresaron en el hospital y las monjas ni siquiera llamaron a mi madre. Fue gracias a una enfermera que pude hablar con ella y me sacó de allí. Se llama Maricarmen y la llevo buscando desde entonces porque me salvó la vida". Salió en 1977, un año antes de que el Gobierno, ya en democracia, anunciase su abolición y sustitución por el Instituto para la Promoción a la Mujer.

Sin embargo, tuvieron que pasar siete años más para que las prácticas del Patronato se extinguiesen. Unos años en los que los centros siguieron actuando con total impunidad y, aunque no se dieron nuevas tutelas, las concedidas previas a la abolición se mantuvieron. El principio del fin se fraguó con la tragedia de una interna que murió intentando escapar del reformatorio Nuestra Señora del Pilar, en San Fernando de Henares (Madrid), bajo custodia de las Cruzadas Evangélicas. La indignación y la denuncia social hizo el resto, pero aun así tardó dos años más en cerrar, el 5 de abril de 1985, como recogen las crónicas de entonces. Poco antes, en septiembre del 83 el nuevo presidente del Consejo Superior de Protección de Menores, había prohibido pegar a las internas y la utilización de celdas de castigo acolchadas y con puertas blindadas -oficialmente llamadas salas de reflexión-.

Más de 30 años después, la figura del Patronato de Protección a la mujer sigue siendo un misterio incluso para los expertos en Memoria Histórica. Apenas se conserva documentación, que fue abandonada o destruida con la marcha de las monjas. "Se ha tendido a la no investigación en general, por nuestra Transición basada en el olvido y en el silencio, y por la ley de Amnistía que lo ha dificultado mucho", considera Teresa Fernández, la abogada de Women's Link Worlwide. "Y al final son las mujeres las que quedan olvidadas, las invisibilizadas en todos los conflictos". Carlos Álvarez apunta más bien a la opacidad de la institución, incluso durante su existencia: "La cara visible era el internado o reformatorio, pero nadie sabia lo que había detrás, no había oficinas del Patronato".

Consuelo se ha encontrado con todo tipo de trabas a la hora de investigar cómo funcionó el Patronato, al que considera máximo responsable de este negro capítulo del franquismo: " S e quebrantó la frontera entre el bien y el mal. Las monjas estaban absolutamente convencidas de hacer el bien, lo que pasa es que su bien hizo mucho mal, pero no las culpo. No lo hacían para jodernos, sino porque estaban convencidas de que tenían que hacerlo así y la ley se lo permitió. Había monjas malas, como cualquier comunidad, pero el responsable es el sistema que permitió esto: una Gestapo a la española pero dirigida a la mujer".

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
El Patronato, la cárcel de la moral franquista para adolescentes: "Era como la Gestapo"

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Entre 1941 y 1985 funcionó en España una institución encargada de encerrar a las adolescentes 'caídas o en riesgo de caer' en centros de monjas para "rehabilitarlas"

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Casi el 30% de las familias en España padecen exclusión residencial y 6 de cada 10 tienen algún problema de vivienda

Convocadas por la Plataforma de Afectados por la Hipoteca, un grupo de personas se concentra frente a una casa que van a desahuciar. HEINO KALIS (Reuters)

Alquileres e hipotecas por las nubes y encarecimiento del coste de vida: el cóctel perfecto para que más personas pierdan su casa. La dificultad de hacer frente al coste de la vivienda en estos días ha llevado a que un millón y medio de familias teman perder su casa en los próximos seis meses por no poder pagarla, según un informe publicado este viernes por la organización sin ánimo de lucro Provivienda. Aunque dos tercios de estos hogares son pobres, hay 472.000 que se encuentran entre el cuarto y sexto decil de ingresos, es decir, que son clase media, lo que demuestra que la escalada incesante de los precios y la pérdida de poder adquisitivo en un contexto inflacionista está ahogando cada vez a más población.

La investigación del organismo, subvencionada por el Ministerio de Derechos Sociales, concluye que los problemas de asequibilidad de la vivienda están llevando a la pobreza a más personas. En solo dos años la situación ha ido a peor, pasando del 15% en 2019 al 17,4% en 2021, el porcentaje de los hogares que se queda por debajo del umbral de la pobreza severa relativa tras pagar su casa. En el caso de los hogares pobres, la exclusión alcanza al 74% de la población. Y aunque los más afectados siempre son los de la renta más baja, hay otro dato que revela cómo la llamada clase media se está deslizando hacia el lado más pobre: En 2021, más de 250.000 hogares con ingresos entre el cuarto y sexta decil cayeron en en situación de pobreza severa después del pago de su vivienda.

En total, hay 5.5 millones de hogares en exclusión residencial, esto es el 29,5% de las familias en España. De todas ellas, casi cuatro millones se quedan en situación de pobreza severa relativa después de desembolsar la renta o el pago de su hipoteca. En definitiva, "cada vez son más numerosos los casos en los que, para poder hacer frente a los pagos de la vivienda, se ven obligados a habitar inmuebles en mal estado, hacinarse o cambiar de barrio", ha lamentado este viernes Elena Martínez, coordinadora de Provivienda, durante la presentación.

Alquiler, los más afectados

Ser dueño o no de la casa en la que se vive condiciona la exclusión residencial. Mientras que el 11,3% de los hogares con hipoteca están en situación de pobreza severa tras pagar la vivienda, la cifra repunta hasta casi el 40% para quienes alquilan. Si solo se considera el sobreesfuerzo económico -es decir, destinar más de un tercio de sus ingresos a este concepto- la diferencia entre propietarios e inquilinos es todavía mayor: un 9% frente a un 47,5%, casi la mitad de toda la gente que renta.

