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What Color is Dutch? Lifelines Twisted by Bias
Although the Netherlands is internationally seen as a progressive country, the reality that many ethnic groups experience daily looks very different from the inside. In fact, over the past few decades, an ongoing battle against institutional racism has been taking place in the country. In this episode of Europe Talks Back, host Juli Simond tells the story of Marisella de Cuba, who was born on Aruba, a Caribbean island facing the coast of Venezuela that is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. When Marisella moved to the Netherlands’ mainland at a young age, she found herself confronting a society plagued by racism, which propelled her into activism.
00:02:10 - Black Pete and Racism in Dutch Schools,
00:06:27 - Dutch Colonial Past and Jan Pieterszoon Coen,
00:12:08 - Child Benefit Scandal and Racialised Algorithms,
00:17:21 - The fourth Rutte Cabinet.
- Support organisations like Control Alt Delete, which monitor and support victims of racial profiling in the Netherlands.
- Amnesty International's research report on Racial profiling in the Netherlands.
The second season of Europe Talks Back is produced in partnership with Sphera Network, the first network of independent media in Europe to reinvent the media space and paint a new picture of the continent through impactful, unbiased, raw and authentic stories.
The producer of Europe Talks Back is Maria Dios.
The host and narrator of Europe Talks Back is Juli Simond.
Sound editing and mixing is by Jeremy Bocquet.
Reporting for this story by Sarah Tekath.
The executive producer of Europe Talks Back is Alexander Damiano Ricci.
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- https://www.europod.eu/
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