The spokesperson for Más Madrid in the capital’s City Council, Rita Maestre, announced this Wednesday a proposal from her municipal group for the next plenary session consisting of a municipal plan against racism and xenophobia, and has accused the municipal government of ” dismantle” immigrant support and integration programs.
This is what Maestre expressed in a press conference prior to a meeting with anti-racist groups to address the latest events that occurred in the Lavapiés neighborhood, where on March 29 two migrants of Senegalese origin were detained by the National Police, in an action that was criticized on social networks for the “disproportionality” of the agents in the use of force and which has resulted in an ex officio investigation by the Ministry of the Interior.
Maestre has assured that the capital is not a “racist” city but that it is “open” and has considered it “strange” that there is no comprehensive municipal plan, while at the same time he has charged against the municipal government for “dismantling” the municipal unit of Diversity or “limiting” the work of the Spanish Commission for Refugee Assistance (CEAR).
Más Madrid’s proposal includes two lines of work. The first, aimed at the “fight against institutional racism” and “hate speech” and asks for the commitment of all municipal groups to “not use racist or derogatory language”, as well as an internal anti-racist training plan in areas and districts, awareness programs in compulsory education centers and a program to combat racism in sports.
The second contemplates addressing the “structurality” of the problem from politics, providing economic resources to the diversity management police station, increasing reception programs, facilitating registration for people who live and work in Madrid and carrying out comprehensive actions. to avoid the generation of ghettos and the stigmatization of migrants.