"Este sobreesfuerzo en el pago del alquiler tiene una prevalencia mucho mayor entre los hogares con rentas más bajas, afectando a siete de cada 10 hogares que viven de alquiler", añade Martínez. Sin embargo, no solo afecta a los más pobres. Los datos corroboran que tres de cada 10 hogares con niveles de ingresos intermedios pagan más de lo recomendado por los organismos especializados. Esta ratio preocupa a las instituciones porque al superarla, aumenta el riesgo de que las familias caigan en el impago y sean desahuciadas.

Los problemas de arrendamiento se agravan por lo que el organismo denomina un "emergente proceso de turistificación ", que ha disparado los precios del alquiler en un contexto en el que la oferta fuera del mercado es ínfima -solo un 2,5% de vivienda social en alquiler comparado con el 9,3% de la media europea- y la demanda no deja de subir - de 2011 a 2021 pasó del 13% al 16%, según datos del censo de población y viviendas, del Instituto Nacional de Estadística-. Territorialmente también hay diferencias significativas. Madrid y Cataluña, junto a Islas Baleas y Canarias, son las regiones donde hay que hacer un mayor esfuerzo para pagar una casa.

Un problema generalizado

El informe presentado este viernes revela que seis de cada 10 familias tienen algún problema de vivienda relacionado con la asequibilidad, la habitabilidad, el entorno o la inseguridad. Es un resultado mucho mayor que el que arroja la encuesta de condiciones de vida del INE, que lo cifra en un 42,7%.

En la mayoría de los casos (20,6%) el problema es de dinero, pues se quedan por debajo del umbral de pobreza extrema -que es de 561 euros para un hogar unipersonal o de 364 euros por persona para una familia de dos adultos y dos niños- tras pagar la vivienda. Sin embargo, hay un 5% de hogares que tienen dificultades de habitabilidad. Esto es, que se enfrentan a tres de los siguientes escenarios de manera simultánea: falta de baño propio, temperaturas inadecuadas, humedades, hacinamiento, plagas, falta de luz o accesibilidad.

Otro 8% de los hogares tiene problemas de entorno, lo que incluye demasiado ruido, contaminación, vandalismo de la zona, o ausencia de servicios básicos (tiendas, bancos, centros deportivos, culturales y sanitarios). Y hay un 4% que se enfrenta a situaciones de inseguridad. Entre las posibilidades está alquilar sin contrato, la violencia de género y mudarse más de una vez en los últimos cinco años por no poder pagar la renta o por haber sido desahuciado. Estos porcentajes agrupan a los más de cinco millones de hogares que están en exclusión residencial.

Regístrate gratis para seguir leyendo en Cinco Días

Si tienes cuenta en EL PAÍS, puedes utilizarla para identificarte

Gracias por leer Cinco Días

Sobre la firma

Ver biografía

Más información

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Un millón y medio de hogares temen perder su casa en los próximos seis meses por no poder pagarla

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Casi el 30% de las familias en España padecen exclusión residencial y 6 de cada 10 tienen algún problema de vivienda

# data[].attributes.body
The data have landed

First they said they needed data

about the children

to find out what they’re learning.
Then they said they needed data

about the children

to make sure they are learning.
Then the children only learnt

what could be turned into data.
Then the children became data.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
First they said they needed data about the children to find out what they’re learning. Then they said they needed data about the ch…

# data[].attributes.body
The perpetuation of gender roles that influences different systems of dominant power: transgression of a constructed hegemonic masculinity creates some forms of homophobia, defiance of gender as a perceived biological construct is the root cause of many forms of transphobia, 'separate spheres' ideology for men/women constructs misogyny and patriarchal dominance.

# data[].attributes.headline
Dominant power creating exclusion in sports (Classism, racism, misogyny)

# data[].attributes.subject
Dominant power creating exclusion in sports (Classism, racism, misogyny)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A new "landmark" report recommending ways to address the ongoing and historic racism, elitism and sexism prevalent in English and Welsh cricket was co-led by a UCL researcher.

Titled Holding Up a Mirror to Cricket, the report was written by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket, a committee established by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), the sport's official governing body, to assess evidence of inequalities and discrimination, and recommend actions to address these issues.

Image

Media Contact

Mike Lucibella

E: m.lucibella [at] ucl.ac.uk

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Classism, racism and misogyny widespread in cricket, finds report

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A new "landmark" report recommending ways to address the ongoing and historic racism, elitism and sexism prevalent in English and Welsh cricket was co-led by a UCL researcher.

# data[].attributes.headline
Esclavitud borrada de la historia de España

# data[].attributes.subject
Esclavitud borrada de la historia de España

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Retrato de Juan de Pareja, pintado por Velázquez en 1650, y conservado en el Museo Metropolitano de Nueva York. Tomas Abad (Agefotostock)

En el prólogo del Quijote, Miguel de Cervantes escribe: "Pues al cielo no le plugo / que salieses tan ladino / como el negro Juan Latino" para elogiar el manejo de la lengua de este erudito. Se trata de un esclavo negro que daba lecciones de gramática al nieto del Gran Capitán, que acabó siendo catedrático de Gramática en el siglo XVI. El Museo Metropolitano de Nueva York alberga un retrato pintado por Velázquez en 1650 de Juan de Pareja, un artista que a su vez acabó siendo un pintor importante y del que se conservan dos obras en el Prado. Fue también el esclavo del autor de Las meninas, aunque finalmente lo liberó. La esclavitud está por todas partes en la cultura española hasta el siglo XIX, como forma parte también de los ritmos del flamenco. Cuba, cuando todavía era España, fue el último territorio de Europa en abolirla. Sin embargo, aunque ocupa un lugar cada vez más prominente en la investigación académica y en las librerías, el recuerdo de la esclavitud no existe en el espacio público español.

