The World Conference on Racism, Without Us

Betty Burkes, who represented the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom at WCAR this summer, is a frequent Peacework contributor.

12,000 people gathered in Durban, South Africa at the end of August to raise their voices at the UN World Conference against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and other related intolerances (WCAR). They came from over 153 countries to tell their stories. In the opening ceremonies, Mary Robinson, High Commissioner for Human Rights and chair of the Conference and Merisha Andrews, President of the South African group responsible for organizing the Forum, emphasized the importance of changing and repairing relationships to insure a different future for people suffering from past inequalities and those who are still condemned to poverty and despair. Merisha Andrews cautioned that the struggle against racism and discrimination will not be resolved unless they are placed in the context of economic and social justice.

Even before the opening moments, the profile of racism as a global issue had been raised to an unprecedented level in preparing for this World Conference, the 3rd in the history of the UN. Mary Robinson had designed a uniquely inclusive process for Durban. Non Governmental organizations (NGOs), representing the concerns, needs and experiences of grassroots people, were included from the beginning in the formal preparatory process.

In addition to the many already existing organizations which claimed NGO status, a unique entity emerged from these preparatory meetings--the Africa and African Descendants Caucus. The Caucus represented more than 500 men and women who claim a deep and personal connection to Africa, some born and citizens of one of the African nations and many who trace our heritage to the African continent before being forcibly captured and distributed as enslaved peoples to other countries.

The Caucus took as its primary focus bringing the issue of reparations and slavery as a crime against humanity to the WCAR. It embodied a vibrant and chilling connection to the issue. The Caucus was given authority, like other NGO Caucuses in the process, to help shape the content of the informal consultations and indirectly influence the official UN Document.

At the WCAR the Caucus leadership, led by Adjoa Aiyetoro and Umberto Brown, was well prepared to present the arguments for reparations to alleviate the terrible suffering and enormous injustice that slavery signifies. Reparations represented not only the recognition of criminal, genocidal, brutal, profit-making exploitation of Africans and enslaved African Descendants, but also the commitment to finding avenues to making spiritual, material, and political restitution. The second pressing issue was having slavery and the Atlantic slave trade declared a crime against humanity.

While the main story of the UN Conference to reach US viewers centered on the role of big governments and the issue of Israel/Palestine, the real story from my experience was the voices and activism of the grassroots. The NGO Forum which preceded the official intergovernmental meetings was a breakthrough for victims of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related intolerances. Delegates were privileged to invigorating days of committee briefings, roundtables, and caucuses, interacting with people who have been marginalized and abused by their governments, listening to them speak clearly and freely, some for the first time, for the world to hear.

The Dalit from India, representing 200 million untouchables, gave testimony to one of the most egregious forms of racism in the modern world. We heard stories about the trafficking of women and children, slavery in the Sudan, the intersections of gender and race, the plight of migrants and migrant workers, the living conditions of refugees and displaced persons, the Indigenous Peoples' struggle for recognition, and the apartheid conditions of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation.

Some shared an individual story of horror like the Colombian woman who witnessed the para-military forces seize her husband and cut off his limbs one by one to terrorize her village into silence and compliance with the government. Some documented their experiences as members of a group. People with disabilities explained the effects of multiple discrimination on their ability to exercise their human rights. The Roma (known to many as gypsies) rallied and spoke of brutal campaigns of ethnic cleansing.

Informal caucuses formed at the conference allowing groups such as gay men and lesbians to meet to listen to the struggles of others around the globe and form networks for future work. Women who had been excluded from the NGO structure established their own building site for the women's court in which people gave testimony to their plight, and music, dance and cultural celebration infused the air.

The Africa and African Descendants Caucus met daily and sometimes more often to shape their strategies and presentations. Among the highlights of the these inspirational and difficult gatherings was a surprise appearance and speech of support from Fidel Castro. He spoke of the Cuba whose population is overwhelmingly the descendants of slave and where racism has been directly recognized and tackled at the highest levels.

At the close of the World Conference, the official government delegates agreed to language which recognizes slavery as a crime against humanity and calls on all colonial powers to take measure to address the impact of slavery and the slave trading.

