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Description
10% of residents of Kraków are people of Ukrainian origin. Official figures concerning this group continue to be incorrect or inconsistent. The language barrier, lack of understanding of cultural differences, stereotypes, and discrimination affect Ukrainians in many spheres of life: work, school, boarding school, and in relations with institutions and services. Neither local government policy, nor activities of institutions address this group''s problems. The project aims to improve observance of human rights and equality for the Ukrainian minority in Kraków and the region. The project comprises intervention, informational, awareness-raising, and advocacy activities. With respect to intervention, there are plans for a support center for immigrants, especially for people subjected to discrimination and violence victims, and a Women''s Club for female migrants will be created. Information activities will be conducted as a videoblog, and phrasebooks will be produced for doctors, police, and the city guard. The awareness-raising element will include measures to empower schoolchildren in the school environment (workshops, support sessions, a competition) and measures aimed at adults: culture assistants and members of social and educational institutions (workshops, networking, plans for learning activities). The advocacy measures will be distribution of reports with analysis of data collected during the project. In addition, networking organizations will be active, to improve the system of support and defense of human rights in Kraków, in particular female migrants who experience discrimination and violence. As a result, foreigners will receive direct support, have more powerful representatives of their communities, and gain broader access to information and services that help with exercise of their rights. Meanwhile, institutions will improve their knowledge of needs of minorities and the options for working with local partners in the Ukrainian community.
Summary of project results
Before Russia''s aggression against Ukraine, people of Ukrainian descent made up as much as 10% of the city''s male and female residents - various statistics indicated from 20,000 to as many as 90,000 people. After the outbreak of the war, these numbers increased many times over. Discrimination affects people from Ukraine in many areas of life: at work, at school, at boarding schools, in contacts with offices and services. Male and female students experience exclusion due to the language barrier, cultural differences, and the prejudices of Polish society. As a rule, educational institutions are not prepared to work with children and young people with migration experience and rarely take advantage of available opportunities, such as the involvement of a cultural assistant.
The project carried out various complementary activities: intervention, information, education and advocacy. At the support point that was launched, assistance was offered to migrants, especially to those discriminated against and experiencing violence. Information and specialized consultations were provided, including 377 legal and 328 psychological, among others. The running of the point was also accompanied by thematic webinars. Adaptation and language classes were organized. A Women''s Club was also established for a total of 135 migrant women, with 22 meetings held. Two bilingual thematic glossaries were developed: one for institutions implementing the "Blue Card" procedure, the other with medical terminology. An important element of the project were activities to strengthen male and female students in the school environment, including integration and anti-discrimination workshops, as well as activities aimed at adult cultural assistants and teaching staff. A meeting of Ukrainian and migrant organizations, operators of the Multicultural Center and the Cracow City Hall was organized and conducted, as well as two editions of networking workshops for NGOs.
Thanks to the project, gaps were filled in the area of support for migrants in Krakow and Malopolska, especially during such a difficult period as Russia''s aggression against Ukraine and the mass migration of Ukrainians to Poland. Many people received direct support - psychological, legal, linguistic, integration. The activity of migrants and migrant women has increased, and the voice of migrant organizations has become more audible and taken into account in the planning of local government policies.