Discrimination Background to this section Return to the Discrimination list An everyday occurence affecting everyone This section will carry articles on discrimination. Discrimination is a self-evident state of affairs The actual impact of discriminatory decisions can be seen in the outcome of those decisions. These decisions, and actions supporting them, do not have to have been made evident at the time they were taken. But the outcomes of such decisions are there to see. This is particularly true in the case of racial discrimination. As time passes, the repetitive consistency of the effect of discrimination creating a proactive force which sustains the disadvantage of someone, or a group, becomes all too evident. Implausible denials One of the more bizarre notions circulated in many discussions concerning racial discrimination is that those who take decisions which hurt, specifically, those of some identifiable ethic groups, did not do it intentionally nor can they be accused of being racist. But at what level of overt offence do people begin to admit that the perpetrators have racist motivations? During the second world war, the Nazis developed a system of corporatism in which one group of people, who identified themselves with a largely mythical race, believed their own propaganda that other groups of people were inferior in some way. The ultimate logic of this bizarre notion enabled people to become desensitized to the abuse of those considered to be inferior. There were different levels of abuse. From herding them in to specific geographic locations (ghettos), to placing them in concentration camps either to earn money through slave labour for economic enterprises or to be executed when they were no longer of any use. This system had no "official budget" but was largely subcontracted out to large private companies and the funding, to a large degree, came from possessions stolen from the detainees in the concentration camps. Today people reflect on this horrific system and consider that no such system could exist today because there is no Nazi ideology. But this, unfortunately, is an implausible denial. The current state of affairs As indicated above, one does not have to know what decisions have been taken. One just has to observe the state of affairs. Today, in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia, Roma children are herded into concentration camps called Special schools. Like the slave labour camps in the past, these children are placed in the schools to generate money for the local authorities. A perverse incentive scheme pays more money according to the number of Roma children forced into such special schools. After the children have served their purpose, which is to remain quiet and not receive any education for some 12 years, they are dumped off into the labour market. The outcome of this denial of education, motivated entirely by racism, is the creation of an environment within which the resulting deficiency in education is fed upon by racists and small minded bigots. This leads to politicians feeling they are entitled to insult such people by "complaining" that they are uneducated, lack training and are worthless. The banal and sick aspect of this is that those of the mainstream who benefit in financial and status terms from the school funding corruption are also those who criticize the state of affairs they themselves have created. This is typical of the sort of double standards, crudity and hypocritical stupidity which passes for political debate within such societies. Now, this is in 2003. This is identical to the distorted "logic" pumped out by the Nazi and Stalinist propaganda machines in their prime, against victims of their systematic madness and social destruction. The European Committee on Romani Emancipation has a good turn of phrase which is associated with its campaign to close the special schools. It says, "Racial discrimination fashions the invisible chains which maintain the tyranny of dependency, an enslavement of the defenseless. Emancipation is the process whereby people are set free from such slavery." This seems to embody the issue effectively. We can shout and rail about Communists, Nazis, neo- this and crypto- that, but the issue boils down to the fact that ANY system can " ..maintain the tyranny of dependency, an enslavement of the defenseless." Europe today has an immense monument to the banality of its leadership, its institutions and the lies about the state of our "civilization". In setting out the justification for an ever larger Europe we are told we are rid of Fascism, Nazis and (now Communists?). And yet Europe stands preparing a reception festival of gory hypocracy to welcome new candidate countries, some of whom just happen to have thousands of small Roma children slammed up in so-called special schools. Schools modeled on the Nazi schools for the Roma children in the Third Reich. The European Commission, in spite of EU laws concerning anti-discimination on any grounds, during the last decade of contact with moronic educationalists and five years of "negotiations" with even more perverse politicians, has simply done nothing to stop this atrocity. There is no question that this represents a hypocritical collusion. That nod and a wink during those extensive Brussels meetings, expensive dinners and receptions. The understanding that "if you say nothing", then "neither will we". The issue is don't answer questions, "keep the lid of this issue" until you get in. The shallow cowardice of Gunter Verhuegn's alleged remark, "It wouldn't be helpful to raise the issue!" and then, further downstream, like some of those whose life experienced the Third Rich, we will of course be hearing "Oh, no, we had no idea that this was going on"; this is Europe, not of yesterday, but today. This is not an issue of law, it is not an issue of rules, it is not an issue of procedures, this is a matter of a failure of European society in upholding basic the values of our common humanity in such a way that all benefit without restriction. This current state of affairs in the level and nature of discrimination in Europe is a disgrace. There is no basis, at this stage, of hope because of the deficient standards of European civil servants, snivelling shuffling Commissioners and a moral cowardice on part of politicians and leaders, most of whom know but who do not have the human decency and nerve to help.