Racism murder of Polish

The 16 year old who murdered two Polish workers 'high-fived' with friends before he was turned in to gardai. It emerged that members of the teenage gang shouted: 'go back to Poland, you Polish b*****d'.




Gardai believe the offender used a six inch screwdriver in the early evening attack on Saturday 23rd February, 2008.

The attack began near a takeaway on Benbulbin Road, Drimnagh. It appears there was an exchange of words with a gang of 10 young people outside. Two girls texted a male friend who arrived on the scene and hit one of the Polish men on the head.

CCTV footage shows the gang chasing the young man before he sought refuge in his home. He was crying and bleeding at that stage and his friends begged him to stay inside. However he said he could not put up with being intimidated in the area where he lived and went out to confront the young people.

At this stage the killer had a screwdriver. Pavel Kalite was then stabbed in the throat and head before toppling to the ground, where he lost a lot of blood. His friend Marius who went to his assistance to fight off the youngster suffered appalling injuries when the youth plunged the screwdriver into his left temple causing irreversible damage.

Increase in attacks on foreign nationals

While it is apparent that there were racist motives in this attack, it is the latest in a series of attacks on foreign nationals living in Ireland. Last month, a 35 year old Polish man was set alight by an improvised flamethrower in Limerick.

The man, who had only arrived in the country before suffering permanent scarring as a result. The youths sprayed flammable liquid over him after he refused to hand over alcohol to them.

Last week, a 19year old and 20year old were jailed for more than five years for separate attacks on a Chinese man and a German tourist. The Chinese national who was living in Dublin, was thrown in to the Royal Canal by the men after they tried to rob him.

Last April, Estonian Valerii Ranert was beaten to death by a gang of youths who hijacked his car on the Naul Road in north Dublin.

Fund

A fund has been set up by the employer of the two Polish men who were attacked. Donations which will help the family towards the unexpected funeral costs can donate at AIB branches. The account is held at AIB on the Naas Road.

Anger

Many Polish people will be extremely angry or frustrated for to them it shows the level of extremity that hate can take in some people and the realisation that it could have been them. While many in mainstream Ireland have failed to acknowledge the presence and extent of racism, in 2006 a comprehensive survey of the ESRI revealed that 1/3 immigrants experienced racism.

It is being seen by some Poles who have written in websites that it is reflective of a trend that 'the Irish no longer like us'. Unfortunately it has been the case that some people of Irish nationality may never have liked them or many others. The youth who committed this attack is described as being from a dysfunctional family. Racism towards Polish may just have been one of many emotions at work in the mind of the youth as he committed this dreadful act.

Yet in the increase sense of job insecurity particularly within the construction industry where many Polish work, this feeling that a changed in mood against them will be accutely felt by Polish workers. Even in a country of near full employment for the past number of years, segregation has been a feature of the changed demographic Ireland.

This segregation and growth of parrallel communities of varying nationalities has been an increasing feature with increased immigration. In 2004, tens of thousands of workers from eastern Europe moved to Ireland and in this group many did not have English. Even though they have been able to get jobs in the past number of years, without English, they will have an increased sense of isolation from mainstream Ireland.

With this there is a resentment against immigrants amongst a section of Irish people. They include those who have both benefited from the boom but particularly those who have not. Perhaps it is out of a sense of fear of what is to come or out of an insecurity of their own sense of identity. It is a feeling I have come across in different environments.

The government has committed €9million to supporting the integration of immigrants in Ireland. In the context firstly of the annual budget of an overall exchequer spend of €51b for 2008; this is but a drop in the ocean. Add to this the fact that our country has experienced immigration of a proportion more rapid and more profound in its impact on us as compared to any other in the world.

The issue of integration and immigration is the most profound questions facing Irish politics. Increased integration leads to reduced racism. It is thus important to note that integration cannot be achieved without also tackling racism. This week’s murder and the increasing attacks on foreign nationals are but a warning to us all. We are now past the stage of preventing racism and the open door of opportunity to respond to a diverse Ireland is closing. It is up to us to respond by acting against racism and building a cohesive community.

