UNGA president says racism persists despite international efforts to promote equality News
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UNGA president says racism persists despite international efforts to promote equality

UN General Assembly President Philémon Yang said Friday that racism and discrimination remain deeply entrenched problems despite international efforts over the past 10 years. Speaking at a high-level meeting to mark the conclusion of the International Decade for People of African Descent, Yang stated that “much work remains to be done, as realities are rooted in the enduring legacies of enslavement and colonialism.”

American civil rights activist and law professor Kimberlé Crenshaw also observed how gender, ethnicity and class “intersected” with race to exacerbate social inequalities, including maternal health disparities, State violence, access to education, political power and cultural recognition.

Looking ahead, Yang strongly supported the consideration of a Second International Decade to sustain progress. UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Ilze Brands Kehris echoed this suggestion, emphasizing the need to maintain momentum through new laws, policies and greater recognition of Afro-descendants’ contributions to society.

The International Decade, established by UN General Assembly resolution 68/237 in December 2013, aimed to strengthen national, regional and international cooperation to promote the rights of people of African descent and ensure their full participation in all aspects of society. Progress during this period included establishing a Permanent Forum on People of African Descent and declaring July 25 the International Day of Women and Girls of African Descent.

However, a 2023 report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights found evidence of alarming levels of police brutality and excessive use of force against people of African descent in the United States. The report documented racial disparities in arrests, prosecutions, sentencing and incarceration, with African Americans being disproportionately affected by systemic racism in all areas of life. A stark example of this excessive force was the death of George Floyd in 2020, who died after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for over nine minutes, an incident that sparked nationwide protests against police brutality and ultimately led to rare convictions of the officers involved.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) has similarly highlighted a pattern of impunity in the killings of Afro-descendants by police in the United States, noting that ineffective State responses perpetuate excessive use of force incidents. The Commission found that African Americans represent 38 percent of the incarcerated population despite comprising only 13 percent of the total US population.

Further underscoring these challenges, a 2023 report by ECLAC and OHCHR emphasized how the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing inequalities for people of African descent in Latin America and the Caribbean, intensifying risks related to healthcare access, poverty, and employment instability.

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