The Galway Anti-Racism Network is holding a rally this weekend, calling on people to take a stand against hate crimes.
The rally, which is in response to recent hate crime incidents against immigrants, is being held in Father Burke Park in Galway City this Saturday, August 2nd at 2pm.
GARN is a grassroots anti-racism network, founded in 2016, in opposition to the government’s discriminatory Traveller accommodation and Direct Provision policies.
GARN member Deirdre Curran said, “As a Vice Dean for Equality, Diversity & Inclusion at the University of Galway, one of the most culturally and ethnically diverse sites in Galway, I feel a moral obligation to actively oppose hate crime and to give voice to those who are fearful for their safety in our community.”
The network states that government policies on housing, healthcare and justice have contributed to a rise in racist incidents.
Recently, an Indian man was brutally assaulted in Tallaght, while social housing for older people, presumed to be housing for refugees, was burnt to the ground in Ballina.
GARN also says that the organisation has received muiltiple reports of immigrants being harassed as well as plans to hold a ‘national protest’ targeting foreign people in Galway City.
