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.

EU Charter of Fundamental Rights

Highlights

  • Report / Paper / Summary
    25
    November
    2024

    EU gender-based violence survey - Key results

    This report presents key results of the EU gender-based violence survey based on data from all 27 Member States. The report focuses on the overall prevalence of physical violence or threats and/or sexual violence by any perpetrator, violence perpetrated by women’s intimate partners and by other people (non-partners) and women’s experiences of sexual harassment at work.
    Read press release
    Explore data
  • Report / Paper / Summary
    25
    October
    2024

    Being Muslim in the EU - Experiences of Muslims

    Racism towards Muslims is increasing in countries across the EU. Muslims face racial discrimination and racist harassment because of their religion, skin colour or ethnic background. This report shows a sharp rise since the last survey in 2016.
    Read press release
  • Report / Paper / Summary
    11
    July
    2024

    Jewish People’s Experiences and Perceptions of Antisemitism

    Antisemitism is still a reality for many Jewish people in the EU today. Faced with prejudice and hostility, most feel unable to live openly Jewish lives. This report presents the results of FRA’s third EU survey of Jewish people’s experiences and perceptions of antisemitism. The survey took place before the Hamas attacks in October 2023 and the war in Gaza; however, it includes evidence from a consultation with national and European Jewish umbrella organisations since. It covers 13 EU Member States that together account for around 96 % of the EU’s Jewish population.
    Read press release
    Download country data
  • Report / Paper / Summary
    14
    May
    2024

    LGBTIQ at a crossroads: progress and challenges

    FRA’s third LGBTIQ survey shows that people still experience hate-motivated violence and discrimination. Trans and intersex people face even greater victimisation. Yet, signs of progress show that the EU’s and Member States’ efforts can positively affect people’s lives. More LGBTIQ people are open about their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics.
    Explore survey data
    Read press release
    Download country data
Products
Report / Paper / Summary
Civil justice
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Racial and ethnic origin
29
August
2018

Making EU citizens’ rights a reality: national courts enforcing freedom of movement and related rights

The founding treaties, the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and secondary EU law all provide for EU citizens’ freedom to move and reside freely in any EU country of their choice. Growing numbers of citizens, and their family members, are making use of this freedom and related rights, such as the right not to be discriminated against based on nationality and the right to vote in certain elections in the host Member State. But making these rights a reality remains a challenge. This report presents an EU-wide, comparative overview of the application of the Free Movement Directive (2004/38/EC) across the 28 Member States based on a review of select case law at national level.
Report / Paper / Summary
Roma
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Children, youth and older people
19
July
2018

Transition from education to employment of young Roma in nine EU Member States

Across the European Union, Member States are faced with the challenge of integrating Europe’s most deprived
and disenfranchised minority groups. As a follow up to the EU-MIDIS II findings on Roma, this report presents
FRA’s findings relating to the issues of education and employment. Encouraging Roma participation in education
and employment equips communities with higher incomes, better life opportunities and greater social inclusion.
Report / Paper / Summary
Hate crime
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Civil society
21
June
2018

Hate crime recording and data collection practice across the EU

Across the European Union, people face hatred because of their skin colour, ethnicity, religion, gender or sexuality. In response, the EU and its Member States have introduced laws against hate crime and support services for victims. But these will only fulfil their potential if victims report hate-motivated harassment and violence to the police, and if police officers record such incidents as hate crimes. This report provides rich and detailed information on hate crime recording and data collection systems across the EU, including any systemic cooperation with civil society.
Read press release
Access compendium of practices
Fundamental Rights Report
Children, youth and older people
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
6
June
2018
Finnish version now available
27 January 2020

Shifting perceptions: towards a rights‑based approach to ageing

European societies are not getting any younger! It is a simple truth we must face both about ourselves and Europe as a whole. In two generations, by 2080, those aged 65 or above will account for almost 30% of the European Union’s population.
Fundamental Rights Report
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Asylum, migration and borders
Data protection, privacy and new technologies
Justice, victims’ rights and judicial cooperation
Support for human rights systems and defenders
6
June
2018

Fundamental Rights Report 2018 FRA opinions

The year 2017 brought both progress and setbacks in terms of fundamental rights protection. FRA’s Fundamental Rights Report 2018 reviews major developments in the field, identifying both achievements and remaining areas of concern.
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Report / Paper / Summary
Artificial intelligence and big data
Data protection, privacy and new technologies
Unlawful profiling
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Racial and ethnic origin
30
May
2018