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Racist Murder of two Polish in Dublin

The 16 year old who murdered two Polish workers 'high-fived' with friends before he was turned in to gardai. It emerged that members of the teenage gang shouted : 'go back to Poland, you Polish b*****d'.

Gardai believe the offender used a six inch screwdriver in the early evening attack on Saturday 23rd February, 2008.

The attack began near a takeaway on Benbulbin Road, Drimnagh. It appears there was an exchange of words with a gang of 10 young people outside. Two girls texted a male friend who arried on the scene and hit one of the Polish men on the head.

CCTV footage shows the gang chasing the young man before he sought refuge in his home. He was crying and bleeding at that stage and his friends begged him to stay inside. Hwever he said he could not put up with being intimidated in the area where he lived and went out to confront the young people.

At this stage the killer had a screwdriver. Pavel Kalite was then stabbed in the throat and head before toppling to the ground, where he lost a lot of blood. His friend Marius who went to his assistance to fight off the youngster suffered appalling injuries when the youth plunged the screwdriver into his left temple causing irreversible damage.

Increase in attacks on foreign nationals

While it is apparent that there were racist motives in this attack, it is the latest in a seriers of attacks on foreign nationals living in Ireland. Last month, a 35 year old Polish man was set alight by an improvised flamethrower in Limerick.

The man, who had only arrived in the country before suffering permanent scarring as a result of the attack. The youths sprayed flammable liquid over him after he refused to hand over alcohol to them.

Last week, a 19year old and 20year old were jailed for more than five years for separate attacks on a Chinese man and a German tourist. The Chinese national who was living in Dublin, was thrown in to the Royal Canal by the men after they tried to rob him.

Last April, Estonian Valerii Ranert was beaten to death by a gang of youths who hijacked his car on the Naul Road in north Dublin.

Fund

A fund has been set up by the employer of the two Polish men who were attacked. Donations which will help the family towards the unexpected funeral costs can donate at AIB branches. The account is held at AIB on the Naas Road.

Anger

Many Polish people will be extremely angry for to them it shows the level of extremity that hate can take in some people and the realisation that it could have been them. While many in mainstream Ireland have failed to acknowledge the presence and extent of racism, the ESRI revealed that 1/3 immigrants experienced racism.

It is being seen by some Poles who have written in websites that it is reflective of a trend that 'the Irish no longer like us'. Unfortunately it has been the case that some people of Irish nationality may never have liked them or many others. The youth who committed this attack is described as being from a disfunctional family. Racism towards Polish may just have been one of many emotions at work in the mind of the youth as he committed this dreadful act.

Yet in the increase sense of job insecurity particularly within the construction industry where many Polish work, this feeling that a changed in mood against them will be accutely felt by Polish workers. Even in a country of near full employment for the past number of years, segregation has been a feature of the changed demographic Ireland.

This segregation and growth of parrallel communities of varying nationalities has been an increasing feature with increased immigration. In 2004, tens of thousands of workers from eastern Europe moved to Ireland and in this group many did not have English. Even though they have been able to get jobs in the past number of years, without English, they will have an increased sense of isolation from mainstream Ireland.

With this there is a resentment against immigrants amongst a section of Irish people. They include those who have both benefitted from the boom and particularly those who have not benefitted but perhaps out os a sense of fear of what is to come or out of an insecurity of their own sense of identity. It is a feeling I have come across in different environments.

The government have committed €9million to supporting the integration of immigrants in Ireland. In the context of the fact that our country has experienced immigration of a proportion more rapid and more profound in its impact on us as compared to any other in the world, this is but a drop in the ocean.

The issue of integration and immigration is the most profound questions facing Irish politics. It is thus important to note that integration cannot be achieved without also addresssing racism.

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Dundalk Show Racism the Red Card

Dundalk FC hosted an impressive Show Racism the Red Card event today, at Dundalk Institute of Technology with over 120 attending including pupils from 8 schools and representatives of the community in Dundalk and Co Louth.




