Xenophobia and Racism

Xenophobia: Fear or dislike of that which is perceived to be foreign or strange

• Xenophobia is based on the perception of a conflict between an in-group and an out-group

• It can manifest in suspicion of one group's activities by members of the other group

• Xenophobia may involve a desire to eliminate the presence of the targeted group

• It may also involve fear of losing a national, ethnic, or racial identity

• Xenophobia can be exhibited as an "uncritical exaltation of another culture"

• Xenophobic attitudes towards other peoples have existed since ancient times

• Ancient Egyptians had a xenophobic attitude towards other peoples

• Ancient Greeks believed their people and culture were superior to all others

• COVID-19 has led to an increase in acts of Sinophobia and prejudice against people of East Asian and Southeast Asian descent

• Racial tension exists between the Indo-Guyanese people and the Afro-Guyanese in Guyana

• Discrimination against racial, ethnic, and religious minorities is widely acknowledged in the United States

• China has come under intense international criticism for its treatment of Uyghurs in XinjiangXenophobia and Racism Around the World

• Indonesia has faced riots and anti-Chinese attacks, as well as accusations of committing a "slow-motion genocide" in West Papua.

• Japan has been criticized for racism towards national minorities, Latin Americans of Japanese descent, and foreigners from poor countries. Surveys have shown that nearly 50% of foreigners surveyed have experienced some form of discrimination.

• Malaysia has a history of racial tension between poor Malay Muslims and wealthier Chinese. Xenophobia occurs regardless of race, with particular hostility towards foreign laborers.

• South Korea has seen an increase in overt expressions of racism towards immigrants, with reports of discrimination in the workplace, physical abuse, and denigration. Racist attitudes are more commonly expressed towards immigrants from other Asian countries and Africa.

• Jordan does not allow entry to Jews who have visible signs of Judaism or possess personal religious items. Hezbollah in Lebanon has been accused of airing antisemitic broadcasts.

• Israel has been criticized for institutional, legal, and societal discrimination against Arab citizens. Anti-refugee sentiment is particularly widespread among Israelis.

• Racism in Saudi Arabia is practiced against foreign labor workers, who are often victims of exploitation, abuse, and discrimination.

• Several Central and Eastern European countries, as well as some Mediterranean countries, have the highest incidents of racial bias towards black people in Europe. Islamophobic hate crimes have also been reported across the region.

• Belgium has seen a surge in antisemitic violence, with perpetrators usually young males of immigrant background from the Middle East.

• France has experienced rising levels of Islamic antisemitism, with recorded acts of antisemitism surpassing the whole of the previous year in the first half of 2009.Xenophobia and Racism in Europe and Africa

Europe:

• Antisemitism has been a problem in various European countries, including France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
• Xenophobia has been a problem in Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, and Russia, with negative views of refugees and Muslims being held by the majority of the population in Hungary.
• Anti-Roma sentiment has been strong in Italy, leading to forced evictions and expulsions of Roma people.
• In the Netherlands, there have been incidents of hate speech and violence against non-Germanic Central and Eastern European ethnic groups, and antisemitic incidents have been reported, allegedly connected with Islamic youth.
• In Norway, a 2010 report revealed that antisemitism was common among Norwegian Muslims, with some students admiring Adolf Hitler and expressing hate towards Jews.
• In Ukraine, the number of recorded antisemitic attacks doubled in 2017, and Israel's Antisemitism Report for 2017 stated that Ukraine was the only country in Eastern Europe where the number of recorded attacks had increased.
• Racism has been observed in the United Kingdom towards black and Indian people, Germans, and Chinese people, and has been on the rise in recent years, with some studies suggesting a correlation between levels of unemployment and immigration in an area. Sectarianism between Ulster Protestants and Irish Catholics in Northern Ireland has also been called a form of racism by some international bodies.

Africa:

• Ivory Coast has seen a resurgence in ethnic tribal hatred and religious intolerance, with violent attacks against foreigners.

• Slavery persists in Mauritania, mostly affecting the descendants of black Africans who now live in Mauritania as "black Moors" or haratin and who partially still serve the "white Moors" or bidhan as slaves.Global Examples of Racism and Xenophobia

• The Haratin lower class, mostly poor black Africans living in rural areas, have been considered natural slaves by Moors in Mauritania.

• In Niger, the government announced in 2006 that it would deport to Chad the "Diffa Arabs", which led to the rounding up of Arabs and two deaths and three miscarriages. The government eventually suspended their decision to deport the Arabs.

• Xenophobia in South Africa has been present in both the apartheid and post-apartheid eras, with hostility between the British and Boers and acts intended to keep out Indians. In 2008, a widely documented spate of xenophobic attacks occurred in Johannesburg, displacing tens of thousands of migrants and resulting in 56 deaths. In 2015, another series of xenophobic attacks occurred in South Africa, mostly against migrant Zimbabweans, with seven deaths and more than 2,000 foreigners displaced. Violence again broke out in 2019.

• In Sudan, black African captives in the civil war were often enslaved, and female prisoners were often sexually abused by their Arab captors. According to CBS News, slaves have been sold for US$50 a piece. The government of Sudan insists that the matter is no more than the traditional tribal feuding over resources.

• In Uganda, the most prominent case of anti-Indian racism was the ethnic cleansing of the Indian minority by the dictator Idi Amin.

• The Immigration Restriction Act 1901 (White Australia policy) effectively barred people of non-European descent from immigrating to Australia. The 2005 Cronulla riots were a series of race riots and outbreaks of mob violence in Sydney's southern suburb Cronulla, which resulted from strained relations between Anglo-Celtic and (predominantly Muslim) Lebanese Australians. In 2009, Indian students protested against what they claimed were racist attacks in Australia.

• The United States has a long history of racism, with slavery and segregation and acts of violence against black Americans. The Black Lives Matter movement, which began in 2013, is a response to the killings of black Americans by police officers.