We human beings are all different in many ways and can be identified according to many criteria: gender, nationality, age, physical characteristics, sexual orientation, personality, hobbies, standard of living, religion and beliefs and so on. The title of the manual, and of the Campaign that it originally served, states what stands out as universal evidence: each of us is a unique individual, yet we are individual human beings who are part of the human community in which we enjoy equal human rights. Truly all different and all equal!

As part of humanity, all of us are holders of human rights. Human rights are indivisible, interdependent and interrelated: the enjoyment of one right depends on the enjoyment of many other rights; no single right is more important than others. Human rights are also universal: they apply equally to all people and to everyone in the world, and with no time limit. Every person is entitled to enjoy their human rights without distinction of "race" or ethnic background, colour, sex, sexual orientation, disability, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, birth or other status. Their universality is also grounded on the fact that they reflect universal needs ranging from survival, health, education, freedom, self-fulfilment, and so on. This is encapsulated in Articles 1 and 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR):

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status (…).

The aspirations contained in the UDHR and other human rights instruments demand constant attention and action because the promise of universality has been challenged historically by centuries of conflict, domination and annihilation. Furthermore, today, at least on the European continent, the adherence to the principles of equality in dignity is regularly challenged by manifestations of racism, discrimination, antisemitism and xenophobia that violate the fundamental rights of many people and communities and put at risk the values which, in the words of the European Convention of Human Rights:

(…) are the foundation of justice and peace in the world and are best maintained on the one hand by an effective political democracy and on the other by a common understanding and observance of the human rights upon which they depend.

The contemporary human rights framework has been determined and moulded by the mass violations of human rights during the Second World War represented by the Holocaust, genocides and other crimes against humanity that were rooted in and nourished racism and racialised views of the world and humanity. Equally important in shaping the human rights framework were processes of self-determination and the end of colonialist rule.

The core of the human rights promise lies in living with equality in dignity and rights for all human beings. However, the simple declaration of these values, albeit fundamental and strengthened by a comprehensive framework of protection, does not immediately dissolve the effects of centuries of domination and oppression, nor does it dismantle the justifications that were built to explain them. The consequences of racial ideologies impact the lives of millions of people today. Racist ideas are also prevalent in our societies even if they appear in many forms and expressions.

It has become commonplace in European politics to assert that diversity is a given reality of our societies, and that this is even a strength to be built upon. It has not yet become commonplace to follow through this political assertion consistently.

For example, in the European Union, a 2017 study shows that four out of 10 respondents (38%) felt discriminated against in the five years leading up to the survey because of their ethnic or immigrant background in one or more areas of daily life¹. Respondents of North African background, Sub-Saharan African background and Roma respondents indicated the highest levels of discrimination based on ethnic or immigrant background. Moreover, in a Special Eurobarometer reported published in 2019, just over one quarter of respondents across Europe thought that national efforts to fight discrimination have been effective, underlining the widespread belief that more needs to be done to tackle discrimination². The figures are no better in other parts of the Europe and the world. Studies also show that discrimination has a particularly negative effect on children and young people; young refugees and young people from migrant backgrounds – “second” or “third generation” – are particularly affected.

The aspirations for equality in dignity and rights for all are influenced and shaped by inequalities that affect individuals and communities and the quality of social relations: inequalities in the access to rights; inequalities in exercising those rights; inequalities in economic resources and power. The digital divide, the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and the climate crisis accentuate the extreme inequalities that characterise each of our societies and the inequalities between richer and poorer countries.

Inequalities, conflicts and the climate crisis are also largely responsible for movements of population, within the same country and internationally. Migration has been a constant throughout human history, and mobility of human labour a consistent feature of the capitalist world we live in since its outset. This enhances the diversity in our societies, be it in terms of nationalities, ethnicities, religions, cultures or anything else. In fact, difference and diversity seem rather to be the norm and not the ethnical unity that some advocated for or idealised. One of the biggest challenges faced as humanity and as communities of people is to discover and decide how to live together and interact with difference, creatively and constructively.
 

¹ The Second European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey (EU MIDIS II – 2017).

² Special Eurobarometer 493: Discrimination in the EU (including LGBTI)