Equality

Equality, non-discrimination and racism

Equality is a core value of the EU. You have the right to fair treatment regardless of who you are, what you believe, or how you chose to live.

We carry out research and share expertise to help fight discrimination, inequality and racism in all its forms.

Highlights

Products
21
March
2018
New language versions: Estonian, Maltese, Danish, Latvian
23 March 2022
European non-discrimination law, as constituted in particular by the EU non-discrimination directives, and Article 14 of and Protocol 12 to the European Convention on Human Rights, prohibits discrimination across a range of contexts and grounds. This handbook examines European non-discrimination law stemming from these two sources as complementary systems, drawing on them interchangeably to the extent that they overlap, while highlighting differences where these exist.
16
January
2018
Guardians are a key element of a protection system for children who are temporarily or
permanently deprived of their family environment and cannot have their interests represented
by their parents. Great disparities exist between the types of guardianship provided
to children in and within European Union (EU) Member States. This report explores the key
features of guardianship systems put in place to cater for the needs of all children in need
of protection, including child victims and those at risk of becoming victims of trafficking in
human beings or of other forms of exploitation.
3
January
2018
Inside this book you will read about the justice system and the problems in justice for children and how to fix the problems.
15
December
2017
This meeting report distils the discussions held during a high-level expert meeting organised by FRA, which explored the shared space between religion and human rights.
6
December
2017
Seventeen years after adoption of EU laws that forbid discrimination, immigrants, descendants of immigrants, and minority ethnic groups continue to face widespread discrimination across the EU and in all areas of life – most often when seeking employment. For many, discrimination is a recurring experience. This is just one of the findings of FRA’s second European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey (EU-MIDIS II), which collected information from over 25,500 respondents with different ethnic minority and immigrant backgrounds across all 28 EU Member States.
The EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) launches its second EU Minorities and Discrimination Survey (EU-MIDIS II).
This survey involved interviews with 25,515 people with different ethnic minority and immigrant backgrounds across 28 EU countries. It explores issues concerning discrimination as well as experiences of harassment, hate-motivated violence and discriminatory profiling.
This infographic illustrates the main experiences immigrants and ethnic minorities across the EU have when it comes to discrimination. It draws from the findings from FRA's EU-MIDIS II survey.
This infographic illustrates the main experiences immigrants and ethnic minorities across the EU have when it comes to victimisation. It draws from the findings from FRA's EU-MIDIS II survey.
This infographic illustrates the main experiences immigrants and ethnic minorities across the EU have when it comes to inclusion. It draws from the findings from FRA's EU-MIDIS II survey.
13
November
2017
Women and girls in the European Union (EU) experience persistent gender discrimination and gender-based violence, as evidence collected by FRA confirms. This severely limits the ability of women and girls to enjoy their rights and to participate on an equal footing in society. This FRA contribution to the third Annual Colloquium on Fundamental Rights ‘Women's rights in turbulent times’ looks at core human rights commitments. It balances these against selected evidence on gender discrimination, sexist hate speech and gender-based violence against women and girls in the EU.
20
November
2017
International treaties, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, European Union (EU) secondary law and national legislation provide a number of rights to citizens. The maps and tables presented show the various patterns concerning age requirements for children to acquire rights in the EU. They also identify inconsistencies, protection gaps and restrictions deriving from different age thresholds. The reference period was until April 2016. Any legislative developments since then have been included whenever relevant or if known.
9
November
2017
This report provides an overview of data on antisemitism as recorded by
international organisations and by official and unofficial sources in the 28 European
Union (EU) Member States, based on their own definitions and categorisations.
21
September
2017
Muslims living in the EU face discrimination in a broad range of settings – and particularly when looking for work, on the job, and when trying to access public or private services. The report examines how characteristics – such as an individual's first and last name, skin colour and the wearing of visible religious symbols like a headscarf, for example – may trigger discriminatory treatment and harassment.
The Agency, in close cooperation with the Maltese Presidency of the EU Council, held a high-level symposium where the fundamental rights issues that are currently high on the EU’s political agenda were discussed.
