21.03/XNUMX Today is International Day Against Racism

Berlin, March 21.03.2023, XNUMX. Racism affects us ALL. Today it is necessary to point out that we are ALL responsible for breaking down racist and sexist structures in the authorities, in the labor market and in society.

"We keep cementing gender stereotypes by forcing highly qualified migrant women into the low-wage sector or into care professions," says Dr. Delal Atmaca, managing director of DaMigra eV, the representation of interests of migrant women's self-organizations and calls for the breaking up of sexist and racist structures in our German society.

Article one of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights". However, the sad reality of everyday life looks different. Women with migration and refugee experience often report how they are exposed to racist and sexist discrimination at the same time. Not only when looking for a classic apartment, in the hospital, on the bus or at school. Also and especially in the labor market, racism, which is intertwined with sexism, is a very big problem. This problem affects not only the person concerned, but society as a whole.

We know from the many DaMigras projects, which aim to empower women with migration and refugee experience, that they are highly motivated to find an adequate job. Unfortunately, they encounter persisting structural and institutional racism in employment services. Qualified job references obtained abroad are often not recognized in Germany and if so, it took a disproportionately long time. During this time, the position has been filled elsewhere. Women who have worked successfully as programmers or engineers in their homeland for many years arrive here in Germany and are often retrained by the responsible employment agencies in stereotypical care professions or other jobs in the low-wage sector.

It is precisely in such professions that the shortage of skilled workers is greatest. According to the German Economic Institute, there is a shortage of around 23.000 skilled workers in childcare and child-rearing alone[1]. But even then, they often cannot find a job because they experience discrimination in the applications. Sometimes they are singled out for their name alone. There are already algorithms that are set in this way for applications from companies.

“When self-confessed racists classify, devalue, humiliate or even attack people as non-Germans, that is relatively clear for many. But racism is much more subtle these days and is firmly embedded in the structures and institutions of society. It is frightening that on the one hand 90% of the population is aware of this fact, but at the same time many become defensive when those affected address it", Dr. Delal Atmaca, Managing Director of DaMigra eV

We should finally start breaking down racist and sexist structures in the authorities, on the job market and in society, because racism affects us all - whether it affects us directly or indirectly.

DaMigra eV represents the interests of women migrant organizations and their concerns and advocates equal opportunities, equal participation and the equality of women with a history of migration and refugee experience in Germany. DaMigra follows the approach of anti-racist feminism.

[1] As of March 2023, study by the German Economic Institute