What is systemic racism? What is structural racism? Can structural and systemic racism against people of African descent (PAD) exist in places where PAD are in power? What conversations are taking place and how do these definitions impact PAD on the ground and in communities? 

Hear from experts (academics and those working directly with communities) about their definitions and thoughts on systemic and structural racism and how the mechanism (EMLER), OHCHR, and the UN as a whole can approach this issue in a way that is effective without defaulting to a narrower discussion about police/state violence and individual cases. 

This virtual side event, organized by UNARC, the UN Anti-Racism Coalition, aims to break down the silos and open pathways to concrete solutions that are informed both by academic research and also by empirical research happening in impacted communities.

This event, in conjunction with the previous UNARC side event with the families of those targeted by police, forms a framework in which the coalition addresses the lived realities of African and Afrodescendant people. It focuses on those communities which are directly affected by police violence and State-sanctioned violence while also addressing the structural and root causes that result in these realities.