At Listening Project on Racism in preparation for WCAR. Photo: Terry Foss, AFSC

The story of struggle for the inclusion of these two issues at the UN is a tale of wisdom, faith, courage, cooperation, tenacity, brilliance, sacrifice, guidance from the ancestors, and much hard work. It was a vision, nurtured, supported and secured by the Africa and African Descendants Caucus. Because of the nature of politics, intimidation, and lack of moral conviction among government representatives, the Caucus did not know wheher or or not these issues would stay in the document until the final vote was counted. It was not until then that I received a call from Adjoa in Durban saying, "We Won!"

As I sit writing this, one week after the horrendous attacks on two of the largest symbols of US power, I feel grateful for the experience of the conference as a beacon of hope. Criticisms of the US government were abundant at the conference. Among many others, the US was recognized as a force partly responsible for the origins of slavery, partly responsible for the perpetuation of racism, and partly responsible for policies supporting brutality and suffering in other parts of the globe. But unlike any other government except Israel, the US was unwilling to be held accountable in Durban, unwilling to take part in the opportunity for dialogue, listening, and engagement which can lead to repair of past wrongs that contaminate the future.

Today, I am aware of how much we need as people in the US to be part of a beloved world community and how we need to be interconnected and accountable to one another as governments. We are not invulnerable to the threats of violence from outside or inside. The spirit of real struggle for real democracy was alive in Durban and many from the US were part of it as visible antidotes to the brief presence of the government. That spirit remains with me now as I rededicate myself to the work of peacemaking and healing and call on our government to do the same.

The Dalit People in Durban

Caste discrimination was high on the list of historical wrongs and extraordinary injustices articulated at the WCAR. Ending 3000 years of religiously sanctioned caste discrimination against Dalit people was one of the challenges greeting the 12,000 delegates gathered in Durban. Over 200 Dalits traveled there to criticize the exclusion of caste from the WCAR agenda and to oppose the Indian government's claim that caste is an 'internal' matter and should not be discussed at the Conference. I immediately noticed that the Indian government's attitude toward "castism" is not unlike the position of the US and South Africa regarding apartheid in 1983, the last time the UN took up the issue of racism at a world conference. The US claimed, at that time, that apartheid was an internal matter and not in the purview of the international community.

Before going to Durban I was unfamiliar with the term Dalit. But I assure you that no one left Durban without being a great deal more than just familiar with the term. We heard testimonials and catchy chants. We saw cartoons and posters pasted on walls depicting the evil of caste discrimination. We had gentle encounters with the Dalit delegation. They demonstrated, lectured, sang, and interrupted any effort to silence the telling of their plight. They created a prominent presence.

Dalit is the name given to India's "Untouchables" who number some 200 million. They were without caste in the Hindu caste system. Even their shadow was considered polluting. If a caste member saw an Untouchable approaching him, he would change direction so as to stay as far away from him as possible. Dalit were the lepers of Indian society.

In 1947, after Indian Independence, it became illegal to discriminate against them in any way, though as we know from our own discrimination challenges at home, passing legislation is one thing, implementing it is something else. Mahatma Gandhi championed their struggle for visibility and inclusion and renamed them "Hartijans" which means the children of God. He considered "Untouchability" not only a crime but a poison in the Hindu system.

In many parts of the country today they are still relegated to the role of human scavengers clearing the paths and roadways of human waste carried in baskets on top of their heads, rain or shine. Access to public services including housing, education, health, land, employment, social services, and other resources normally available to citizens as a right are often denied the Dalit. Crimes against them often go unpunished. Attempts to organize and to resist discriminatory practices result in leaders being brutalized and ill-treated. Men are murdered and women raped without redress. Women suffer the double indemnity of caste and gender.

The Dalits came to Durban to insure that caste-based discrimination be broadcast throughout the international community. They came to insist that caste-based discrimination be included in the intergovernmental deliberations. They won at Durban on both counts. Exactly how this victory will affect the Dalit people when they return home is unknown, but we do know that the people and governments of the world can never again claim ignorance about their situation and struggle.

Simply stated by one delegate, "We just want the right to be human."

--Betty Burkes

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