Human dignity is sacrosanct; it forms the basis of the German constitution. Yet every day, people are still discriminated against because of their appearance, background, culture, sexual orientation or religion. The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination seeks to raise awareness of this. It was started on 21 March 1966 by the United Nations, and traces back to the Sharpeville massacre which happened on the same day in 1960, when 69 peaceful demonstrators were shot dead by the South African police. Since then, institutions, clubs and organisations have taken a stand against racism through numerous campaigns around the world.
VfB are committed to a diverse society, and there is no room for racists here. True to the motto “colourful and wild”, the club is dedicated to tolerant and respectful cooperation in all areas. With children and young people in particular, VfBfairplay carries out important preventative work in dealing with racism and offers projects such as the VfB learning centre or ‘Football Meets Culture’.
This year, VfB joined the European Football for Development Network (EFDN) programme ‘Show Racism the Red Card’, which campaigns against racism in football. It is also a significant matter of personal concern for the VfB first-team players to send out a strong message promoting human rights and solidarity. Therefore, EVERYONE at VfB says NO to racism and calls on our fans, partners and supporters to unite in showing racism the red card.