22
June
2017
Up to one third of migrants arriving in the European Union since the summer of 2015 have been children. The current emphasis on speedier asylum processing and making returns more effective may trigger increased use of immigration detention, possibly also affecting children. The detention of children implicates various fundamental rights and will only be in line with EU law if limited to exceptional cases. This report aims to support practitioners in implementing relevant polices in line with applicable law by outlining available safeguards against unlawful and arbitrary detention and highlighting promising practices.
19
May
2017
This report assesses asylum seekers’ and refugees’ opportunities to access early
childhood education and primary, secondary and tertiary education and training.
It identifies measures available for their support, as well as possible areas for
improvement.
24
March
2017
This report reviews how asylum claims based on sexual
orientation and gender identity are assessed and analyses the existence of
specific reception measures for LGBTI persons.
Miltos Pavlou, Senior Programme Manager at the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, talks about the participation of migrants and their descendants in the EU.
22
February
2017
Around 2.5 million children participate in judicial proceedings across the European Union (EU) every year, affected by parental divorce or as victims of, or witnesses to, crime. Although their effective participation in such proceedings is vital for improving the operation of justice, the treatment of children in justice systems remains a concern. FRA investigated to what extent children’s rights to be heard, to be informed, to be protected, and to non-discrimination are fulfilled in practice.
Incidents of hatred against Jews have been evident throughout the Coronavirus pandemic. Even though in some countries the number of antisemitic incidents decreased, the main problem remains the same across Europe – most incidents still go unreported. Each country collects data differently and some do not collect any data at all. This continues to hamper efforts to effectively tackle antisemitism in Europe, shows the latest annual overview of antisemitic incidents from the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA).
On 21 October, FRA took part in the first high-level conference of a joint EU and Council of Europe project to strengthen child participation in Europe.
Hate crime is a persistent problem across the world. Millions experience violence because of racism and intolerance. Across the EU, many good practices are in place, tackling hate crime daily. An updated compendium of good practice, hosted by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), pools resources of what exists for others to draw on in their own work.
The Council of Europe, FRA, ENNHRI, Equinet collaborative platform on social and economic rights met on 27 September.
FRA took part in a virtual webinar as part of the European Network on Independent Living’s ‘Freedom Surf’.
On 16 September, FRA took part in a virtual hearing organised by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) on deinstitutionalisation.
FRA presented findings from its LGBTI survey during a virtual international conference on 9 September.
FRA contributed to a discussion group on racial discrimination in access to and tenure of housing in Spain.
On 8 September, FRA took part in the kick-off meeting of the study on ‘Intersex people in the EU, a project of the European Commission’s Justice and Consumers Directorate-General.
Significant barriers to reporting hate crime across the EU hinder victims’ access to protection and justice, finds a new report of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). Many victims do not report attacks, as it is too difficult or they do not trust the police. FRA calls on EU countries to encourage hate crime reporting, improve its recording and ensure victims can get support, protection and justice.
FRA presented key findings at two events from its latest Coronavirus Bulletin on ensuring fair and equal access to vaccines for all. The first took place on 23 June, during a webinar hosted by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.
Vaccination campaigns are beginning to bring results in the global struggle to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic. But there are setbacks in some countries. Particularly people in vulnerable situations, such as prisoners, homeless people and migrants, risk to be left behind in the deployment of Covid-19 vaccination, finds the Fundamental Rights Agency’s (FRA) latest Coronavirus bulletin. FRA calls on EU countries to ensure fair and equal access to vaccines for all.
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed gaps in respecting the fundamental rights to health, education, employment and social protection across society. FRA’s Fundamental Rights Report 2021 plots the pandemic’s wide-ranging impact on rights and suggests how best to address increasing inequalities and threats to societal cohesion.