En muchos otros países europeos el debate, impulsado por el movimiento Black Lives Matter, ya no está solo en que desaparezcan de las calles las estatuas de grandes esclavistas -como ocurrió en Barcelona con el marqués de Comillas, al que Martín Rodrigo y Alharilla ha dedicado el ensayo Un hombre, mil negocios (Crítica)-, sino en visibilizar una historia de sufrimiento y explotación. En Burdeos, desde 2019 una estatua de la esclava Modeste Testas recuerda que fue uno de los principales puertos de Francia para la trata del país. En Nantes se inauguró en 2012 un monumento a la abolición de la esclavitud, presente en muchos rincones de la ciudad, como por ejemplo en las fachadas de las casas nobles que dan al río Loira, en forma de esculturas con la cabeza de negros. Simbolizan de dónde venía la riqueza de las familias propietarias de aquellos edificios. En España, donde puertos como Cádiz o Barcelona fueron centrales en la trata atlántica, esa memoria no existe.

"En el Lazarillo está la esclavitud, también en el Quijote. Cuando te das cuenta la ves por todas partes", explica Aurelia Martín Casares, catedrática de la Universidad de Málaga experta en este tema y autora, entre otros libros, de Juan Latino. Talento y destino. Un afroespañol en tiempos de Carlos V y Felipe II (Editorial Universidad de Granada). Martín Casares relata que empezó a trabajar en estos temas hace 20 años y que entonces no estaba presente en casi ningún libro de historia. "La memoria de la esclavitud fue silenciada. Nadie pensaba que la población esclava en el Siglo de Oro era tan importante. Ahora es cuando se empieza a tomar conciencia del racismo, de lo que ha supuesto esa historia en el mundo hispano", sostiene. Cree que uno de los motivos de ese olvido es que no existe en la Península una población de descendientes negroafricanos, a diferencia de EE UU, de las colonias holandesas, danesas o de Cuba. En total, los expertos calculan que cerca de 11 millones de seres humanos fueron secuestrados y llevados como esclavos a América. Centenares de miles más murieron durante la travesía.

La ausencia de debate es una anomalía porque España fue el último país europeo en abolir la trata

"La población esclava no se autorreproduce por nacimientos. En todas las épocas las tasas de natalidad son bajas por sus condiciones de vida", prosigue esta investigadora. "La esclavitud se reproduce por comercio, solo se mantiene donde llegan barcos negreros. Cuando la trata se paraliza o se abole, desciende drásticamente el número de esclavos. Desaparecen las huellas de estas personas esclavizadas, no se ven, sus descendientes son asimilados. También hay que tener en cuenta que en el Cádiz de la modernidad muchos esclavos proceden del Imperio Turco o del norte de África. Estos se integran sin dejar huellas visibles en la población contemporánea".

Escultura de un esclavo en la fachada de un edificio en Nantes (Francia). Alamy Stock Photo

"Francia, Inglaterra o Países Bajos han hecho todo lo posible para visibilizar las tratas y dejar claro que se responsabilizan de lo ocurrido", señala por su parte Fabia Guillén, profesora en la Universidad de Pau y miembro del Ciresc (Centre International de Recherche sur les Esclavages, EHESS-CNRS), en París. "No fue nada fácil y hubo resistencias, pero en conjunto se admite la participación en las tratas negreras. Un aspecto fundamental que puede haber favorecido tal reconocimiento es el carácter colonial de esas tratas y formas de esclavitud. Tanto Inglaterra como Francia o Países Bajos fomentaban aquellas formas de alienación en sus respectivas colonias, muy lejos de los ojos de la metrópoli. Muy distinto parece ser el caso de España y, asimismo, Portugal e Italia, que no conocieron la ley del suelo libre y fueron partícipes de tratas y esclavización no solo en el mundo colonial, sino en su propio suelo desde la Antigüedad hasta por lo menos 1820 (para España). Puede entenderse el malestar y la dificultad a la hora de tener que mirar en el espejo una imagen poco halagüeña de su propia actuación histórica".

Pero este olvido oficial no se corresponde en absoluto con lo que ocurre en el mundo de la cultura. Solo en los últimos meses se han publicado, aparte del libro de Martín Rodrigo y Alharilla, La esclavitud en el sur de la península Ibérica (Catarata), de Rafael M. Pérez García y Manuel F. Fernández Chaves (coordinadores); Negreros. Españoles en el tráfico y en los capitales esclavistas (Catarata), de José Antonio Piqueras; Barco de esclavos. La trata a través del Atlántico (Capitán Swing), de Marcus Rediker; o El ritmo perdido. El influjo negro en la canción española (Anagrama), reedición de un ensayo de Santiago Auserón sobre la huella de las músicas africanas en los ritmos españoles, como el flamenco.

Ese mismo tema aparece en el documental Gurumbé, del jerezano Miguel Ángel Rosales, o en el filme Cachita, la esclavitud borrada, que Álvaro Begines acaba de estrenar en diferentes plataformas. Uno de sus personajes es el esclavista malagueño Pedro Blanco, que protagoniza la novela histórica Mongo Blanco (2019), de Carlos Bardem, que aparece en el filme, mezcla de documental y recreación ficcionada. El Museo de América, en Madrid, acoge hasta febrero la exposición La esclavitud y el legado cultural de África en el Caribe, organizada por el CSIC, una muestra que recorre las distintas culturas, lenguas y pueblos de África y la esclavitud en América, desde el siglo XVI hasta su total abolición en 1886 (Cuba) y 1888 (Brasil).

