Zero Discrimination Day: Celebrating the 10th anniversary

Today we celebrate the 10th anniversary Zero Discrimination Day, organised by the United Nations and UNAIDS. This year marks its 10th anniversary, a powerful reminder of the fundamental right of every individual to live a life free from discrimination, with dignity and respect. It emphasises the importance of promoting inclusion, compassion, and peace, fostering a global movement for positive change, which starts from spreading awareness and share data about discrimination and unfair treatment. A powerful reminder of the fundamental right of every individual to live a life free from discrimination, with dignity and respect, this day emphasises the importance of promoting inclusion, compassion, and peace, fostering a global movement for positive change, which starts with spreading awareness and sharing data about discrimination and unfair treatment of underprivileged communities. 

This year the theme is “To protect everyone’s health, protect everyone’s rights.” It tackles stigma related to HIV, and is about standing up for LGBTIQA+ rights, women's rights, and ensuring everyone has access to sexual and reproductive health services. As we all have a role to play in ending discrimination, throughout March, there will be events and activities worldwide reminding people of this important message: we need to protect everyone's health and rights. 

Zero Discrimination Day enhances participation, collaboration, and enables the inclusion of marginalised groups, particularly by sharing data to raise awareness. This necessity for improved data collection has been underscored also in various EU initiatives regarding the Equality of Data Collection, like the Gender Equality Strategy and the Anti-racism Action Plan. 

Data.europa.eu serves as a powerful tool in the fight against discrimination, benefiting both policymakers and individuals alike in several ways. Firstly, it promotes transparency and awareness by providing access to comprehensive datasets that highlight various forms of discrimination, and the impact within the society. Secondly, open data empowers individuals and advocacy groups to challenge discriminatory practices and push for policy reforms. Lastly, open data enables evidence-based decision-making among policymakers, allowing them to develop targeted interventions and policies aimed at addressing systemic inequalities and promoting equality and inclusion across diverse communities. 

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