The Platform For a World Without Racism was founded as a network of migrants, political activists with a mostly austrian background, artists and people with a lot of different approaches. From the beginning mediawork and the use of new communications was one of the most important issues. Mailinglists with around 5000 participants and a website with a lot of traffic was set up, to inform people about the political situation in austria around the killing of Marcus Omofuma. Three Years later we need to say, that the Platfrom is an example to come from a single campaign up to a sunstanable network.

In the first days after the 1. of May 1999 daily plenary sessions took place to organice mediawork, public actions and apply pressure to the official austria with demands of consequences for the police and the responsible politicans. At the same time increased a hard campaigning against all black people in austria. The big discussion about drugdealing and the involvment of a so called "nigerian mafia" was started and the public opinion went straight further to a more intolerate and racist society. The days and weeks following the killing can be split into several phases: the first ten days were the mobilisation phase. During that time two larger demonstrations took place as well as almost daily gatherings, for example in front of the Social Democratic Party's head office, at Parliament and the Interior Ministry etc. The passers-by and even parts of the conservative media reacted positively. England, France and Nigeria announced concerted actions at the Austrian embassies.

Since 1998, there has been a massive increase in police violence against blacks, under the guise of fighting drug crime and searching illegal people. Based on an (officially denied) order from the interior ministry, there were and still are targeted controls, solely on the basis of skin colour. Whereas the danger of violent attacks by neo- Nazis is relatively small in Austria, the police (especially at night) are a threatening factor for blacks. In this situation, the African communities in particular have played a decisive role in uniting the groups. The Platform intervented in this political Situation with direct actions on the streets, mediaactions and a lot of discussions. It was and is a main object to involve as many migrants as possible to openup the internal structure of the group. Some of the interventions, are based on new technology others are using conventional methods. A 100 m2 Picture of Marcus Omofuma was painted and presented in front of a propaganda presentation of the social democrats in vienna. it was possible with actions like this to bringt the topic of the killing of Marcus Omofuma and so the racism in the society of Austria to the political stages.

In February 2000, the Platform was allready working for a year, with weekly pleanry sessions and a sustanable network of people around the issue of anti-racism in austria. From the beginning of the resistance against the extremly-right government in austria the Platform became, because of the established infrastructure and network of people an important turntable for the communication and organisation of the resistance. After a few weeks the new internetprojekt (www.no-racism.net) was set up and the mailinglists which was done for the communication around the killing of Marcus Omofuma developed to a form of daily newspaper in the net which is working till now without any discontinuance.

In the last years a lot of different projects came out of the Platform "For a World Without Racism". Campaings with the topics of anti-racism, development of new forms of actions and political articulation. The publiXtheatre Carawan, the austrian network against racism, football against racism and a lot of other projects are using the infrastructure, knowledge on campaigning and the weekly meetingpoints to develop new ideas of politics.

Allmost three years after Marcus Omofuma's death, the trial of three Aliens Police officers will commence on 4 March 2002 in the District Court at Korneuburg near Vienna. The Platform organiced creative protests with the participation of the publiXtheatre, streetheatre and an exactly report from the trial against the police officers. again the media in austria was forced to bring this topic to the headline and discuss the situation in austria.

Since 2000 the Platform is participating in different european and world-wide networks. Activists from the group went to meetings from pga (peoples global action), the noborder network () and other related forms of oragnications. To see the political situation in austria not isolated but rather as a worldwide phenomenon of increasing racism.

We tried to ask the people related to the Platfrom, "why are you doing this, what is your motivation" but the answers are difficult. The Platform is not an homogeneous group, so many opinions, so many people. Some talked about there own situations, some about assistance for migrant groups. But maybe there is one sentence coming from a majority of the activists:
Racism is based on the society and we are part of this society. So we need to openup our heads, our opinions and than we can stabilise an other way of politics which is able to change the world.

... browse around on the entire site www.no-racism.net