#BigData: Discrimination in data-supported decision making

We live in a world of big data, where technological developments in the area of machine learning and artificial intelligence have changed the way we live. Decisions and processes concerning everyday life are increasingly automated, based on data. This affects fundamental rights in various ways. This focus paper specifically deals with discrimination, a fundamental rights area particularly affected by technological developments.
Report / Paper / Summary
Asylum, migration and borders
Data protection, privacy and new technologies
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Children, youth and older people
People with disabilities
Hate crime
Roma
Sex, sexual orientation and gender
Justice, victims’ rights and judicial cooperation
17
May
2018

Challenges facing civil society organisations working on human rights in the EU – Summary

Civil society organisations in the European Union play a crucial role in promoting fundamental
rights, but it has become harder for them do so – due to both legal and practical restrictions.
This summary outlines the main
findings and FRA’s opinions on the different
types and patterns of challenges faced by civil society
organisations across the EU,
Report / Paper / Summary
Asylum, migration and borders
Child protection
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Children, youth and older people
25
April
2018

Age assessment and fingerprinting of children in asylum procedures – Minimum age requirements concerning children’s rights in the EU

The methods used to determine the age of
an applicant may include “invasive” medical tests which interfere with the rights of the child, including their right to dignity,
integrity and privacy. It is often a challenge to find the right balance between protecting children from harm and promoting
their participation in these procedures. This report provides important insights and identifies the implications of collecting
children’s biometric data and conducting age assessments.
Report / Paper / Summary
Children, youth and older people
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Justice, victims’ rights and judicial cooperation
Judicial cooperation and rule of law
25
April
2018

Mapping minimum age requirements: Children's rights and justice

The right to access justice and all other relevant procedural rights are not just rights in themselves; they also protect against violations of every other right. Respect for children’s rights in the area of justice is therefore essential. International treaties, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, European Union (EU) secondary law, and national legislation provide a number of relevant rights.
Download reports on minimum age requirements
Page
Hate crime
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Racial and ethnic origin
Religion and belief

Technical assistance to national law enforcement and criminal justice authorities

The EU's Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) work together to help states improve their ability to record and collect hate crime data through national workshops.
Explore practices for combating hate crime
Read about Working Group on hate crime recording
Report / Paper / Summary
Roma
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
6
April
2018

A persisting concern: anti-Gypsyism as a barrier to Roma inclusion

Despite ambitious initiatives, the fundamental rights situation of Roma in the EU remains profoundly troubling. This report examines the persisting phenomenon of anti-Gypsyism and its effect on Roma inclusion efforts. It first presents data on key manifestations of anti-Gypsyism, namely discrimination, harassment and hate crime.
Handbook / Guide / Manual
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Children, youth and older people
People with disabilities
Hate crime
Racial and ethnic origin
Religion and belief
Roma
Sex, sexual orientation and gender
21
March
2018
New language versions: Estonian, Maltese, Danish, Latvian
23 March 2022

Handbook on European non-discrimination law – 2018 edition

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.
Report / Paper / Summary
Children, youth and older people
Asylum, migration and borders
Child protection
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
16
January
2018

Guardianship systems for children deprived of parental care in the European Union - Summary

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.
Easy-to-read report
Children, youth and older people
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Justice, victims’ rights and judicial cooperation
Victims’ rights
3
January
2018

Child-friendly justice (Easy read)

Inside this book you will read about the justice system and the problems in justice for children and how to fix the problems.
Report / Paper / Summary
Religion and belief
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Support for human rights systems and defenders
15
December
2017

Shared space of religion and human rights - Meeting report

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.
Report / Paper / Summary
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Legal migration and integration
Hate crime
Racial and ethnic origin
Religion and belief
Roma
Sex, sexual orientation and gender
Victims’ rights
Security
6
December
2017

Second European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey - Main results

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.
Read press release
Explore the data
Watch findings video
Video
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Hate crime
Religion and belief
Roma
Racial and ethnic origin

EU Minorities and Discrimination Survey

The EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) launches its second EU Minorities and Discrimination Survey (EU-MIDIS II).
Data explorer
Racial and ethnic origin
Asylum, migration and borders
Legal migration and integration
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Hate crime
Religion and belief
Roma
04 December 2017

Survey on Minorities and Discrimination in EU (2016)

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.
Infographic
Hate crime
Asylum, migration and borders
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Racial and ethnic origin
Religion and belief
Roma

Discrimination: Experiences from immigrants and ethnic minorities across the EU

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.
Infographic
Hate crime
Asylum, migration and borders
Legal migration and integration
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Racial and ethnic origin
Religion and belief
Roma

Victimisation: experiences from immigrants and ethnic minorities across the EU

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.
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Children, youth and older people

