Course on Legal Protection against Discrimination in South East Europe, Joint Reader - Targeting Academic Teaching on Equality and Protection against Discrimination

The Joint Reader was developed by the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights and the South East European Law Schools Network within the project „Legal Protection against Discrimination in South-East Europe” supported by German Cooperation and implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). It is based on the lectures held during the Winter School that was implemented at the Law Faculty of the University of Belgrade in January 2018. The Winter School provided students with an overview about the concepts, forms, areas and grounds of discrimination defined at international and European level, from a comparative perspective of South- Eastern European countries. Students gained insights into protection mechanisms against discrimination, procedural aspects of discrimination cases and possible remedies for persons affected by discrimination. They also got the opportunity to actively involve themselves in discussions and workshops aiming at the practical application of the theoretical knowledge gained during the lectures. The program was based on the idea that discrimination is a system that creates and reproduces stories of norm and normality and uses real or perceived differences to label human beings. Discrimination creates hierarchies and results in unjust distributions of power and privileges. As discrimination hampers prosperity and curbs the development of individuals and societies, legislation protecting against and preventing discrimination has been established. The description of the lectures and workshops displayed in the Joint Reader shall support the implementation of the course on “Legal Protection against Discrimination in Southeast Europe” at different law faculties, which are members of SEELS network, or support the introduction of various elements of the course into already established legal courses or legal clinics within the same. The descriptions of the learning objectives and the content (e.g. power point presentations), as well as the working sheets, case studies and information on background material are presented in a way so that they can be used as a solid foundation for lecturers who have basic knowledge of discrimination and want to prepare lectures and workshops on this topic.