People were in attendance from the following groups, Chamber of Commerce, Dundalk Town Council, Sports Recreation Center, Louth County Council, DKIT, Carroll Village Asylum Seekers, Louth African Women's Group, Polish and Eastern European Group, Muslim Group, Nigerian Rep, NCCRI, FAI, Red Card Group, Argus Newspaper, Democrat Newspaper, LMFM Radio, Basketball Ireland and Dundalk Ravens, Ice Dome and Dundalk Bulls, Dundalk Football Club, School Liaison Officers and local primary and secondary schools in Dundalk.

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Navan School Show Racism the Red Card

Drogheda United and Show Racism the Red Card received an enthusiastic greeting from the pupils at Oliver Plunkett's National School, Navan, Co Meath in a lively interactive session as part of the school intercultural festival.














October 23rd saw the second day of the Intercultural Festival at Oliver Plunkett's NS in Navan. Show Racism the Red Card visited the school with Drogheda United star players Shane Barrett and Declan O' Brien. Stephen Ojo from Eagleswing FC Drogheda organised a football tournament for the youngsters.

The school has more than 600 pupils from 30 nations across five continents. The EAL (English as an Additional Language) teachers and the school organised this as the schools third festival which aims to create greater intercultural understanding.

When Show Racism the Red Card came to the school on the second day, the various activities were evident in the art work on the walls and various other pieces.
There was a travellers wagon, Brazilian drummer and lots of other activities on the first day.














On the second day, Stephen Ojo organised a football tournament for all classes and then at 11 am, almost 400 pupils crowded into the school hall for a joint presentation of Show Racism the Red Card and Drogheda United.

The Show Racism the Red Card DVD was shown and pupils were given the opportunity to ask a panel including Drogs captain Declan O' Brien, Shane Barrett and Stephen Ojo. We revealed to the students that Stephen had been a professional footballer and asked him about his career.

Stephen said he played with FC Groningen for five years. He joined when they were in the 3rd Division and left when they were in the 1st Division. The pupils responded with a spontaneaous round of loud applause.

Declan O'Brien was asked who his favourite team are to which he stated the obvious- Drogheda United. Shane Barrett was: 'Well I am from Meath, so I guess Meath is my favourite team'. The audience went wild with appreciation.













There were also serious questions from the young people including a question as to how racism began, to which Stephen Ojo answered. The players stayed for a while to chat to pupils informally and have their photos taken. Pupils from the finalist teams in the tournament were presented with medals brought by Drogheda United's Club Promotion Officer. Every pupil in the school received a Drogheda United Show Racism the Red Card poster.

Overall, this was a hugely enjoyable event combining fun and conversation with a serious message. Activities for the event were supported by the school, by the local sports partnership and the local district league. It is a great way to introduce Show Racism the Red Card to a school. Our DVD education pack will be an ongoing resource in the new year.

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Introduction to GAA for Adult immigrants

Show Racism the Red Card in association with Dublin City Council, DCU GAA Academy and the Gaelic Players Association presents: An opportunity to learn Gaelic Football from one of the best players of the game.
Introduction%20to%20Gaelic%20Football.doc



Dublin City Council, DCU GAA Academy, Show Racism the Red Card and the Gaelic Players Association have joined together to offer adult immigrants an opportunity to learn Gaelic football from one of the leading lights of the sport.

Dublin Senior footballer Paul Casey will be the coach delivering the introduction plays his club football with Lucan Sarsfield an area which has exploded over recent years with many immigrant people in the area.

Paul features in the forthcoming Show Racism the Red Card DVD which will be used in schools from January:

When asked about Diversity in his local area of Lucan and its impact on his GAA club Lucan Sarsfield, Paul reckons it has been immense and says 'We are getting young players from immigrant backgrounds into the club. Some of them are very good and I have no doubt that some will be inter county stars of the future'.

Garrett Mullan Co-ordinator of the project said: 'There is a lot of integration occuring at underage level. It can be difficult for adults to be part of GAA for all sorts of reasons. This evening introduction will be an opportunity to allow people who have never played Gaelic football before to try it out and if they like it, we will have representatives from a number of clubs local to DCU present to introduce themselves. I am sure it will be a lot of fun'.

He added: 'This is a pilot project and if successful, we may approach other local authorities with a view to a similar initiative. There can be no better introduction to Gaelic football than from an intercounty player and local clubs will be welcoming of new members'.