Children’s rights experts met to move child protection and participation forward in the EU

FRA took part in the European Forum on child rights that ran from 27 to 29 September.
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
People with disabilities

FRA speaks on new disability strategy at disability service providers event

The European Platform for Rehabilitation, a community of service providers working with people with disabilities, held its annual conference in Dublin on 22 and 23 September.
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Racial and ethnic origin

UN discussions on the right to health

FRA was a panellist at the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination’s general discussion on the right to health and racial discrimination.
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Children, youth and older people
National human rights systems and bodies

Building a future beyond frontiers at Iberian Forum

FRA Director Michael O’Flaherty was patron of the 2022 Iberian Forum, entitled ‘Brave and Vigorous: Building a Future beyond Frontiers’.
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Sex, sexual orientation and gender

Madrid Summit discussion on legal gender recognition

FRA was part of the International Conference of Human Rights LGTBIQA+ ‘Madrid Summit’ on 8 July.
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism

Training equality bodies on equality research

FRA trained members of the Equinet working group on research and data on how to engage with hard-to-reach groups in the collection of equality data.
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Roma

FRA joins EU Roma network discussions

FRA attended an online management committee meeting of the EU Roma network.
Woman removing a facemask
Press Release
Asylum, migration and borders
Data protection, privacy and new technologies
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Justice, victims’ rights and judicial cooperation
Support for human rights systems and defenders

Fostering social rights: key to EU recovery from Covid-19

The pandemic triggered unprecedented EU financial support to counter the social impact of Covid-19. Many people in the EU, especially vulnerable people, faced reduced access to healthcare, childcare, education and the internet. This has led to excess mortality, poverty, unemployment and social exclusion. FRA’s Fundamental Rights Report 2022 outlines the pandemic’s wide-ranging impact on social rights. It also suggests how to address increasing inequalities and threats to societal cohesion.
Download full report
Download opinions
Download focus chapter
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Children, youth and older people

Joint EU-Council of Europe conference on children and youth participation

FRA took part in the Council of Europe-EU Joint Child Participation4Europe project conference.
Badges with Ukrainian and LGBTI flags
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Sex, sexual orientation and gender

Full respect for LGBTI people fleeing Ukraine

This year’s International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia on 17 May takes place against the backdrop of war in Ukraine. The EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) welcomes the solidarity shown across the EU countries. It urges all countries to treat everyone in all their diversity including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex (LGBTI+) people fleeing the war equally and with respect. So, they too enjoy the same fundamental rights protection as others and can live freely.
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Sex, sexual orientation and gender

Vienna’s anti-discrimination office holds event on queer youth issues

On 22 April, FRA took part in a conference organised by the Vienna Anti-Discrimination Agency for LGBTIQ Affairs (WASt) on queer youth issues.
checklist with tick mark the questionnaires. Businessman and businesswoman are holding big pencils
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Victims’ rights
National human rights systems and bodies

Explore further data from FRA’s Fundamental Rights Survey

Additional data from FRA’s Fundamental Rights Survey are now available online as part of the Agency’s data visualisation.
Explore the data
Access all survey reports
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Racial and ethnic origin
Roma

National implementation subgroup of EU Anti-racism action plan meets

FRA gave a presentation to the national implementation of the EU Anti-racism action plan 2020-2025 subgroup on 8 April.
View the action plan
Ukraine and Roma flag
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Roma

Ensure equal treatment for Roma fleeing Ukraine

With war still raging in Ukraine, Europe needs to pay special attention to Roma seeking sanctuary in the European Union, says the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) on International Roma Day. FRA is concerned about allegations of difficulties and possible discrimination at the EU borders. It recommends that authorities take appropriate action and investigate any such complaints in line with EU law.
The hammer of a judge with abstract figures of children
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Child protection
Children, youth and older people
Victims’ rights

Widely-used child rights legal handbook now updated

The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), the Council of Europe and the European Court of Human Rights issue the second edition of their popular handbook on European child rights law.
Download handbook
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Child protection
Children, youth and older people

First meeting of the EU child rights network

The first-ever EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child, adopted in 2021, led to the EU child rights network. It met for the first time on 31 March.
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism

New language versions of European non-discrimination legal handbook now out

The handbook on European non-discrimination law - 2018 edition - is now also available in Estonian, Danish, Latvian and Maltese.
Download handbook
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Sex, sexual orientation and gender

Conference explores online violence against women

FRA facilitated a parallel session during an online conference on the digital dimension of violence against women.
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism

Consultation on the future European Working Conditions Survey

FRA took part in Eurofound’s virtual consultation on the next European Working Conditions Survey (2024 edition).
News Item
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Children, youth and older people

