Do you want to join the European Action Weeks against Racism by organising an activity, but don’t know what to do? Don’t worry, UNITED for Intercultural Action has got your back. Every year, we share ideas for activities that can be organised during the Action Weeks against Racism. Find some inspiration below.
If you can’t find anything that suits you, feel free to come up with your own ideas! And, if you do come up with a creative idea, then it would be great to let us know as well, so we can share it as an example for others.
Don’t forget to let us know about your activity through our activity form!
Thematic Walk
Thematic walks are tours that focus on a certain theme that is often overlooked in day-to-day life, and are usually, led by one or more members of a certain group. For example, in recent years European cities have seen city tours spring up that are run by supporting organizations and given by homeless people. These tours are designed to offer perspectives into the lives and experiences of the people who run them.
The exact theme of your walk can be modified to suit your particular location – it could be a walk detailing the Muslim, Roma, or Jewish history of a town, or a tour looking at the most important places and experiences of a newly arrived refugee. Afterwards, a relaxing picnic or cup of tea makes sure that the conversations continue and the interesting things brought up during the walk can be discussed and shared.
Micro-campaign
Your organisation can organise your own micro-campaign! For example, ask members of your organisation to create a picture or creative output related to anti-racism, and share it on your social media. Don’t have inspiration? Use our slogan for inspiration! You can ‘show your heart’ in many nice creative ways. And don’t forget to send us the outcomes so we can share them as well!
Human Library
Imagine borrowing a book from your local library. You enter, you browse, you choose a book, you borrow a book, and you read it.
Now imagine a different library, one where the books are people, and where reading consists of a conversation. You enter, you browse, you choose a book, you borrow a person, and you have a conversation. This is a Human Library.
Does this sound interesting? We have a very clear guide on how to organise a Human Library.
Microvolunteering
Microvolunteering is volunteering done in palatable, bite-sized chunks. It’s donating little bits of your time when and where you can, from wherever you are at, to contribute to a worthy cause. We have all been in the familiar situation of needing help, and having to ask a close family member or friend for help. However, there are many who don’t have this option. This is where you come in – you can microvolunteer and make someone’s day a little bit better.
It’s more than retweeting a tweet, reposting a hashtag, signing a petition, taking a photo, or attending a webinar. It’s seeing someone in distress and offering help, it’s taking out the trash when your neighbor is sick, volunteering to share food, signing up at a hospital to donate blood. Anything with a good intention counts. It’s actions on a micro-scale that build up to something grander and larger with enough time and enough numbers. This is where our campaign comes in.
This time it is difficult to organise any offline action, so you are more than welcome, and also encouraged, to microvolunteer with us!
Human Chain
A human chain is a type of demonstration in which people link hands or arms to show solidarity. The great thing about a human chain is that it gives a very strong and visual statement and is easy to organise. And if people like your cause, you may even have bystanders join you!
By the way, did you know that the world record for a human chain was claimed in 2020 by Bihar, India? This human chain was estimated to include 51.7 million people across 18,000 kilometres (11,000 mi)!
Movie screening
Organising a movie screening is a great way to raise awareness about racism and discrimination in our societies. If you organise a discussion after the screening, it can be even more educational for your attendants.
We have several lists of movie suggestions, on various topics:
List of movies on topics of racism, anti-semitic hate speech, and diversity
Note: Laws on public movie screenings vary by country. Make sure to check your legal obligations and find information about humanitarian or educational screening rights before you start organising your action.
Jam session / Poetry slam / Party
“Music is living testimony to the fact that cultures can and do mix. It unites us and gives us strength, and offers a vibrant celebration of our multicultural and multiracial society. Racism seeks only to divide and weaken us.” (Love Music Hate Racism)
Music brings people together. With an intercultural music event, the options are endless: you could consider booking artists from minority backgrounds to showcase their talent or organise a jam session bringing people from different cultures together to make music.
Or, if your strength lies more in spoken word, why not organise an anti-racism poetry slam where people can express their feelings, share their experiences and heal together. Or why not organise a party to celebrate diversity together?
To get you started, we have compiled a list of antiracist songs for you.
Workshop / Non-formal Activity
Why not organise a workshop or a non-formal activity? Non-formal education is a great way to open up a conversation about difficult or unfamiliar topics. A useful method to explore the topic of marginalisation is called “Take a step forward”. Find a clear instruction from the Council of Europe here!
Does a workshop seem like a good idea, but are you not sure what kind of workshop? The Council of Europe has a great manual called Compass with all kinds of suggestions for activities on human rights, discrimination, and other related topics.