WHAT IS RACIAL HARASSMENT?

Any kind of harassment directed at a person because of their colour, nationality or racial group. Harassment can take many forms:

PHYSICAL - e.g. violence, intimidation.

SPOKEN - e.g. insulting comments, jokes.

WRITTEN - e.g. insulting cartoons, pictures, letters.

MENTAL - eg. ostracising, excluding or ignoring someone.

It can be directed against one person, or a group of people.  It is any words or act which make a person or group of people feel hurt, frightened or humiliated because other people refuse to accept them as equals because of their colour, nationality or ethnic group.

POLICY

Priority Youth Housing will not tolerate racial harassment of its employees or service users.

Action will be taken against anybody - resident, employee, service user, friend of resident, contractor or management committee member - who is found to have been racially harassing an employee or service user.

PROCEDURE

LET US KNOW - It is not acceptable for it to happen to you or anyone else.

A victim orientated approach will be adopted at all times by Priority Youth Housing staff receiving complaints of racial harassment, (we will accept what you say and investigate it at once).

Anything told to us will be treated in the strictest confidence.

Staff will be regularly trained to deal with the issues and will implement the procedures laid down at once.

All incidents should be reported to  a staff member, once reported the incident will be investigated within 24 hours by a staff member and one other person (staff or management committee member).  At least one of these will be black and, if you are a woman, one female.

A report and recommendation for further action, where appropriate, will be made to the Director or, alternatively, to the Chair of the Management Committee.

The Director/ Chair will then investigate the incident (within one week of the initial report) and make his/her own report and recommendation.

Within two weeks of the incident being reported, both reports and recommendations will be looked at by the relevant sub--committee, e.g. Housing Services / Personnel, where a final decision as to the course of action will be made (an emergency meeting will be called if necessary).

All incidents of racial harassment will be clearly recorded and looked into.

Repairs arising from racial harassment will be considered an emergency, particularly the removal of racist graffiti and re-glazing. Repairs to minor damages will be carried out within 24 hours.  If physical violence or a criminal offence has been committed by a racially motivated attack the police should be notified.

In the case of an emergency phone 999.

Your local police will also be able to offer help and assistance.

All incidents should be reported to :-

SARI (Support Against Racial Incidents)

PO Box 642

Bristol BS99 1UT

Tel:  9525652     Emergency No: 0850 736239

SARI can offer ongoing support, protective and legal assistance.

Residents can also independently report an incident of Racial Harassment to:

            a)            Priority Youth Housing -  Management Committee;

            b)            P.A.R.H.A. - Partnership Against Racial Harassment in Avon

                                      (contact address is SARI's)    

         c)            The Law Centre, 2 Moon Street, Stokes Croft, Bristol.

                        Tel 0117 9248661,

If a resident, or resident's guest, is found to have racially harassed anyone, they have broken their agreement to occupy the accommodation, and can face eviction.

A report of any incidents of racial harassment will be made to the full Management Committee at each meeting.

Priority Youth Housing takes racial harassment seriously !

PRACTICAL ACTION PRIORITY  YOUTH HOUSING WILL TAKE :-

1. Emergency repairs.

2. Help with emergency re-housing needs.

3. Ongoing support.

4. Commitment to pursuing the perpetrator.

    including the use of civil remedies eg/ injunctions.

5. Monitoring.