"Los únicos países que no han hecho nada por la memoria de la esclavitud son Portugal y España", asegura Martín Rodrigo y Alharilla. "¿Por qué? Una de las hipótesis es que en Francia, Gran Bretaña y Holanda hay una población afrodescendiente importante y se ha empujado desde la sociedad civil. En España, no ha sido una causa tan importante y las asociaciones existentes no han tenido la misma influencia. Si las cuestiones de memoria histórica vinculadas a la Guerra Civil y a la posguerra no se han resuelto aún y generan debate político, esta cuestión tampoco. Y es una anomalía, porque fue el último país europeo en abolir la esclavitud en sus territorios".

En Gran Bretaña y Francia la población afrodescendiente ha mantenido vivo su recuerdo

La esclavitud en España empieza en la Antigüedad y se prolonga hasta finales del siglo XIX. La primera expedición esclavista directa entre África y América se produce en 1518 y los primeros cautivos llegan en 1520. El último territorio al que llegan esclavos es la isla de Cuba. Son 350 años, sin tener en cuenta la esclavitud en la Antigüedad y la Edad Media. Sin embargo, como explica Aurelia Martín Casares, en el siglo XIX en la Península la esclavitud era un fenómeno bastante marginal. "En 1817, un tratado firmado por Fernando VII con Gran Bretaña prohíbe el comercio de esclavos, pero respeta la esclavitud existente. En el siglo XIX tan solo pueden ser denominadas como auténticas sociedades esclavistas en el mundo occidental el sur de Estados Unidos, el área caribeña y Brasil (donde un tercio de la población eran esclavos en torno a 1860). Por supuesto en África subsahariana y en el mundo árabe sigue existiendo la esclavitud, incluso hasta bien entrado el siglo XX. En general, en la España del XVIII ya no había demanda. Se convierte en un servicio suntuario, de aristócratas y ricos, no se trata ya del patrón generalizado del XVI en que cualquiera podía comprar un esclavo o una esclava. En la España del siglo XIX no hubo un movimiento abolicionista de grandes dimensiones, no creo que su influencia marcara el final de la esclavitud, aunque algo contribuyó. No obstante, sí había una sociedad abolicionista, revistas abolicionistas... El abolicionismo estuvo ligado al sufragismo y la lucha por el voto de las mujeres".

Un grabado conservado en la Biblioteca de Filadelfia representa la inspección y venta de esclavos en Nueva York en 1854.

El profesor de la Universidad Autónoma y coordinador del Equipo Madrid de Investigaciones Históricas, José Miguel López, autor de La esclavitud a finales del antiguo régimen (Alianza), subraya que ese olvido está presente "en las calles y en las instituciones" porque no se ha hecho un trabajo de borrado sistemático de personajes que hicieron su fortuna con la esclavitud. "Vivimos una desmemoria completa: Carlos III tuvo 20.000 esclavos", prosigue este investigador que ha querido buscar "la historia de gente sin historia", como el último esclavo censado en Madrid, en 1830, que trabajaba para una cervecería. Aunque la esclavitud acaba en España en 1837, el proyecto de ley nunca llegó a aprobarse y muchos investigadores sospechan que hubo esclavos hasta mucho más tarde, solo que escondidos como criados o traídos ilegalmente. Incluso, López sostiene que esa misma práctica -camuflar esclavos como sirvientes- se mantuvo hasta el siglo XX en el Sáhara Occidental.

Precisamente ese enorme olvido colectivo es lo que llevó a Álvaro Begines a rodar su película, en la que mezcla la recreación de historias relacionadas con la esclavitud y la trata con entrevistas a diferentes expertos. "Estaba leyendo un ensayo y señalaba que en el siglo XVI había muchos esclavos en Sevilla, que Lope de Vega sostenía que la ciudad era como un ajedrez: uno blanco y uno negro. Nunca me había planteado que hubiese tantos, empecé a estudiar y me di cuenta de que existían muchos estudios de historiadores. Es entonces cuando me planteé dirigir un documental que abriese los ojos sobre esa realidad. Muchos potentados se enriquecieron con la esclavitud. También el clero y la nobleza".

Una de las historias que cuenta Cachita es la de Cándida la Negra, una antigua esclava que vivió en El Puerto de Santa María (Cádiz) hasta mediados del siglo XX -falleció en 1951- y que demuestra hasta qué punto la esclavitud alcanza la historia de España más reciente. El historiador Manuel Pacheco la conoció a finales de los cuarenta, cuando ya era una anciana, y le dedicó un artículo de investigación titulado Una cara de la esclavitud: la apasionante historia de 'Cándida la negra'. Joaquín García de Romeu publicó en 2018 una novela sobre ella, La última negra.

Llegó en un cargamento de mujeres de Cuba, seguramente fletado por Antonio López, marqués de Comillas. Se trataba de hijas huérfanas de esclavas que eran exportadas a la Península "para satisfacer los deseos más oscuros" de sus compradores, explica el filme. El barco naufragó en la costa y ella salvó la vida, fue rescatada por un campesino y luego se emparejó con un gitano con el que no tuvo descendencia. Todo esto ocurre en la segunda parte del siglo XIX, cuando la trata ya era ilegal en la Península. La historia de Cándida la negra refleja la cercanía de la esclavitud, pero también las dificultades a las que se enfrentan los investigadores, porque una parte importante de la trata se hizo de forma clandestina, como ocurría con la llegada de barcos esclavistas a Cuba.

