VIENNA

Last year alone, Austria saw a total of 1,977 racist attacks, with over half of them taking place online, according to a new report.

The Vienna-based Civil Courage and Anti-Racism Work (ZARA) said in its 2021 Racism Report that some 1,117 racist posts were shared on social media and other online platforms.

There were 273 racist attacks in public places, and 185 people were subjected to racist treatment in the service and entertainment sectors.

There were 112 racist attacks in public institutions and organizations and 104 racist attacks in working life, the report added.

Also, 84 pieces of racist/hateful rhetoric appeared in print media and politics.

According to the report, women face racism twice as often as men in public places, and only 22% of the victims applied to ZARA about racist attacks, while most of the recorded cases were reported by third parties.

Police violence against Muslims

Noting that this year's report focuses on structural and institutional racism, the statement cited as examples of institutional racism a 2020 incident in which police used disproportionate violence against 30 Muslim activists and academics, including Farid Hafez, a well-known political science professor.