The course is due to take place in early December and we are inviting expressions of interest at this stage. Please email info@theredcard.ie or fill out registration downloadable from our website.

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Diverse Ireland struggles to educate its population

More diverse Ireland struggles to educate its population
Economic boom attracts legions of immigrants
By Kevin Sullivan, Washington Post | November 4, 2007


More diverse Ireland struggles to educate its population
Economic boom attracts legions of immigrants
By Kevin Sullivan, Washington Post | November 4, 2007

BALBRIGGAN, Ireland - Happy little learners filed out of school at midday, smiling in their furry jackets and clutching a parent's hand. It could have been anywhere in Ireland, except that almost every child had immigrant parents - the vast majority of them black - from places as distant as Angola, Congo, and Zimbabwe.

Bracken Educate Together National School was opened last month as an emergency measure after education officials realized they had no school places for scores of local children, almost all of them Irish-born children of immigrants.

The opening of Ireland's first predominantly black school, in this suburban town just north of Dublin, illustrates the pressures facing once-sleepy Ireland as its population and economy boom. Once almost entirely white and Catholic, the country is struggling to integrate hundreds of thousands of new immigrants and to provide them with education, health, welfare, and transportation services as fast as they arrive.

"This is the front line in all this," said Gerry McKevitt, an administrator at the Balbriggan school, looking around its temporary home in a summer retreat house for urban children. "This is where the problems are emerging. This is where integration is going to happen or not."

After 150 years of population decline as native Irish fled dire economic conditions, Ireland is now one of Europe's fastest-growing and most prosperous nations. The white-hot "Celtic Tiger" economy of recent years has leveled off, but Ireland continues to be a magnet for immigrants.

The nation's population is just over 4.1 million, its highest level since before the famine years of the mid-19th century. Much of the growth has been fueled by immigration: According to the 2006 census, more than 600,000 Irish residents, about 1 in 7, were born abroad - including returning children of Irish emigrants.

Government officials say they believe the true figure could be much higher, citing the difficulty of counting newcomers living in crowded group houses. The Polish immigrant population is officially about 62,000, but Conor Lenihan, Ireland's integration minister, said that the actual number of Poles here could be closer to 200,000.

"Ireland has been subject to something that no other country in history has ever been subject to: sudden-onset migration," said Lenihan, whose post was created this year. "We have seen our non-Irish population go from zero to about 15 percent in 10 years."

At the same time, in less than a decade, nearly 600,000 new houses or apartments have been added, according to government figures. Suburbs such as Lucan, west of Dublin, and Balbriggan, to the north, are now filled with almost identical pastel-colored townhouses on fields where cows and sheep used to graze.

Critics say that construction of schools, hospitals, and train lines and provision of other public and social services have not kept pace with the growth.

Public education in Ireland is paid for by the government but administered almost exclusively by the Catholic Church, which operates 92 percent of primary schools. The other 8 percent are run by Protestant churches or groups such as Educate Together, a private organization that operates 44 multi-denominational schools across the country.

On the main train line between Dublin and Belfast, near Dublin airport and nestled next to the sea, Balbriggan is a magnet for young Irish families looking for reasonably priced housing. It is also attracting a swelling wave of immigrants from Africa, the Middle East, and the mostly Eastern European nations that joined the European Union in 2004.

In August, education officials realized that Balbriggan's six schools, including one Educate Together school, were oversubscribed. Scores of children, many of them 4- and 5-year-olds just starting school, had nowhere to go.

Officials appealed to Educate Together to quickly set up an emergency school to handle the overflow. Within a month, the company established a new school near the seashore.

Paul Rowe, chief executive of Educate Together, said the school now has 86 students from at least a dozen countries. He said 90 percent have immigrant parents.

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St Pats to host top Polish team

St Patrick’s Athletic FC have announced that Wisla Krakow, Poland’s most successful football club over recent years, will play a friendly match against St Patrick’s Athletic in Richmond Park on Tuesday, November 13th with a 7.45pm kick-off.

It is a bid to increase the Polish support for the Eircom League of Ireland side. Maybe some people will come to support Wisla Krakow, but there are Polish people in Dublin from all over Poland and they may support St Pats.

