Racism, Xenophobia and Intolerance

Abstract

Unlike what is usually assumed, racism is neither a phenomenon of the past nor exclusive to other latitudes. As Wieviorka points out (2009, p. 15), today there has been a surprising return of racism, even in societies that could be expected to be ridding themselves of it. Until the 1960s, the outlook clearly seemed optimistic, as the prevailing idea was that political and economic progress would end up burying phenomena of this type. This hypothesis, however, was soon revealed to be overly optimistic. Racism currently exists in European societies, and it is one of the great challenges of their present and future. Therefore, regardless of future social evolution, it is likely that European societies will be tempted more and more by racism (Wieviorka, 1995).