La recuperación de la memoria también puede ofrecer sorpresas desagradables: en febrero de 2018 el Tesoro del Reino Unido publicó, con el escándalo consiguiente, que cuando se abolió la esclavitud en 1833 pagó indemnizaciones a los dueños de esclavos (básicamente compró su libertad a sus dueños). No terminó de pagar a los esclavistas hasta 2015, de tal forma que los descendientes de esclavos estuvieron pagando indemnizaciones con sus impuestos a los que esclavizaron a sus padres, que no recibieron ningún tipo de compensación por sus sufrimientos. La memoria nunca es fácil. Tal vez por eso sea tan importante. Como escribe Santiago Auserón en el capítulo El canto esclavo de su ensayo: "La presencia de la negritud y su influjo musical en el Viejo Continente pertenece a una clase especial de sucesos que en la historia de España se han visto abocados a hundirse en el olvido, de suerte que nuestra memoria colectiva está como artificialmente labrada por algunos vacíos significativos".

Regístrate gratis para seguir leyendo

Sobre la firma

Más información

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
La memoria borrada de la esclavitud en España

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
La esclavitud fue una práctica muy habitual en España y sus colonias. Pese a su magnitud, son escasas sus huellas en el imaginario colectivo. Muchos historiadores y creadores llenan ahora con sus trabajos ese vacío

# data[].attributes.headline
Invisibilisation of LGBTI+ Individuals in history 

# data[].attributes.subject
Invisibilisation of LGBTI+ Individuals in history 

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Tradicionalmente, la memoria colectiva ha tratado de invisibilizar la huella de la mujer en la historia. Éstas han sido relegadas al olvido en los márgenes de los relatos dominantes. Hoy, poco o nada se habla y, por ende, tampoco se sabe mucho acerca de una de las figuras que marcó un hito en la historia feminista granadina. Entre esas figuras que han desafiado las convenciones y luchado por su identidad se encuentra Elena de Céspedes, nacida en Alhama de Granada en 1545 y una de las precursoras del colectivo trans.

Entre sus hazañas, destacan sus peripecias para adentrarse en el camino de la medicina, convirtiéndose en la primera cirujana granadina de la historia. Profesión a la que dedicaría parte de su sabiduría para moldear su cuerpo a su antojo. Lejos de la realidad, en aquella época, aprender lecciones sobre medicina era una cuestión de supervivencia y no tanto de universidades. De esta manera, Elena de Céspedes tuvo la gran suerte de introducirse en este mundo gracias al conocimiento de un gran amigo valenciano, quien le daría las claves para 'sangrar y purgar' en el hospital de la Corte durante aproximadamente tres años, hasta que finalmente fue acusada por ejercer sin titulación. No obstante, pronto marcharía a Cuenca para obtener su licencia oficial como cirujana, siendo la primera mujer de España en conseguirla.

En sus andaduras, Céspedes se alistó en las tropas de Felipe II para "apaciguar el levantamiento morisco en las Alpujarras", según señala el catedrático de la Universidad Rey Juan Carlos Ignacio Ruiz Rodríguez en una breve biografía publicada en la Real Academia de la Historia. La apariencia física de Elena de Céspedes ha sido motivo de controversia, varios testimonios la sitúan en Sudamérica, " algunos piensan que desde El Puente del Arzobispo se fugaría y llegaría hasta las Indias, en concreto a Lima, en donde en esos momentos las crónicas hablan de la existencia de un cirujano mulato", explica Ignacio Ruiz en una conversación con GranadaDigital.

@granadadigital 🧑‍⚕️Elena de Céspedes, la primera cirujana granadina de la historia #fyp #foryou #foryoupage #fypシ #fypシ゚viral #parati #noticiastiktok #noticiasen1minuto #granada #8m #8m💜 #diadelamujer ♬ sonido original - GranadaDigital

Una sentencia al amor hermafrodita

El "libertinaje sexual" del que gozaba Elena de Céspedes es conocido por la mayoría de sus historiadores. Sus numerosas relaciones con mujeres la sitúan como un referente en el lesbianismo de la época. A pesar de ello, la biografía de Céspedes está marcada por la servidumbre, el maltrato, la indiferencia y la lucha por la defensa de su sexualidad y condición. " Eleno de Céspedes representa, sin duda alguna, la lucha de una persona por la defensa de su sexualidad, de su forma de sentir, de soñar, de amar. Es sin duda alguna, un personaje que pasará la mayor parte de su vida en el filo de la navaja, pero entendiendo que ese era el peaje que había que pagar para materializar su sexualidad", destaca Ignacio Ruiz.

Con tan solo quince años fue obligada a casarse con un albañil procedente de Jaén. Fruto de este matrimonio nace su primer y único hijo, que fue dado en adopción a unos comerciantes sevillanos. Ante este declive personal, Céspedes emprende la huida en busca de una transición hacia la defensa de su masculinidad. "Eleno sentía como hombre, pensaba como hombre, vestía como hombre, se relacionaba como hombre y amaba como hombre", manifiesta Ruiz. Pese a las imposiciones de la época, la 'metamorfosis' de Elena proliferó en sus andaduras en la capital madrileña donde conoció a la que sería el amor de su vida, María del Caño.

