IV 
113TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 421 
Recognizing people of African Descent and Black Europeans. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 19, 2013 
Mr. HASTINGS of Florida submitted the following resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Recognizing people of African Descent and Black Europeans. 
Whereas the 109th Congress passed H. Con. Res. 60 and S. 
Con. Res. 90, recognizing African descendants in Latin 
America and the Caribbean, raising awareness of the rac-
ism and discrimination faced by those communities, and 
leading to numerous public and private sector initiatives 
between the United States and Latin American and Car-
ibbean countries to improve the situation of African de-
scendants; 
Whereas the persistence of racism and discrimination in Eu-
rope similarly necessitates congressional action to raise 
awareness and promote public and private sector initia-
tives to stem this trend; 
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•HRES 421 IH 
Whereas the terms ‘‘Afro-European’’, ‘‘African European’’, 
or ‘‘Black European’’ refer to people of African ancestry 
or descent born in, citizens of, or living in Europe; 
Whereas an estimated 7,000,000 to 10,000,000 individuals of 
African descent currently live in and have long had a 
presence in Europe, forming an influential part of the Af-
rican diaspora; 
Whereas the story of Black Europeans remains widely untold, 
rendering many of their past and present contributions to 
the political and social life of Europe invisible or forgot-
ten; 
Whereas unlike more contemporary figures, largely unknown 
Blacks have made significant contributions to European 
history and culture, including Spanish poet Juan Latino, 
Italian 
Duke 
Alessandro 
Medici, 
French 
novelist 
Alexandre Dumas, German scholar Anthony William 
Amo, French Composer Le Chevalier de St. George, Brit-
ish abolitionist Oladuah Equiano, and Russian General 
and Governor Abram Hannibal, great-grandfather of 
Russian poet Aleksandr Pushkin; 
Whereas the largest estimated populations of Black Euro-
peans can be found in France (approximately 2,500,000), 
the United Kingdom (approximately 1,500,000), and the 
Netherlands (approximately 500,000), in addition to size-
able populations in Germany, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, 
Norway, Ireland, Russia, Switzerland, Spain, Belgium, 
Denmark, and Austria; 
Whereas the presence of Blacks in Europe can be traced to 
voluntary and forced migration resulting from the geo-
graphical proximity of Europe to Africa and the Middle 
East, including the transatlantic slave trade, the coloniza-
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•HRES 421 IH 
tion of Africa and the Caribbean, African and African- 
American military deployments, the movement of refu-
gees and asylum seekers, and educational and other pro-
fessional exchanges; 
Whereas although Black Europeans have made significant 
achievements in and contributions to European society, 
large numbers have and continue to be more likely than 
the general population to experience discrimination and 
be underrepresented in leadership roles in the public and 
private sector as a result of the color of their skin and 
ancestry; 
Whereas racism has long been, and continues to be, a prob-
lem in Europe; 
Whereas, on April 29, 2008, before the Commission on Secu-
rity and Cooperation in Europe, at a hearing entitled 
‘‘The State of (In)visible Black Europe: Race, Rights, 
and Politics’’, Dr. Philomena Essed stated, ‘‘Probably the 
only common European experience among many, if not 
all, Afro-descendants is their exposure to [. . .] racism 
and systemic discrimination, regardless of country, socio- 
economic conditions, gender, age, or level of education’’; 
Whereas as early as 1997, the European Commission opinion 
poll entitled ‘‘Racism and Xenophobia in Europe’’ re-
ported a ‘‘worrying level of racism and xenophobia in 
[European Union] Member States, with nearly 33% of 
those interviewed openly describing themselves as ‘quite 
racist’ or ‘very racist’.’’; 
Whereas annual reports of the European Union Fundamental 
Rights Agency (EUFRA), including the 2009 European 
Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey (EU- 
MIDIS), the first European Union-wide survey of ethnic 
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•HRES 421 IH 
minority and immigrant groups’ experiences of discrimi-
nation and victimization in everyday life in the 27 mem-
ber states of the European Union, have found that per-
sons of African descent experience high incidents of dis-
criminatory treatment, racist crime, and victimization, 
and lacked an awareness of their rights, often under-
reporting cases of discrimination to law enforcement and 
human rights agencies; 
Whereas the 2013 Organization for Security and Cooperation 
in Europe Office for Democratic Institutions and Human 
Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) Annual Hate Crimes report in-
cluded findings that there were more than 16 deaths and 
violent assaults against people of African origin, and that 
persons of African descent are often targets of racist and 
anti-migrant violence, especially in eastern Europe, yet in 
many countries legal assistance and financial support for 
victims while recovering from violent attacks does not 
exist; 
Whereas prejudice and discrimination towards Black Euro-
peans has also been linked to changes in immigration and 
asylum laws as a result of antiterrorism initiatives and 
the growth and mainstreaming of nationalist and anti-im-
migrant political parties and groups, including neo-Nazis 
and skinheads; 
Whereas the Open Society Justice Initiative in an initial 
2009 report, entitled ‘‘Ethnic Profiling in the European 
Union’’, and subsequent reports has found that police of-
ficers in the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Germany, 
and the Netherlands routinely use racial profiling, includ-
ing targeting Blacks, when deciding whom to target for 
stops, searches, raids, and surveillance, leading to some 
of the first nationwide grassroots and legal efforts to end 
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racial profiling in France, Germany, and elsewhere in 
Europe; 
Whereas there have been numerous efforts by the public and 
private sector to address racial discrimination and in-
equality in Europe, including the introduction of anti-
discrimination and equality laws that include the legal 
support for special measures or positive (affirmative) ac-
tion, creation of equality bodies, media campaigns, and 
efforts to increase minority political participation, and 
campaigns to end the use of stereotypes and derogatory 
