16.12.2022

HYY’s antiracism and anti-ableism action plan has been completed

NEWS

 HYY has drafted an antiracism and anti-ableism action plan. The plan provides greater depth for HYY’s work on equality.

HYY’s action plan against racism and ableism, which was developed during 2022, has been finalised and approved at the Board meeting on 28 November 2022. The purpose of the plan is to strengthen HYY’s strategic work on equality and to promote inclusivity in our community. The action plan also serves to complement HYY’s Equality Plan.

The 17 measures listed in the action plan are aimed at preventing racism and discrimination based on disability in the Student Union, at the University and in society. The measures focusing on the Student Union deal with the accessibility of our website and premises as well as the prevention of various forms of harassment. Within the University, our goals include making it easier to receive individual arrangements, developing an anonymous channel for reporting harassment and discrimination, and creating a study unit on equality. We will also lobby the Ministry of Education and Culture to finance the realisation of accessibility plans in higher education institutions.

‘The antiracism and anti-ableism action plan is an important step towards equality in student culture and the student movement. Our members have demanded that both the University and the Student Union take action against racism and discrimination based on disability. Our work to build a more equal community will continue in the coming years, too’, states Member of HYY’s Board Jenny Kasongo.

The parties involved in the preparation of the action plan included HYY’s members, the Representative Council and experts from various fields. For our members, we organised evening sessions on the ways in which racism and discrimination based on disability manifest themselves in the Student Union and at the University. In the Representative Council’s preliminary discussion, the groups set out their goals for the contents and structure of the action plan. The draft version of the plan was commented by Professor of Ethnic Relations Suvi Keskinen, Associate Professor in Disability Studies Hisayo Katsui and Press Officer Sanni Purhonen from Kynnys ry, a human rights organisation working for people with disabilities.

We thank our members and the experts for their help with making the action plan. Next year, our equality work will include making our website more accessible and creating the anonymous form together with the University of Helsinki. The measures in the plan will be carried out in 2023–2025.

You can read the antiracism and anti-ableism action plan here.

 

Further information

 

Jenny Kasongo

Member of the Board in charge of equality

jenny.kasongo@hyy.fi

050 595 0327

 

Tiia Niemi

Specialist in charge of equality

tiia.niemi@hyy.fi

050 543 9608