" Llegó a contraer matrimonio con su amada. Para ello tuvo que pasar dos amonestaciones, en donde llegaría a participar un catedrático de medicina de la Universidad de Alcalá. Obviamente para ello, tuvo que exhibir órganos masculinos con las características propias de una persona apta para procrear. Ello bien pudo conseguirlo extirpándoselos a un cadáver, engañar a los que le examinaron y, más tarde, retirárselos de su cuerpo", relata Ignacio. A pesar del pudor y las agallas por tratar de burlar las leyes inquisitoriales, fue delatada por sus excompañeros soldados, quienes sentenciaron el final de Eleno de Céspedes desde la trinchera.

Extracto de la carta de Eleno de Céspedes al Tribunal del Santo Oficio de Toledo para argumentar su condición sexual:
"Yo, con pacto expreso y tácito del demonio, nunca me fingí hombre para casarme con mujer, como se me pretende imputar; e lo que pasa es que, como en este mundo muchas veces se han visto personas que son andróginos, que por otro nombre se llaman hermafroditos, que tienen ambos sexos, yo también he sido uno de estos. Al tiempo que me pretendí casar incalecía e prevalescencia más en el sexo masculino, e naturalmente era hombre e tengo todo lo necesario de hombre para poderme casar. Y de lo que era hice información e probanza ocular de médicos e cirujanos en él ante los cuales me vieron e tentaron e testificaron con juramento que era tal hombre y me podía casar con mujer. Y con la dicha probanza hecha judicialmente me casé por hombre e con licencia del juez competente".
No se debe olvidar la historia de quienes lucharon incesablemente contra luces y sombras en épocas donde reinaba el beneplácito de sociedades patriarcales y misóginas. El legado de Eleno de Céspedes representa la fuerza y la resistencia de aquellos 'atrevidos' que desafiaron las convenciones sociales, también la de quienes se quedaron en el camino, peleando y sufriendo para que sus derechos, algún día, fueran reconocidos.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Elena de Céspedes la primera cirujana granadina de la historia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Una mujer de Alhama de Granada, pionera en la medicina y en la lucha por su condición sexual hacia la transexualidad

# data[].attributes.headline
Transphobia and an created history of transphobia

# data[].attributes.subject
Transphobia and an created history of transphobia

# data[].attributes.body
Especially in recent years, the narrative around transphobia suggests that trans* existence in the UK is a recent 'phenomenon', which ignores figures like Olympian Mark Weston who transitioned in the 1930s.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Throughout February we've been marking LGBT History Month. The theme for 2021 has been 'Body, Mind, Spirit' and 'Five Faces' were selected to represent the LGBT+ community. One of these was Plymouth-born Mark Weston - an intersex* individual who was raised as a female named Mary Edith Louise Weston.

Weston was born on 30 March 1905 at Oreston to Stephen Weston, leading stoker on HMS Vivid, and his wife Susan, nee Stow. Mary was the second of eight children born to the Westons who lived at Bayly's Cottages, Oreston, until the 1930s.

Weston studied at Plymstock Senior School and as a teenager joined Plymouth Women's Athletics Club. Within months Weston was competing at a national level. Nicknamed the 'Devonshire Wonder', Weston won international titles in the women's shotput in 1925, 1928 and 1929 and became national champion in women's discus and javelin in 1929.

Weston became increasingly conscious of feeling uncomfortable as a woman and in 1936 underwent a series of surgeries at Charing Cross Hospital in London to become male. When interviewed by the Western Morning News in May of that year Weston said he was delighted to be now "in my true element." He changed his name to Mark Edward Louis Weston and on 8 July 1936 married a close friend, Alberta Bray, formerly of Prince Rock. He spoke warmly of the support he had received from friends and the local community, telling an American newspaper:

I was born and reared in Oreston, I think without undue vanity, I showed pluck by continuing to live here, where everybody knows my story. But my old neighbours are very kind and want the rest of the world to let me alone.

Mark retired from competitive athletics and was willing to hand back the records he had won as a female. Mark and Alberta started life as a married couple at Sweet's Cottages and then are recorded at Wembury Park Road, Oreston, in the 1939 register of the civilian population (available on the Findmypast website). In this register Mark is recorded as a 'Permanent Way Labourer' but we know from other sources that he mainly worked as a masseur.

Weston's life was touched by tragedy when his younger brother Harry Weston took his own life in 1942, aged just 26. Harry was also intersex and assigned female at birth. Born Hilda Margaret Weston he changed his name to Harry Maurice Weston after an operation to become male at the same hospital as his brother. In the 1939 register Weston is recorded as a domestic servant, living with his widowed mother at Bayly's Cottages, Oreston. According to the family, Harry regretted the operation and became depressed, tragically hanging himself in a Plymstock field in July 1942. This is recorded in national newspapers of the time.

Perhaps as a reaction to this tragedy, Mark and Alberta are next recorded in June 1951 emigrating from Lipson, Plymouth to the USA on RMS Queen Elizabeth. According to the record of immigration at New York, they originally stayed in New Jersey but then moved at some point to Wallingford, Connecticut.

Intriguingly online directories (available on the Ancestry website) indicate that a Mark E Weston, husband of Alberta Weston, worked from at least 1952-1960 as a mixer at the Federal Sweets and Biscuits Company, in Clifton, New Jersey. Unfortunately there isn't enough information in the directory to be sure this is the same couple, but it does seem plausible.

It's unclear when the couple moved back to the UK, but we do know that Mark died in 1978 at Freedom Fields Hospital. His widow passed away in Plymouth almost two decades later, in 1995.

* Intersex people are born with characteristics which don't fit binary notions of male or female bodies. Some intersex individuals may identify as male or female but some may choose to identify as intersex. Not all intersex people are transgender but in Mark's and Harry's cases, they were both.

