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Page 40 Annual Reports of various Organisations Racism Report 2004
and pulls him in the desired direction. Mr. H. takes hold of the officer’s hand to indicate that he’s hurting him and
to let go. This is misunderstood by the officer who twists his arm to the back and handcuffs him. Mr. H. is taken to
the station and a few days later he is charged with civil disorder and unruly behaviour. We file an appeal which is
ruled out.
This case clearly shows that African men and women in particular are terribly frightened of the police; they too
have made many bad experiences and know that a simple police control can lead to major problems. Therefore
a more polite behaviour by the police would be of great importance to prevent misunderstandings and to avoid
the impression of “bad intentions from the start”. In addition, migrants need to be better informed about their
rights and duties when subjected to a police control.
Wir sind vom Elternverein sowie LehrerInnen einer Schule eingeladen worden, über unsere DiskriminieWe
receive an invitation by the parents association and the teachers of a school to talk about our work against discrimination.
This was prompted by the following: The students were about to have their graduation ball and a group of
students chose the “Eastside” for everyone to go to afterwards. Several students opposed the choice because two of
their fellow students were of dark skin and didn’t want to go to a disco which was known for not admitting foreigners.
After our presentation a heated discussion takes place. One group of students vehemently argued that “foreigners”
had no place in Austria. The conflict in the two classes can’t be solved; the resistance of the “Eastside” advocates
grows with every attempt to counter their arguments because they are convinced we wanted “to convert them to
tolerance”. We end the discussion by saying that discrimination is really only understood when one is subjected to it
oneself and feels the helplessness. Two weeks later the form teacher phones to tell us about the decision arrived at.
After one of the students who insisted upon the “Eastside” dyed his hair black and was denied entry (in spite of being
a regular) because he “looked like a foreigner” the students agreed on a different venue. Thus, a majority Austrian
became a victim of the “Eastside’s” discrimination policy.
Women as victims of double discrimination
Ms. M. of Czech origin met an Austrian man while still in the Czech Republic. Being a talented musician she
accepted his offer to come and live with him in Graz and study at the Graz Academy of Music. They lived together
well and when Ms. M. got pregnant with twins they decided to marry. She interrupted her studies to stay at home
with the children. After a while her husband started drinking and became aggressive. Ms. M. was convinced it was
“only a phase” and that things would calm down again. Even when her husband became violent she tolerated his
behaviour. One day he attacked her physically and screamed he never wanted to see her again and that she should go
back to where she came from. He handed her the children and a few things and threw her out of the house. Ms. M.
was devastated; she fled to a friend’s place, contacted the Czech consulate and came to see us for legal assistance.
Ms. L., an Austrian citizen of Ukrainian origin, was married to a police officer. In the beginning he didn’t
have a problem with her origin although his parents weren’t particularly happy about him getting married to a
“foreigner”. In time the remarks about his Ukrainian wife became increasingly frequent both at work and at home
and included statements such as: “I wonder where you met her”, “she’s only after your money”, “the ones from the
East are all sluts anyway”, etc. He was annoyed by it and talked to his wife about it. After a while he became more
and more reserved and so extremely jealous that his wife wasn’t allowed to leave the house anymore unless to do
the shopping. Sometimes her husband would come back from visiting his parents feeling frustrated and beat her.
She says she tolerated that because he clearly didn’t come to terms with the rejection of her by his parents and his
environment. However, when after one of his “outbursts of frustration” she lost their child (miscarriage) she left him
and came to us for help.
Ms. V. met her husband in her native country Slovakia. He spent two years working there and they lived
together happily. When he was supposed to return to Austria he asked her to marry him and come with him. Ms. V.
consented to his proposal and was very attracted by the idea of being able to continue her studies in Austria. After
her arrival in Austria he said it was too expensive to finance her studies and that she should work as a cleaner which
she did. When she brought home her first wages, he decided she didn’t make enough money and forced her to work
more. On the first of each month she had to deliver her wages which he justified by saying: “You’re in the West now
and you have to work off the visa I got you!” Ms. S. couldn’t believe her husband had changed so much and that he
treated her like a slave but she also didn’t know anyone to turn to for help. One day her husband came home with
another woman, told her she’d done her duty and threw her out of the apartment. Ms. V. spent the night on a park