March 21 is International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. We spoke to Leiden University’s Diversity Officer, Aya Ezawa, and asked her how we can combat racism and discrimination.

Racism and discrimination come in many different shapes and forms – in the Netherlands too. Verbal attacks, stereotypes and violence: some people are confronted with these on a daily basis. A group that is often not included in research and the debate on racism is people of Asian descent. The Diversity…

A safe haven for students, more bicultural staff and more powers for diversity officers. In a national expert meeting at Campus The Hague, administrators, diversity officers, students and staff discussed urgently needed measures.

We talked to Hester Bijl about the worldwide protests sparked off by the death of George Floyd. A demonstration against racism will also be held in Leiden on 14 June. How does she, as Vice-Rector responsible for diversity and inclusion, view this issue? What steps is the University taking? And how can…

‘Children do not see color’ is an illusion, say experts. Professor of the interdisciplinary tudy of societal challenges, Judi Mesman, was interviewed by the Dutch news platform NU.nl to share her expertise on the subject of speaking to children about racism and discrimination. Prof. Mesman's main research…

Once again, excuses were offered by the Rotterdam Police Department following a racist incident, and a guarantee of better behaviour in future. The reason was an arrest in which excessive force was used and a person involved was called an offensive, racist name by an officer.

In response to George Floyd’s violent death in Minneapolis and the worldwide mass protests against discrimination and institutional racism, the Leiden Leadership Centre endorses the call of Hester Bijl, Vice Rector Maginificus of Leiden University to recognize and address racism and inequality.

It all started with demonstrations protesting about the death of George Floyd from police brutality in Minneapolis, but the Black Lives Matter protest is spreading like wildfire across the whole of the US. Every day, thousands of people are taking to the streets. We asked American Studies expert Sara…

In light of the changes made to face to face teaching by Leiden University, LUC student association Fortuna rose to the challenge by coining a virtual Well-Being week and facilitating it online.

The death of George Floyd has led to fierce protests against police violence in the United States and beyond. What effects are we seeing in our University community? We discussed the situation with Diversity Officer Aya Ezawa.

The problem of unequal sports participation will only be addressed if sexism and racism in recreational sports and exercise are taken seriously. That's what cultural anthropologists Jasmijn Rana (Leiden University) and Kathrine van den Bogert (Utrecht University) write in an opinion piece in the Dutch…

This monograph by Robert Ross provides a detailed narrative of the Kat River Settlement in the Eastern Cape of South Africa during the nineteenth century.

This article explores how notions of citizenship are negotiated in encounters between parents and youth care professionals in Amsterdam in the context of heated debates over citizenship and belonging. We draw on ethnographic research on Egyptian migrant parents’ interactions with the welfare state,…

Not only the United States but also the Netherlands are faced with 'systemic problems' to do with racism and discrimination, according to Dutch Prime Minister Rutte during a press conference held on 3 June. The Prime Minister responded to the events taking place in the United States after the death…

Cultural Anthropologist Jasmijn Rana argues in the opinion piece ''Black', 'white', or 'of colour' is not about purity' in the Leiden University Weekly Mare to use uneasiness about being reduced to skin colour and gender to fight racism.

The worldwide protests following the police violence in the United States show how deep-rooted and wide-spread racism is across the world. As an academic institution doing research on law & society, the Van Vollenhoven Institute is very much aware of systemic racism and speaks out in support of these…

George Floyd's death still leads to fierce protests against police violence and racism on a daily basis in the United States and abroad. We asked Paul Wouters how he experiences these developments and what this will mean for our faculty.

Twee mannen zijn veroordeeld tot zes maanden cel voor het projecteren van racistische leuzen op de Erasmusbrug tijdens de jaarwisseling van 2022 naar 2023. Universitair hoofddocent Marloes van Noorloos sprak met de Volkskrant over de strafbaarheid van dergelijke leuzen.

