Youth against Racism in Europe
Youth against Racism in Europe (YRE) is a campaigning international youth organisation, active in 16 countries in Europe. YRE was launched by an international demonstration of 40,000 people against racism, in Brussels in October 1992.
It was a and the success of the Blokbuster Belgian youth movement, opposing the far-right Vlaams Blok, which convinced the Committee for a Workers' International, to work to launch an international youth organization along the same lines.
In 1994, YRE organised an anti-racist camp in Germany of 1,500 young people from all over Europe.
Britain
In Britain, YRE's activity has focused around opposition to the British National Party. In 1987 the BNP moved its headquarters to Welling, in south east London. In the next six years there were four racially motivated murders in the town, including that of Stephen Lawrence in April 1993. The following month, on a demonstration called by YRE and others, including Panther, the black socialist organisation, over 8,000 people marched past the BNP headquarters in protest at the murders and the far-right party's presence in the area. Subsequent larger demonstrations were called, co-organised by YRE, numbering 60,000 and 50,000 respectively, forming part of a successful campaign to shut down the BNP headquarters.
France
YRE launched in France in 1993, with a tour by a British Panther activist based around the recently released Malcolm X film. YRE gained considerable popularity amongst French youth through notable campaigns in defense of immigrants without working papers and the rights of girls wearing the hijab in Mantes-la-Jolie. YRE's participation in an anti-deportation campaign whose goal was to mobilize the passengers of flights departing from Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport against deportations, earned the organisation the ire of the Minister of the Interior of the time, Jean-Pierre Chevènement.
It was a and the success of the Blokbuster Belgian youth movement, opposing the far-right Vlaams Blok, which convinced the Committee for a Workers' International, to work to launch an international youth organization along the same lines.
In 1994, YRE organised an anti-racist camp in Germany of 1,500 young people from all over Europe.
Britain
In Britain, YRE's activity has focused around opposition to the British National Party. In 1987 the BNP moved its headquarters to Welling, in south east London. In the next six years there were four racially motivated murders in the town, including that of Stephen Lawrence in April 1993. The following month, on a demonstration called by YRE and others, including Panther, the black socialist organisation, over 8,000 people marched past the BNP headquarters in protest at the murders and the far-right party's presence in the area. Subsequent larger demonstrations were called, co-organised by YRE, numbering 60,000 and 50,000 respectively, forming part of a successful campaign to shut down the BNP headquarters.
France
YRE launched in France in 1993, with a tour by a British Panther activist based around the recently released Malcolm X film. YRE gained considerable popularity amongst French youth through notable campaigns in defense of immigrants without working papers and the rights of girls wearing the hijab in Mantes-la-Jolie. YRE's participation in an anti-deportation campaign whose goal was to mobilize the passengers of flights departing from Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport against deportations, earned the organisation the ire of the Minister of the Interior of the time, Jean-Pierre Chevènement.
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