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Description
When ranked on a European scale, Poland stands out due to a high level of prejudice. Prejudice against people of non-Polish ethnicity has increased since 2015, especially towards the most numerous groups, such as Ukrainians. There has also been an increase in the rate of prejudice-related crime. Meanwhile, only a small number of these crimes are reported, and there is a very low level of free-of-charge support for people in this group. The project aims to provide support for victims of prejudice-related crime on racial, ethnic, religious, and nationalist grounds, to mitigate the effects and help prosecute the perpetrators. Under the project, by working with the partners, the Homo Faber Association and Nomada Association, three support centres will be opened in cities that have a large migrant community: Warsaw, Wrocław, and Lublin. These centres will provide direct support for 60 migrants that are victims of hate crimes. A tool will be created for collecting data concerning incidents and the form of support provided. The project also envisages watchdog, advocacy, and intervention measures, such as publicising and documenting cases, intervention, and monitoring court cases. The project also includes briefings in municipalities and with students, and a public campaign on social media. A report will be drawn up on racial crime against migrants in Poland. The project will lead to hate crimes being publicised effectively, a shift in the approach of law enforcement agencies and witnesses of racial crime, and direct legal aid for 60 migrants who are victims of hate crimes.
Summary of project results
The project responds to the problem of widespread prejudices against people of non-Polish ethnic origin, which has been growing for several years. This change is related to the growing nationalist sentiments and a political and media campaign of hate directed at refugees. Black people, Muslims, people coming from the eastern border, including Ukrainians are facing expressions of racism. The number of crimes motivated by prejudice is also increasing , although only a small proportion of them is reported, and there is no monitoring of such crimes by the prosecutor''s office or the police. At the same time, the availability of free support for victims is low. Moreover, the project was implemented in a dynamically changing reality, very difficult for refugees, as during the humanitarian crisis on the Polish-Belarusian border, the coup in Afghanistan and the war in Ukraine.
The project combined watchdog, advocacy and intervention activities. Three support centres were established in cities with large migrant communities - Warsaw, Wrocław and Lublin. Direct, comprehensive legal assistance was provided to 60 people in these centres, primarily migrants, victims of hate crimes based on race, nationality, ethnicity. Awareness-raising meetings were also organised at universities in each of the three cities, as well as meetings in 15 smaller towns in the Lubelskie Voivodeship. At the same time, an educational campaign was conducted on the Internet. Project Promoter with Partners created a standardised tool to collect data on crimes motivated by prejudice and also forms of assistance provided. On the basis of their monitoring, a report was produced containing an analysis of the reported cases. Information about the report was sent to 430 individuals and institutions, including public offices, courts and services.
The project addressed different groups of recipients. 60 victims of prejudices motivated crime received specific legal and emotional support. 15 pre-trial proceedings were initiated in cases of hate crimes or with a discriminatory motivation of the perpetrator. Public awareness of the nature and scale of hate crimes has also increased, which was particularly important in the context of the appearance of refugees from Ukraine in Poland or in the context of the humanitarian crisis on the Polish-Belarusian border.