terms to refer to Blacks in everyday language, the media, 
and textbooks; 
Whereas these efforts include the United Nations designation 
of 2011 as the International Year for People of African 
Descent in an effort to strengthen national actions to en-
sure that people of African descent enjoy economic, cul-
tural, social, civil, and political rights, as well as promote 
a greater knowledge of and respect for their diverse herit-
age and culture; 
Whereas these efforts also include the OSCE Parliamentary 
Assembly’s (PA) adoption of a Resolution on ‘‘Strength-
ening Efforts to Combat Racism and Xenophobia and 
Foster Inclusion’’ at the 2011 Annual Session recog-
nizing the international year for people of African descent 
and calling for OSCE to implement several strategic ini-
tiatives to address racial and ethnic discrimination in the 
OSCE region; 
Whereas in 2011, OSCE/ODIHR held its first ‘‘Roundtable 
on the contemporary forms of racism and xenophobia af-
fecting Peoples of African Descent in the OSCE region’’, 
and in 2012 a hate crimes training for the people of Afri-
can descent, and in 2013 an exchange with European 
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and United States civil rights leaders of African descent 
and other public and private sector entities combating 
discrimination and inequality; 
Whereas these efforts also include transatlantic meetings of 
Black and minority legislators held at the European Par-
liament in Brussels, Belgium, including the March 24, 
2011, and June 1, 2010, through June 2, 2010, Trans-
atlantic Minority Political Leadership Conferences and 
April 15, 2009, through April 16, 2009, ‘‘Black Euro-
pean Summit: Transatlantic Dialogue on Political Par-
ticipation’’ and the adoption of the Brussels Declaration 
calling for increased minority political inclusion; 
Whereas as part of the March 24, 2011, Transatlantic Mi-
nority Political Leadership Conference legislators and mi-
nority leaders from North America and Europe held a 
Parliamentary Forum at the European Parliament in 
Brussels, Belgium, to discuss a ‘‘Joint Action Plan on 
Racial and Ethnic Equality and Inclusion’’ between the 
European Union and United States; 
Whereas in October 2013, European Parliamentarians in 
partnership with the European Network Against Racism 
(ENAR) held ‘‘(In)visible Diversity a series of debates in 
the European Parliament’’, including, a debate entitled, 
‘‘People of African descent and Black Europeans: Reali-
ties of Afrophobia’’; 
Whereas despite these efforts, international entities, such as 
the OSCE Personal Representative on Combating Rac-
ism, Xenophobia and Discrimination, EUFRA, the Euro-
pean Commission against Racism and Intolerance, and 
the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Ra-
cial Discrimination, Special Rapporteur on Contemporary 
Forms of Racism, Independent Expert on minority 
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issues, and Experts Working Group on People of African 
Descent, have documented ongoing racism and xeno-
phobia, and racial and ethnic discrimination, and called 
for an increase in initiatives to combat racism and in-
equality; and 
Whereas throughout the history of the United States, mem-
bers of both the public and private sectors have ex-
changed information on best practices for antidiscrimina-
tion measures and racial equality with committed parties 
in other countries, including initiatives such as the ongo-
ing implementation of the 2008 ‘‘Joint Action Plan Be-
tween the Government of the Federative Republic of 
Brazil and the Government of the United States of 
America to Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Discrimination 
and Promote Equality’’, also known as the United States- 
Brazil Joint Action Plan Against Racial Discrimination, 
and the more recent United States-Colombia Action Plan 
on Racial and Ethnic Equality: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) encourages the recognition and celebration 
of the collective history and achievements made by 
people of African descent; 
(2) reaffirms the importance of inclusion and 
the full and equal participation of people of African 
descent around the world in all aspects of political, 
economic, social, and cultural life; 
(3) recognizes that, as a result of their skin 
color and ancestry, many Black Europeans have 
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wrongfully experienced injustices in the public and 
private sector; 
(4) welcomes parliamentary activities, including 
those of the Organization for Security and Coopera-
tion in Europe (OSCE) Parliamentary Assembly, to 
engage in efforts to promote racial equality and 
combat racial discrimination through efforts such as 
introducing legislation, speaking out against racism, 
increasing the political participation of racial minori-
ties, and working with Black European and other 
minority communities to develop relevant policies; 
(5) urges European governments and members 
of civil society and the private sector, in consultation 
with Black European communities, to develop and 
implement initiatives to combat racial discrimination 
and promote racial equality in Europe, by— 
(A) 
drafting 
and 
implementing 
anti-
discrimination, special measures, hate crimes, 
migration and integration, and other laws and 
policies to address discrimination and dispari-
ties and promote equality, noting the rec-
ommendations of the United Nations Com-
mittee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimina-
tion, the Experts Working Group on People of 
African Descent (WGPAD), the European 
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Commission against Racism and Intolerance, 
the European Union Fundamental Rights 
Agency (EUFRA), the United Nations Special 
Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Racism 
and Independent Expert on minority issues, 
and the OSCE Personal Representative on 
Combating Racism, Xenophobia and Discrimi-
nation; 
(B) promoting and funding research, in-
cluding the collection of national census data on 
Black Europeans and its inclusion in the an-
nual reports of the EUFRA; 
(C) providing technical support, training, 
and funding to Black European civil society 
groups working to combat racism, discrimina-
tion, and inequality, and uphold basic human 
rights in Europe; 
(D) introducing national measures to 
counter stereotypical images of persons of Afri-
can descent, by revising textbooks, increasing 
efforts to include Black Europeans in history 
and heritage institutions, and remembering vic-
tims of colonialism, slavery, and other atroc-
ities; 
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