A new paper by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) reveals the differences between people’s experiences with police stops. It shows that Black people, Asians and Roma are still more likely to be stopped and searched by police, which also affects their trust in policing. FRA will continue providing EU countries with data and guidance to support them in ensuring their policing practices respect people’s fundamental rights.
The American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) honoured FRA with its Inclusive Voices Award 2021.
Over 40 Embassies, Delegations and Permanent Missions all welcome 17 May as the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHOBIT), as a celebration of diversity and inclusion around the world.
There is still a long way to go for LGBTI equality. International Day against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT) on 17 May is a reminder to challenge the discrimination and violence that too many lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex (LGBTI) people across Europe continue to face.
Discrimination remains a daily reality for many people across the EU despite 20 years of EU equality legislation. This finds the latest Opinion from the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights.
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The Roma Working Party will have its 4th virtual meeting from 25 to 26 February.
FRA will join the close of the European Commission’s online conference on the feasibility of a child guarantee. The event will cover some of the findings from a feasibility study, the second phase of the Preparatory Action for a Child Guarantee.
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FRA will speak at an expert meeting on combating antisemitism. The 2021 Swedish OSCE chairpersonship in consultation with the OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) organises the event.
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FRA will contribute to the first edition of the online ‘Human rights go local: what works’ event Winter Academy. It will bring expertise from its work on Roma indicators, equality data and cooperation with human rights cities. The event will look at how to base policy-making at the local level on scientific evidence through tailored human rights research. It aims at building bridges between all governance levels, disciplines and regions. It allows knowledge sharing among human rights researchers, local authorities, representatives of International, European and EU organisations, and policy-makers across regions.
On 28 January, FRA will meet Olivier De Schutter, UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights. It forms part of his visit to the EU Institutions. It will focus on the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Facility. It will also look at whether the funds will be used in line with human rights and address vulnerable groups. The Special Rapporteur will examine the impact of EU policies on the eradication of poverty in the region. He will present the report to the Human Rights Council session in June 2021.
On 18 January, FRA will host the second meeting of working group on hate crime recording, data collection and encouraging reporting.
FRA will draw on its hate crime work and victimisation data from its survey during a roundtable discussion on strengthening diversity in Portugal’s police. The roundtable takes place on 18 January.
The Rumourless Cities will host a workshop on European and local perspectives and actions against LGBTI discrimination. FRA will present the results of the EU LGBTI survey II during the workshop. The online workshop takes place on 25 January.
FRA will take part in the presentation of results from the European Network on Independent Living’s (ENIL) first Independent Living Survey on 10 December.
Results from FRA’s survey of Traveller discrimination in Ireland will feature during a webinar on 7 December.
On 18 November, FRA will take part in the online meeting of the European Commission Working Group on Common Values and Inclusive Education.
FRA will take part in the annual EU-Israel high-level seminar on combating racism, xenophobia and antisemitism.
On 10 November, FRA will present the results of its EU LGBTI survey during the online workshop ‘LGBTI Discrimination: European and Local Perspectives and Actions’.
FRA will give a presentation on the results of its EU LGBTI survey, LGBTI rights in the EU and FRA’s research in this area to the Vienna Diplomatic Academy.
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FRA will take part in this year’s Internet Governance Forum (IGF), which runs virtually from 2-17 November. It will join the session on the role of the private sector in developing guidelines on the use of artificial intelligence.
The FRA Director will take part in an informal exchange on 9 November on integration and social cohesion with EU interior ministers and members of the European Commission.
On 15 October, the European Parliament will hold a public hearing on a European Citizens Initiative to promote minorities, and linguistic and cultural diversity. The organisers will present their initiative.
The FRA Director, Michael O’Flaherty will deliver a video message to an online seminar discussing its ‘A long way to go for LGBTI equality’ report.
FRA’s Director will address a panel discussion on rule of law, human rights, and religion. The discussion will take place on 16 October during the G20 interfaith forum.