The colour line persists in the 21st century, highlighting the urgent need to combat anti-Black racism globally, said Martin Kimani, Chairperson of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, during a presentation to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Kimani emphasized that human rights and anti-racist movements must unite more than ever to ensure international resolutions, including the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, are fully realized.
The Forum marks the start of the second International Decade for People of African Descent, focusing on three pillars: recognition, justice, and development. Key measures include addressing systemic and structural racism, pursuing reparatory justice, and promoting racial equality in development frameworks.
Emerging issues, including digital and AI justice, are also on the agenda. Kimani warned that without intervention, systemic inequities could be replicated and amplified in emerging technologies, underscoring the importance of a reparatory justice perspective in the digital age.
The Forum highlighted the intersecting discrimination faced by women and girls of African descent, noting that historical dehumanization continues to shape contemporary inequalities. Reparatory measures, including restitution, compensation, and public acknowledgment, are crucial for achieving equitable development.
Kimani also drew attention to Haiti’s crisis, linking ongoing instability to the legacies of colonization and slavery, including the 1804 independence debt. He called on the Human Rights Council to address the crisis through the lens of reparatory justice.
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