Champions of Poland on five occasions since 1999, the current Wisla Krakow squad contains no fewer than eight full Polish internationals. The team currently lies in 1st place in the Polish championship. In July of this year Wisla travelled to the United States to compete in, and win, the inaugural Chicago Trophy beating reigning UEFA Cup champions Sevilla FC in the final.

The fixture is sure to be of huge appeal to the sizeable Polish community living in the Dublin area and St Patrick’s Athletic manager Johnny McDonnell is enthused by the prospect of hosting Polish opposition at Richmond Park.

Wisla coach, Maciej Skorza, welcomed the opportunity to play Irish opposition in Dublin. “The timing of this match is ideal. The domestic season in Poland commenced in September so my players are in great condition right now. The St Patrick’s Athletic team has made great progress this season and the challenge for us will be stiff, but with so many Polish people living in Dublin I expect Wisla to feel right at home in Richmond Park!”

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PSV Eindhoven Show Racism the Red Card

PSV Eindhoven have taken the Show Racism the Red Card message to their supporters as part of their activity in FARE Action Week against racism.


PSV will again take part in the FARE Action Week. FARE stands for ‘Football Against Racism in Europe’ and PSV is the only Dutch club that has joined this network. PSV will organise several activities at their upcoming home matches at the Philips Stadium against VVV-Venlo and Fenerbahçe SK.

The Football Against Racism in Europe (FARE) Action Week – supported by UEFA - is the focus of European football's symbolic stand against racism and discrimination. This year's activities are taking place between 17 and 30 October. The Action Week will once again feature activities by fans, players, clubs, associations, minority organisations, anti-discrimination groups, youth centres, schools and the sports media. In all, the FARE Action Week will see more than 2,000 singled activities in 37 European countries.

PSV organised an anti-racism day at their home match against VVV-Venlo on Saturday 20 October. Ahead of the game, a new anti-racism film and a message from captain Timmy Simons was shown on the large screens in the stadium. The 22 children that accompany the two teams onto the pitch wore t-shirts with an anti-racism slogan. In close co-operation with Light Town Madness, the PSV Supporters’ Association and PSV Fans United, an atmosphere enhancing activity will took place in one of the stands.

Ahead of the Champions League encounter with Fenerbahçe SK on Tuesday 23 October a letter with an anti-racism message will be read and the 22 children that accompany the players onto the pitch will be wearing t-shirts with an anti-racism slogan, while the team captains will be wearing armbands bearing the slogan ‘Unite against Racism’.

The Football Against Racism in Europe (FARE) network was formed in 1999 by fan groups and NGOs concerned at the rising tide of racism in European football. Today, the network has active partners in almost 40 countries and is working across the game with players, community groups, fans and governing bodies. FARE acts as an umbrella organisation for those challenging racism and discrimination throughout Europe.

PSV Media will cover the action week and two new projects, ‘Scoring against racism’ and ‘PSV Street Football’, will be launced. Inflatable football pitches will be put up in several areas in Eindhoven and a football tournament will be organised, with the help of area youth workers.

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Germany Show Racism the Red Card in Bundesliga

The Bundesliga's 36 clubs will unite for the next two rounds of the competition to show racism a collective red card, the German Football League (DFL) announced on Wednesday.

Before this weekend's 18 first and second Bundesliga games, all players, trainers and referees involved will each hold up a red cardboard placard in a symbolic gesture to "give racism the red card".

The initiative, to promote tolerance and respect in football, is part of a movement across the continent called Football against racism in Europe (FARE). "Millions of fans follow the Bundesliga week after week, supporting the stars of their club, regardless of their origin or colour," said DFL president Reinhard Rauball.

Fans at all Bundesliga games this weekend and next will be handed red placards and invited to join in the gesture before kick-off. Certain areas of Germany, particularly in the former GDR, have encountered problems with racism.

In September 2006, Schalke 04 striker Gerald Asamoah was the target of racist abuse during a game against Hansa Rostock. The German Football Federation (DFB) ordered Rostock to pay a record fine of 20,000 euros.

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