The UK has recently been facing racist violence outbreaks. Tahir Abbas, Professor of Radicalisation Studies, discusses this in an article on Hyphen.

Lecture, Discussion

The Research Network of the European Union Fundamental Rights Agency (FRANET) commissioned Aleydis Nissen and Rik Raedschelders to write the 2022 report on Racism, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance in Belgium.

Immerse yourself: read books, listen to podcasts and watch films about racism, discrimination and the colonial past.

Immerse yourself: read books, listen to podcasts and watch films about racism, discrimination and the colonial past.

We should mention differences in skin colour to our children because only then can we talk openly about prejudice and racism – and how to prevent them. This is what Professor Judi Mesman says in her book ‘Opgroeien in kleur’ (Growing up in Colour), which offers advice to parents. ‘Why is there only…

The death of George Floyd at the hands of the police may have sparked the Black Lives Matter protests in the United States and here in the Netherlands, but they are about more than that alone. We asked Karwan Fatah-Black, a historian who specialises in the Dutch colonial history, for his analysis. ‘We…

Research reveals how boys respond to harassment awareness training and why they often fail to see street harassment as 'their' problem.

Through a comparative analysis of participation in outdoor recreation in Europe, this project seeks to investigate how social inequalities are embodied.

El pueblo Kamëntšá en la encrucijada del patrimonio cultural

Carsten Stahn has just published Confronting Colonial Objects: Histories, Legalities and Access to Culture. The book is part of the OUP Cultural Heritage Law and Policy Series.

Leiden University endorses inclusiveness and diversity. It is open to all those who wish to study or work here, and to develop their full potential. The University is an open community where everyone who wants to contribute to its ambitions and to all that it stands for will feel at home and have equal…

Middle East Studies Lecture

A portrait of the complex historical process of over 500 years of European colonialism in the New World.

The minor Creative Strategies for a Society in Change (CSSC) creates a connection between gaining insight into creative making processes and exploring societal issues that characterize our time.

Increased public trust in law, government and democracy.

You can find an overview of events organized by the Platform for Post-Colonial Readings below.

In the overview below you can find the LUC Newsletters that were send out during block 4 in semester 2 of academic year 2019 - 2020.

The NWO-funded Vidi project “American foreign policy and liberalism” challenges the idea that the United States has created and sustained a “liberal international order” since World War II. It instead explores the ways in which illiberal ideologies – such as those underpinning racial hierarchy at home…

Since the Middle Passage is in the North Atlantic, and the North Atlantic has a relationship with the arctic, what relationship does the Arctic have with the Middle Passage? How can this relationship be used to provide a space of healing by uncovering Afro/diasporic counter narratives?

Mariska Jung (FGGA), Looi van Kessel (FGW), and Jasmijn Rana (FSW) have received a KIEM grant together with the Institute for Social Justice (in development) for their project 'Hope springs eternal': Protest and social movements in the Netherlands.

Do you want to understand the complexities of today’s gender issues, social media use, food habits, social justice movements, labour relations or religious expressions? Join our international bachelor's programme in Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology and get insight into people's social…

The freedom to be who you are – woman, man, homosexual, heterosexual, transgender, religious, atheist, and so on – is perhaps the Netherlands’ greatest attribute. The principle of equality and the right not to be discriminated against are in the very first article of our constitution. Yet there is a…

Leiden University is a centre of migration research, bringing together historians, economists, lawyers, political scientists and anthropologists. They conduct research on who migrates and why, and the impact on societies. They analyse government policy, the role of media and how societies respond to…

Despite being prohibited by law since 1971, race discrimination continues to exist in the Netherlands. Why is this?

Social Citizenship & Migration (SCM) is one of the nine interdisciplinary programmes launched by Leiden University in 2020. It is led by the Faculties of Governance and Global Affairs, Law, Humanities, and Social Science.

The primary goal of Leiden University Diversity and Equality Network (LUDEN) is to promote a more inclusive working and learning environment.