21 March: International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

The United Nations General Assembly established the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in 1966. This Day of Reflection remembers each year the day in which police in Sharpeville, South Africa, opened fire and killed 69 people during a peaceful demonstration against apartheid laws in 1960. 

In  1979, the General Assembly decided that a week of solidarity with people struggling against racism and racial discrimination would be organized in all states beginning March 21.

The 2024 International Day's theme is “A Decade of Recognition, Justice, and Development: Implementing the International Decade for People of African Descent.”

This year's theme is related to the International Decade for People of African Descent, which spans the time frame from 2015 to 2024 and was announced by the General Assembly in 2013. In proclaiming this decade, the international community acknowledges that racial discrimination and the legacy of slavery and colonialism persist in destroying lives and limiting opportunities, preventing billions of individuals from fully embracing their human rights and liberties.