A summary of February
During the last month of our work we established six cases of abusive content founded on the Internet. We recorded 577 illegal entries. Since the beginning of the project implementation until the end of January we reported 6 172 such entries.
With regard to the denial to initiate proceedings on public incitement to ethnic hate being made by the candidate of the Electoral Committee of Voters - "Our voice in local government" to the District Council Kolbuszowa in Widełka in November 2014 we made an agreement with the "Project: Poland" based in Warsaw to further clarify this situation.
We continue to monitor the issue in Leszno, Strzelin near Wrocław and Legnica. We have obtained information about the local court proceedings in Legnica against students wearing racist scarves. In March, a hearing will be held before the court in this case.
We remain constantly the contact with the Support Centre for Immigrant and Women Immigrant in Gdańsk. This Center offers the social and legal aid to members from the local Roma encampments. We also cooperate with the Pomeranian Governor Plenipotentiary for National and Ethnic Minorities.
A summary of January
Another month of our work just passed. January is for many of us the time of New Year's resolutions, new beginning, a milestone when you can start working with so-called "clean account". For “Fashion for Tolerance” it was habitually a month of hard work.
This month we established 4 cases involving abusive content, which appeared on the Internet. We recorded 628 illegal entries and 15 similar comments of the cases established in November last year. Since the beginning of the project implementation until the end of January we reported 5 595 such entries.
Our monitoring specialist took steps to further admonish and explain issues in Legnica, Leszno, Ostrów Wielkopolski, Andrychów, Strzelin near Wrocław, Głogów and Gdańsk-Jelitkowo.
We have received information that Gdańsk prosecutors dropped an investigation into the eviction of a Roma family from an allotment belonging to the city of Gdańsk-Jelitkowo. We also established contact with the Support Centre for Immigrant and Women Immigrant in Gdańsk.
We continue to conduct actions on racist incidents regarding the football club Miedź Legnica.
Annual Summary of Fashion for Tolerance
Fashion for Tolerance has lasted already nine months! We still have monitored negative behaviors against Roma in public life and on the Internet. Do you want to know the details of our work? Read on.
Since the beginning of the project implementation we commenced and considered 20 issues concerning acts of discrimination, racism, xenophobia and hate speech against Roma in Poland (Legnica, Wrocław, Strzelin, Głogów, Zabrze, Siemianowice Śląskie, Gdańsk, Leszno, Ostrów Wielkopolski, Andrychów, Szczecin). All problems were being consulted with a lawyer, who has made decisions to properly solve them. We have received reports by telephone, e-mails or in letters. All of them contented individual and groups problems.
By the end of 2014 we completed 9 cases, with the possibility of resuming those for which there were new circumstances. From all cases, 11 are pending, which means that proceedings in a court, other authorities or internal disciplinary proceedings are already open.
We have begun a close cooperation with many people, professionally dedicated to assist to national and ethnic minorities: the Plenipotentiary for Equal Treatment, Plenipotentiaries of Governors for the National and Ethnic Minorities and Plenipotentiaries of Governors for Equal Treatment, the Plenipotentiary of Chief for the Protection of Human Rights and Plenipotentiaries of Provincial Chief for the Protection of Human Rights, educational institutions and NGOs from all over Poland. Moreover, in June we visited Silesia in order to make direct contact with victims who reported discrimination.
As a result of Internet monitoring we report 108 issues concerning, found and archived, 4952 entries on the Internet. All of them were insulting the Roma minority and inciting hatred against Roma.
Legal interventions have been taken for all issues, which resulted in 2338 deleted entries so far. The majority of cases (105) were comments which directly or indirectly violate the Polish criminal law. All of them contained articles or videos concerning the Roma (including the most famous websites in Poland: wp, onet, interia, youtube, facebook, gazeta, wykop, sfora).
The verification process and inference to remove negative content proved to be very time-consuming for us. Administrators of webpages (removing entries or not) did not always respond to our requests regarding the removal of entries. This lack of response made it difficult to verify whether the comments actually were removed from the Internet. It also turned out that even a positive administrator’s response it is not an excuse for us to complete the case. In the majority of cases the reason was the lack of precision in removing aforementioned comments by administrators. For the most part of cases, in which we received the assurance of removing the entries, many of them still required intervention. This confirmed our belief that each entry must be verified for the actual removal.
Moreover, we had to go back frequently to already closed issues, because at the same articles have appeared new discriminatory comments. For this reason we have been carrying out periodical inspections of previously closed cases.
Most issues are pending. Investigations are carried out in courts, the police or the prosecution (charging and financial penalties).
Thank you all for being with us and helping us to effectively implement the project. We invite all of you to further cooperation and joint dissemination of the latest trend - Fashion for Tolerance.
Summary of the activities of November
In November we have noticed 13 cases concerning offensive contents that occurred via the Internet. Also, we have noticed 527 illegal entries. After three months of the project realization we have reported 4 641 such entries. Activities undertook in November have concerned situation of Roma community in Strzelin near Wroclaw, Leszno, Ostrów Wielkopolski, Gorzów Wielkopolski and in Legnica.
We got information that one politician during his electoral campaign, put discrimination contents in his electoral material. We have reported this case to the police.
