21 March is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. To mark that day, UN Human Rights associates itself with poets, musicians and lyricists to inspire us all to fight racism.

For 50 years, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms or Racism and Discrimination (ICERD) has been at the forefront of the fight against racism and discrimination in the world.

A new database, developed by the UN Human Rights Office, illustrates existing measures and practices to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance at the international, regional and national levels.

“Sport at its best is inclusive, generous-hearted and fundamentally multicultural, based on values such as teamwork, loyalty, merit and self-control”, said the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, at a panel discussion on racism in sport.