With thanks to Claire Skinner, Archivist

Image credits:
Header image: Mark Edward Louis Weston and Miss Bray, 1936 - Historic Collection / Alamy Stock Photo
Square image: Mary Edith Louise Weston, 1936 - Historic Collection / Alamy Stock Photo

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Box | In my true element: Mark Weston (1905-1978)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Throughout February we've been marking LGBT History Month. The theme for 2021 has been 'Body, Mind, Spirit' and 'Five Faces' were selected to represent the LGBT+ community. One of these was Plymouth-born Mark Weston - an intersex* individual who was raised as a female named Mary Edith Louise Weston.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
"Ազատ Եվրոպա/Ազատություն" ռադիոկայան

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Armenia ranks 62nd out of 180 countries and territories evaluated in the Berlin-based watchdog's 2022 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) released on Tuesday. It shared 63rd place with Romania in the previous CPI released a year ago.

The South Caucasus state's CPI "score," measured on a 100-point scale, rose from 46 to 47 over the past year. The Armenian government had pledged to have it gradually raised to 55 in its three-year anti-corruption strategy approved in 2019.

Varuzhan Hoktanian, the head of Transparency International's Armenian partner organization, downplayed the slight improvement, saying that it is within the CPI survey's 2.5-point margin of error and only shows continuing "stagnation" in the government's declared fight against corruption.

"The global [CPI] average is 43 ... So I say this every year: if a country's CPI is below 50 it means corruption is a serious problem there," Hoktanian told reporters.

"In the two years following the 2018 Velvet Revolution, Armenia experienced significant democratic and anti-corruption reforms," Transparency International said in a report attached to the latest CPI rankings. "However, progress against corruption has stalled, primarily due to the limited implementation of these new measures."

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has repeatedly claimed to have eliminated "systemic corruption" in Armenia. However, members of his entourage are increasingly accused by Armenian media of enriching themselves or their cronies and breaking their anti-corruption promises given in 2018. There are also growing questions about integrity in public procurement administered by the current government.

About a year ago, Pashinian urged senior Armenian officials to sue media outlets "falsely" accusing them of illicit enrichment. Shortly afterwards, hackers hijacked the YouTube channel of the Yerevan newspaper Aravot just as it was about to publish a video report detailing expensive property acquisitions by several senior government officials and pro-government parliamentarians.

In December, the Armenian parliament controlled by Pashinian's Civil Contract party effectively fired the head of a state anti-corruption watchdog who investigated many pro-government lawmakers suspected of illicit enrichment, conflict of interest or other corrupt practices. The National Assembly ignored a joint statement in support of the official, Haykuhi Harutiunian, issued by several Armenian civic organizations.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Annual Corruption Survey Finds Little Change In Armenia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Transparency International has barely upgraded Armenia's position in its annual survey of corruption perceptions around the world, again noting a lack of significant improvement in the country.

# data[].attributes.headline
Issues of the Right to Education in the Republic of Armenia

# data[].attributes.subject
Issues of the Right to Education in the Republic of Armenia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The fact that everyone has the right to education has long been known to all of us, and it has been enshrined in both the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia and in the domestic law. Today, the state promotes the development of education and science, defines compulsory education programs, and provides the necessary preconditions for universal access to basic education for all. However, there are still a number of systemic problems that hinder the full realization of the right to education, which we address below.

The first major problem that remains unresolved in the system is the availability of preschool educational establishments, which means that all children must have quality early childhood development, care, and preschool education so that they can be ready for primary education in the future.

The next major issue is the issue of paying for community-based educational establishments. Often, due to the impossibility of paying tuition fees, in some cases it is not possible for parents to organize their child's education in a pre-school educational institution, as a result of which the child suffers.

The third no less important issue is the issue of children left out of education. The reasons for children dropping out of school are different, such as insufficient social conditions, child disability, inappropriate response to the absence of children, employment of children, and in the case of certain groups of the population, even early marriage of children, but in this context we must note that the problem is more in the realm of the legislative field, because the notion of a "child left out of education" is not provided in a legal act, which in turn causes other problems, complicates the detection of out-of-school children and the collection of clear and unified statistics on them.

Next, it is necessary to highlight the problems in the realization of the right to education of children with disabilities. The implementation of the right to education of persons with disabilities, the availability of the latter is guaranteed by both domestic and international documents. Moreover, the state has undertaken a number of commitments related to inclusive and quality education, and should pursue the elimination of these problems through thorough follow-up work.

Another problem is the lack of proper implementation of measures aimed at educating and raising awareness about human rights. In particular, it is necessary to introduce human rights education in educational institutions in accordance with international standards or courses that include these principles.

The last highlighted issue concerns the higher education and science. In this regard, the government plans apolitization of the universities, improving the quality of education and increasing funding for science, as well as measures to strengthen academic integrity.

It should be noted that the problems listed above have found their place in the RA "National Strategy for the Protection of Human Rights and its Implementation Action Plan for 2020-2022", and their solutions are envisaged in the Strategy Implementation Action Plan.

Thus, the action plan for 2020-2022 envisages the following 6 measures in the field of labor rights:

1. To introduce human rights issues in secondary schools in the context of new subject standards, to establish simplified legislative structures for the regulation of labor relations in accordance with international standards, based on the framework of the Council of Europe's "Capacity for Democratic Culture".

2. Legislatively provide the mechanisms for detecting, registering and exercising the right of children left out of education.

3. Adopt an inclusive education strategy and action plan for all levels of education.

4. Legislatively define the principles of academic ethics in accordance with international standards

It is envisaged that as a result of the above-mentioned actions, the number of cases of violation of the right to education of persons with special educational needs and school-age persons will decrease, at the same time the number of children left out of education will decrease.

