Racism in the Netherlands; still happening
Racism: "the belief that people's qualities are influenced by their race and that the members of other races are not as good as the members of your own, or the resulting unfair treatment of members of other races:" (Cambridge dictionary)
Racism: "hatred or intolerance of another race or other races" (dictionary.com)
Racism: Something most people think is a thing from the past and definitely not very present in the Netherlands anymore.
But sadly enough it's still happening every day.
One of the most recent examples that showcase how racism is still part of everyday life in the Netherlands is how some have reacted to the coronavirus. It seems like it is being used as an excuse to mistreat Asian, especially Chinese, people. Over the last couple of months, there have been various incidents in which this has happened. Think about Lisa and Shay in Rotterdam, who were beaten and called names just because of their race. Or thinks about the Chinese students in a flat in Wageningen, where the elevator was smeared with poop and the words "Sterf Chinesen" ("Die Chinese) were written. Or think about last Friday; a song, that was all about ridiculing Chinese people and associating them with the coronavirus, was heard on Radio 10. Some of the lyrics being:
‘Hé jongens, dat virus neemt geen pauze, (Hey guys, this virus doesn't take a break)
we motten dat niet hebben in ons land, (we don't want that in our country)
het komt allemaal door die stink-Chinezen’. (It's all because of those disgusting Chinese)
Understandably, people were very upset and offended by these racist remarks being made in the song and the fact that this radio station thought it was okay to broadcast it. These are just a couple of examples of what is happening right now. Every day people in the Netherlands are assaulted and called names just because of their race.
"The coronavirus is not an excuse to be racist" - Hanwe (social media influencer)
Now you might be wondering, what can we do about it? One of the first things we, as people living in the Netherlands, need to do is acknowledge the racism around us. When talking to people you might notice that a lot of them seem to think that because of how free and tolerant the Netherlands seems to be, racism is something that doesn't happen very often, even though it does (another example: racism in dutch football). Solving a problem without acknowledging its existence is an impossible task to do, so your task as an individual is to bring awareness the best you can. Speak up when you notice a friend making a weird comment towards another person's race, educate the people around you, inspire others to do the same as well.
Racism: Acknowledge it as a problem and stand against it
Sources:
https://www.abc.net.au/religion/10095232
https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2020/02/racism-in-football-is-more-common-than-thought-say-team-captains/
https://www.discriminatie.nl/#/home
https://www.hartvannederland.nl/algemeen/2020/chinese-nederlanders-doen-aangifte/
https://www.kis.nl/artikel/racisme-het-voetbal
https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2020/02/10/een-epidemie-versterkt-racisme-a3989897
https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2020/02/11/het-racisme-tegen-chinezen-is-een-puist-die-nu-openbreekt-a3990087
https://www.parool.nl/columns-opinie/het-coronavirus-dient-als-welkom-ex-cuus-voor-racisme~bb0aeff7/
https://www.parool.nl/nederland/heeft-nederland-een-blinde-vlek-voor-racisme~b39db839/?referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F
https://www.telegraaf.nl/sport/1732973457/meer-racisme-op-nederlandse-voetbalvelden