Building Europe’s future: implementing the European Child Guarantee

FRA spoke about the state of play of child poverty and social exclusion in Europe on 4 March.
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism

FRA Director joins the 60th anniversary of the European Social Charter

FRA’s Director will virtually join celebrations of the 60th anniversary of the European Social Charter.
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Roma

European Platform for Roma Inclusion to take place

The annual meeting of the European Platform for Roma Inclusion takes place on 20 September.
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
People with disabilities

Seminar explores monitoring CRPD implementation

FRA, together with the Public Defender of Rights and the Office of the Government of the Czech Republic will co-host a seminar on developing human rights indicators for monitoring the implementation of the Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities (CRPD).
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Sex, sexual orientation and gender

FRA to participate in World Pride Human Rights Forum

FRA Director Michael O’Flaherty will take part in the Human Rights Forum conference in Copenhagen at this year's WorldPride.
Visit Human Rights Conference at WorldPride 2021
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Children, youth and older people

Young people’s rights and the future of Europe

On 22 June, FRA Director Michael O’Flaherty will speak about young people as agents of change during a youth conference organised by the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the EU.
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism

European Commission national anti-racism action plan subgroup to meet

FRA will take part in a meeting of the European Commission’s subgroup on national action plans against racism.
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism

Finnish discussion on people’s fundamental rights attitudes

On 15 June, FRA will take part in an online round table discussion on research into people’s attitudes concerning fundamental rights. The Ministry of Justice of Finland organises the event.
Explore data from the Fundamental Rights Survey
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism

European Parliament discussion on FRA’s Equality Opinion

FRA’s Director will take part in the annual structured dialogue between the European Parliament’s Employment Committee and Helena Dalli, EU Equality Commissioner.
Download report on equality in the EU
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
-

Environmental sustainability and equality

The FRA Director will join discussions on environmental sustainability and equality as part of EU Green Week 2021. The European Green Week 2021 runs from 31 May to 4 June.
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Roma

Guaranteeing the right to education for all

FRA will give a keynote speech during the GUARANTEE project’s final conference on 27 May on the right to education for all in European cities.
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Racial and ethnic origin
Religion and belief
Roma

Conference explores racial discrimination and related intolerance

The FRA Director will share key insights from FRA’s body of evidence on racism and racial discrimination during a high-level conference on racial discrimination.
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Roma

International Roma day: 50 years of Roma policy

FRA will join panel discussions on 8 April, International Roma Day, organised by the Austrian parliamentary president.
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Roma

Webinar addresses Roma healthcare inequalities

FRA will present results from its Roma and Travellers Survey during a webinar organised by European Public Health Alliance (EPHA).
Download report
Event
People with disabilities
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Hate crime

Conference looks to the way forward for protecting vulnerable adults

FRA Director will deliver a keynote speech during a high-level online conference on protecting vulnerable adults across Europe. The conference provides an opportunity to reflect on the current situation and look ahead to what steps are necessary to ensure that all members of our diverse societies can enjoy their fundamental rights, including equal access to justice.
Watch video on protecting vulnerable adults across Europe
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Racial and ethnic origin

FRA participates in antiracism week in Spain

FRA will join panel discussions on 23 March during Spain’s anti-racist week, organised by its Ministry of Equality.
Event
Support for human rights systems and defenders
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
-

UNECE workshop on measuring poverty during the pandemic

UNECE will hold an online workshop on poverty measurement from 25 to 26 March. FRA will present innovative approaches put into practice by various EU Member States. The workshop aims to provide hands-on training and address the capacity-building needs expressed by countries on adapting their surveys.
Event
Sex, sexual orientation and gender
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
-

Workplace equality 2021 conference

FRA will present results from its EU LGBTI survey on workplace discrimination during an international conference on creating a safe and friendly environment for LGBTIQ+ employees and employment seekers.
Event
Racial and ethnic origin
Equality, non-discrimination and racism

First European Summit against Racism to map road ahead

FRA’s Director Michael O’Flaherty will introduce the opening high-level panel at the first European Summit against Racism, as foreseen in the EU Anti-racism Action Plan 2020-2025.
European Summit against Racism
Event
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
Children, youth and older people

Procedural safeguards for children in criminal proceedings

FRA will hold a meeting to prepare for the second part of its Procedural safeguards for children who are suspects or accused in criminal proceedings project.
Learn about the project
Event
Roma
Equality, non-discrimination and racism
-

Roma working party to meet

The Roma Working Party will have its 4th virtual meeting from 25 to 26 February.