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On 15th of August  the first  training “Non- racism like a principal of non-formal education”, based on methods of German handbook for non-racism education, finished in Voronezh. More over it was the first not only in Russia, but in all field of CIS. This meeting was organized from 13th to 15th August by the International Youth Human Rights Movement and the Human Rights House- Voronezh in cooperation with the authors of handbook Baustein zur nicht-rassistischen Bildungsarbeit (Германия) with support of the European network UNITED for Intercultural Action.

The main aim of the training was a meeting with approaches of the “Baustein” authors to a theme of racism and discrimination, and practicing a technique, which was worked out by them on the base of German experience of counter to this phenomenon. Themes offered by organizers were very interesting for activists of different youth organizations, teachers and researchers from different cities of Russia and although Ukraine and Belarus.

The “Baustein” authors use in their work some practices and approaches which could be seem like innovative for Russian language area. For example, they think that the most effective work on counteraction to racism and discrimination throw education is a talk about inadmissibility of racism to educational meetings on others themes like labor rights, students and women rights and so on. In addition, among quite habitual for us analysis of stereotypes and prejudices authors of German conception also use concepts like “global conspiracy” and Utopia. As it is said in a description of the“Baustein” benefits “You could not only imagine the world in another way but also create”. The question is what kind of the world we choose for us - the world with global conspiracy and finger-pointing in our troubles or when all of us are responsible to it.

The discussion on a question about possibility of using “Baustein” methods in post-soviet area was very hot. The authors do not hide that this conception and methods worked out only on German social experience. The question is what is working and what is not in our countries is still open for participants.

Representatives of the program MATRA of the  Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands visited the training with welcome address. Adviser to the political department of the Embassy Mr. Adriaan Palm in his speech stressed an importance of enlightenment and education work in the sphere of counteraction to racism and xenophobia particular in Russia because during last months this problem has  tendency to exacerbate. With all of this, representatives of the European countries – Germany and Netherlands -  are able and ready to share their experience, but certainly work and solve this problem could only citizens, who think about the future of their country.

The reason of visit of MATRA representatives is that this training was organized in framework of a project “Civil organisations serving society: youth actions against racism, nationalism and xenophobia and for Human Rights and inter-cultural dialogue”. 

“Baustein” is a unique handbook which is about education on topics: modern racism, migration in Europe, nationalism and patriotism, gender questions and so on. It include introductive and more professional texts on this problems, exercises and methods, handouts recommendations for seminars and so on. “Baustein” was firstly published in 2003, first of all to help German trade unions, but later it was used by schools, social organizations, educational centers and so on. You can find this handbook in German here - http://www.baustein.dgb-bwt.de (in Russian – at the web-site http://www.baustein.yhrm.org).

Additional information      
Irina Aksenova
Liubov Zakharova
Anastasia Nikitina
+7 473- 254-55-29
ynri@yhrm.org
www.yhrm.org
www.ynri.yhrm.org