Voronezh Students Unite Against Racial Violence
Racial tensions run high in the southern Russian town of Voronezh, where foreign students have become the target of racially-motivated killings. In October 2005, local youths severely beat and killed a Peruvian student. Russian rights groups have warned that the authorities are not addressing the growing and widely-publicized racial issues. But USAID’s Youth LINX program is working to change public sentiment, one person at a time, by giving Russian activists small grants of up to $500 to support youth-led activities to foster local civic and community involvement.
Twenty year-old Vladimir Pletnyov received a grant to support and protect foreign students in Voronezh. With other students, Pletnyov organized a conference to bring together more than one hundred students, local authorities, university administrators, and police. The city’s ethnic and foreign communities were represented, and all participants exchanged information about their unique cultural customs and religious traditions. Pleynyov also organized a club, the Students Operational Detachment, to further promote peaceful coexistence in Voronezh. His efforts represent a small but important step in promoting harmony in this city.
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Voronezh students are learning religious and ethnic tolerance thanks to a USAID program
Photo Credit: Project Harmony |
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