Summing up, we can state that as a result of the changes envisaged by the National Strategy for the Protection of Human Rights and its Implementation Action Plan for 2020-2022, it is planned to improve the legislative framework, which in turn will contribute to the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goal No. 4, in particular: to "Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning".
This publication has been produced in the scope of the "Promoting Direct Democracy for Strengthening Human Rights in Armenia" project implemented in the framework of the "Eastern Partnership Civil Society Facility" project funded by the European Union The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the fellow for the "Promoting Direct Democracy for Strengthening of Human Rights in Armenia" project and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Union.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Issues of the Right to Education in the Republic of Armenia: What Solutions are planned in the Near Future?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The fact that everyone has the right to education has long been known to all of us, and it has been enshrined in both the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia and in the domestic law. Today, the state promotes the development of education and science, defines compulsory education programs, and provides the necessary preconditions ...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Earlier this month, Armenia's Criminal Court of Appeal ruled there had not been a proper investigation into a violent homophobic attack two years ago against a group of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) activists.

The court ordered a re-investigation, giving Armenia's law enforcement agencies a second chance to deliver justice in the case.

In August 2018, a crowd of about 30 men violently assaulted the activists in Shurnoukh, a village in southern Armenia. The crowd shouted homophobic slurs and threats, demanding the activists leave the village. They chased members of the group, hitting, kicking, and throwing stones at them, and shouting "Get rid of those gays!" At least six activists were injured, including one person who sustained a broken nose.

Police questioned several of the attackers. But by November 2018, the government had granted some of the assailants amnesty, and the authorities decided not to prosecute the rest.

The LGBT rights group PINK Armenia challenged the decision not to prosecute the assailants, first in a district court, which found no violation, and then to the Criminal Court of Appeals, which found that the decision was not substantiated. The court also stated that the investigation failed to address the severe psychological pain suffered by the victims.

For years, the Armenian government has failed to effectively investigate anti-LGBT violence in the country, and homophobia remains widespread. A government bill in the works that seeks to address issues of equality has faced criticism because it does not include sexual orientation and gender identity as grounds for protection from discrimination.

The court's decision offers authorities the opportunity to provide justice for victims of anti-LGBT violence. Even two years later, holding perpetrators accountable for this attack would send a strong message that violence against LGBT people in Armenia will not be tolerated. It would be a step in the right direction in the fight against homophobia in the country.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Another Chance to Address Homophobic Violence in Armenia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Earlier this month, Armenia's Criminal Court of Appeal ruled there had not been a proper investigation into a violent homophobic attack two years ago against a group of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) activists.

# data[].attributes.body
Artsakh, or Nagorno Karabakh was a Soviet oblast. During Soviet times according to Putin, the Ex-Soviet leaders put timing bomb under every republic, and Karabakh oblast was one of them. Stalin took the entire Karabakh oblast with 95% Armenian population put under Azerbaijani SSR administration1936. It was a choice that he made. During the fall of the Soviet Union Artsakh voted for independence and approved by the majority like another Soviet republic, but rejected by Azerbaijan and approved by Gorbachev the last Soviet Union President.At the same time, in December 1988, an earthquake of a magnitude of 10 in the northern part of the country, devastating for both people and the economy, also seemed to be an answer.

Then, in 1991, what is known as the energetic terror began. It lasted 7 years, until 1998. The entire country was deprived of gas, electricity, and water; people were freezing and starving, and they were also disappointed and devastated. Some of the intellectuals died in their own apartments unable to cope with reality.

Also, in 1991, an act called 'operation ring' was carried out by azerbaijan, which targeted not only the NKAO, but 5 of Armenia's provinces and resulted in a war. The war hasn’t yet ended.

So, people had quite a bunch of existential issues to deal with at the dawn of what they believed to be independence.

Refugees that fled the pogroms, victims of the most devastating earthquake, a war with the neighbor that tried to seize more than it was once given by the bolsheviks, and of course, years of energetic terror. Human, material, and financial losses. Only in the city of Spitak, 25000 people died and the financial loss was about 10 bln USD. Not to mention the losses of people who left all their possessions to escape the pogrom carried out by the artificial entity brought to existence in 1918. Not to mention the ones who were murdered and plundered. Not to mention losses at war, and economic breakdown.

The Armenian genocide was profitable for the perpetrators, the cost at the time was 5 bln USD. So were the other mass massacres, those of 1988 included.

So if deep dive into the roots and try to connect the symptoms, we can see that these people who has been under Russsin impact for severel years after independence were suffered from different nations not allowing them to get developed in the normal way and to get used to equality because throughout the history they didn't see equaty to their nation.

# data[].attributes.headline
Why do we stiil meet the problem of unequal rights in education

# data[].attributes.subject
Why do we stiil meet the problem of unequal rights in education

# data[].attributes.body
Teacher shortage is an issue in many countries of the world, including developed economies. Armenia also faces teaching staff shortage, which is mainly manifested in the form of a shortage of teachers in small rural areas, in specific subjects, as well as in an aging staff. The paper aims at studying the factors that make the profession of teacher non-attractive. In Armenia, the main reasons for leaving teaching are relatively low salary, lack of opportunities for professional growth, requirements of accountability, high workload

# data[].attributes.body
It is noteworthy that despite the widespread nature of violations of the rights of LGBT persons in Armenia, these cases are predominantly not reported to law enforcement bodies as the victims of such violations decline to seek protection from law enforcement. Of the 45 cases we have described, only 16 were reported to the police