The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) – Its first 15 years, book written by Lanna Yael Hollo, published by Council of Europe

This book provides a detailed assessment of the first 15 years of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance. ECRI’s terms of reference deriving from the Vienna Plan of Action were to “review member States’ legislation, policies and other measures to combat racism, xenophobia, antisemitism and intolerance, and their effectiveness” and “propose further action at local, national and European level”. This book examines how ECRI has developed and fulfilled this mandate. It begins by looking at ECRI’s foundational years, which were pivotal to its future character, approach, working methods and activities. It then describes and closely examines the evolution of the three main prongs of ECRI’s work programme – country-by-country work, general themes and relations with civil society. Through this assessment, the author reveals the detailed, far-reaching and progressive body of jurisprudence that ECRI has produced – constituting a useful road map for actors seeking to address problems of racism and discrimination. The work also examines ECRI’s contribution to legal standards to protect individuals against racism and discrimination and its impact on the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. It concludes with a discussion of ECRI’s opinion on three important contemporary issues in European anti-racism work: positive measures, racist expression and the current racist climate.