At BEMIS Scotland, we are honoured to launch the CERD Awareness Series, a new initiative dedicated to creating awareness, deepening understanding, and inspiring meaningful action around the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) and its relevance in Scotland.
Adopted in 1965, CERD remains one of the most powerful and enduring international human rights treaties. Its vision is simple yet profound: to eliminate racial discrimination in all its forms and to guarantee that every person can live in dignity, free from prejudice, exclusion, and inequality. For over half a century, CERD has guided governments and societies across the globe in dismantling systemic racism, tackling hate, and ensuring equal representation, participation, and justice for minority and marginalised groups.
For Scotland, CERD is more than a distant international obligation. It is a living, practical tool that connects global human rights commitments to local realities. While important progress has been made, ethnic minority communities in Scotland continue to face systemic challenges that cannot be overlooked. Persistent issues such as underrepresentation in leadership and decision-making, inequalities in employment and education, and the rising incidence of hate crimes remind us that progress must be paired with vigilance, accountability, and sustained action.
This is where BEMIS Scotland steps in. Through the CERD Awareness Series, we aim to:
- Educate by breaking down the articles of CERD in a clear, accessible, and relatable way.
- Reflect on Scotland’s progress towards racial equality, celebrating achievements where they exist.
- Challenge the barriers that continue to disadvantage ethnic minority communities.
- Empower communities, institutions, and policymakers to use CERD as a practical framework for action and accountability.
Our mission at BEMIS has always been to support, empower, and amplify the voices of Scotland’s ethnic minority communities. This series reflects that mission by transforming CERD from an international treaty into a local tool, one that strengthens rights awareness, addresses inequalities, and ensures that equality is not just an aspiration, but a lived reality.
To achieve these aims, BEMIS will be publishing the CERD Awareness Series between September and December 2025. Each article will focus on a different aspect of CERD, highlighting both progress and ongoing challenges in the Scottish context. The first article will be released on 16 September 2025, marking one year since the Recommendations of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, and will reflect on Scotland’s progress and next steps since those recommendations were issued.
We believe that equality is not a passive ideal but a collective responsibility. Governments, institutions, and communities each have a vital role to play in dismantling racism and embedding fairness into every part of society. For Scotland, this means creating a country where ethnic minority communities are fully represented in decision-making, protected from hate and discrimination, and provided with equal opportunities to flourish.
The CERD Awareness Series is more than an educational initiative, it is a call to action. It is about equipping communities with knowledge, creating spaces for dialogue, and encouraging policymakers to match words with meaningful change. Above all, it is about building a Scotland where diversity is valued as a strength, human rights are protected as a guarantee, and equality is lived as a daily truth.
As we embark on this journey together, we invite you whether as a community member, policymaker, educator, or ally to join us. Let us use CERD as both a mirror, to reflect honestly on the challenges we face, and as a roadmap, guiding us towards a more inclusive, just, and equitable Scotland for all.
⚖️ Equality is not achieved by chance, it is built through choice, action, and shared commitment. The CERD Awareness Series is BEMIS Scotland’s contribution to that collective journey.
✨ CERD in Scotland: From Commitment to Action ✨
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