Moreover, our office worker on the 18th of November during the conference National and ethnic minorities in the West-Pomerania: History and Present, as well as on the 20th of November during the conference in the Day Care House Złota Jesień and in the Middle School in Szczecinek, talked about the project Moda na tolerancję. Furthermore, office worker asked the socio-vocational assistants in Poland if they met with the acts of discrimination, xenophobia and hate speech towards Roma people. He also invited them to the further cooperation.
The newest case concern fans from Legnica who have appeared at school at the match, with scarves of football club Miedź Legnica with the inscription “Gipsy hunters”. Letters concerning this case have been sent to appropriate offices, to punish offenders.
Summary of the activities in October
In October we have noticed 8 cases concerning offensive contents that occurred via the Internet. Also, we have noticed 548 illegal entries. After three months of the project realization we have reported 4 114 such entries.
Activities undertook in November have concerned situation of Roma community in Andrychów, Gdańsk, Wrocław, Strzelin near Wrocław, Leszno and in Ostrów Wielkopolski.
The employee for the monitoring on the 6th of October took a part in the conference in Poznań The Roma community in the past and today. Education of Roma children and in the conference in Szczecinek that summed up the project Coolture of the equal opportunities.
We have taken activities concerning events in Ostrów Wielkopolski, and the movie that occurred in the internet Gassed Gypsy. We have reopened the case concerning event in Siemianowice Ślaskie. Prosecutor's Office initiated an investigation in connection with this case. We are in the constant contact with the victims.
Summary of the activities in September
In September we have noticed 8 cases concerning offensive contents that occurred via the Internet. Also, we have noticed 761 illegal entries. After three months of the project implementation we have reported 3 566 such entries.
The employee for the monitoring on the 18th of September in Wólka Milanowska near Nowa Słupia took a part in the conference within the Third Forum for the Plenipotentiary Governors for the national and ethnic minorities and Plenipotentiary of Chief Capital / Provincial and Schools Police for the Protection of Human Rights Public administration against hate speech. Roma community in the past and today. During the conference he has talked about the project Moda na Tolerancję. Furthermore, our employee for the monitoring have gained information about the illegal camp of the Roma people in Wrocław as well as information about the activities of the municipal services towards Roma people and about the status of this case. He has gained information about events in Strzelin near Wrocław, Andrychów and in Gdańsk.
Summary of the activities in August
On July we have noticed 15 cases concerning offensive contents that occurred via the Internet. Also, we have noticed 591 illegal entries. From the beginning of the project implementation we have noticed 2805 entries altogether.
Actions undertook in the previous month still concern situation of the Romani people in Andrychów, Śląsk, Wrocław, Strzelin near Wrocław and in Leszno. Due to the events in Leszno concerning beating Romni and her daughter we are in constant contact with the Plenipotentiary of the governor of the Wielkopolska Mr Patryk Pawełczak. Our staff member for the monitoring on the 28 th of September is going to have a meeting with the Plenipotentiary in order to familiarize with the case.
From the 31.07-03.08 we took a part in the conference about the genocide of the Romani people (Roma Genocide Remembrance Initiative 2014) which was held at the Pedagogical University of Cracow. Also, we took a part in the lecture that was a form of presentation: Discrimination - how to fight with it. The lecture was hosted by Mrs Wiesława Kostrzewa-Zorbas from the Office of the Government Plenipotentiary of Equal Treatment.
Summary of the activities in July
On July we have noticed 11 cases concerning offensive contents that occurred via the Internet. Also, we have noticed 590 illegal entries. From the beginning of the project implementation we have noticed 2214 entries altogether, but it's still a drop in the sea. Dangerous situation concerning Roma community in Wrocław, Andrychów or in Gdańsk lead to many situations not only via the Internet but also in the real world.
Please remember that you can help us to find such entries. All you have to do is to contact us by an e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
or you can call us 800-889-881. Together we can do more.
Summary of the activities in June
In June we have noticed 15 cases concerning offensive contents that occurred via the Internet. Also, we have noticed 576 illegal entries. After three months of the project realization we have reported 1624 such entries. Moreover, our office worker altogether with lawyer have visited Silesia – Katowice, Siemianowice Śląskie and Zabrze. They have checked and documented all cases concerning incidents against Romani people and they tried to solve problems. They have met with the official representatives of provincial administration in Katowice and with the official representatives of the local administration in Siemianowice Śląskie and in Zabrze.
We still monitor all events placed in Andrychów and we are in constant contact with the representatives of the local Romani community.
Summary of the activities in May
It was very successful work. With every month our activities are quicker and bring better results. In May we recorded 24 entries concerning abusive comments against Romani people. After two months of the realization of the project we have registered 1048 of such entries. We have noticed 524 entries which breaking the law. Apart of that we have monitored and investigated cases regarding accidents in Siemianowice Ślaskie (inscriptions on the wall, personal attacks, housing issues). Lawyer and employee for the monitoring were in Silesia to undertake concrete activities. We have started preparations to the multicultural and romani conference in Silesia in, cooperation with the Police, Plenipotentiary Governor for the Ethnic Minorities.