Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I'm pleased to open this debate on the twentieth anniversary of this Assembly to tackle racism, to root out racist ideology and review our commitment to the UN International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. I thank Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Conservatives for making this a joint motion to unite us today in the commitments we make as a result of this debate.

Fifty people died in the terrorist attacks in Christchurch on 15 March and 250 more in Sri Lanka on 21 April 2019. On 27 April 2019, on the last day of passover, the shooting at a synagogue outside San Diego left one woman dead and three others injured. The shooting came exactly six months after a shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue, killing 11 people in the deadliest attack on Jews in US history. The global response to these terrorist attacks has been powerful and inspirational. In the wake of the New Zealand attack, the Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern called for a global effort to root out racism and bigotry. Her profound statement,

'They are us. The person who has perpetuated this violence against us is not', requires us all to look at ourselves and our responsibilities personally and politically. She said that if we want to make sure globally that we are a safe, tolerant and inclusive world, we cannot think in terms of national boundaries. She said we must weed out racism where it exists and make sure that we never create an environment where it can flourish. Today, we have an opportunity to add our voices to the calls for racial harmony, peace and justice. We must publicly condemn racism, Islamophobia, Afrophobia and anti-Semitism wherever it occurs, and we must take further action to tackle racial inequalities that are present in our own country. We know that means that we must take action here in Wales.

We've already come a long way. Fifty years ago this year on 7 March 1969, the UK Government ratified the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, making a commitment to condemn and eliminate all forms of racial discrimination and to criminalise acts of violence or incitement of violence against people from minority ethnic groups. We now have legislation that mirrors the standards in the convention, outlawing racial discrimination at work and in the provision of services such as healthcare, housing, employment and education. We must make that legislation work effectively here in Wales. In Wales, the systems we have in place for addressing hate crime and supporting victims are seen as world leading. Public bodies in Wales are subject to the public sector equality duty under the Equality Act 2010, with a duty to promote equal opportunity and foster good relations between groups in society.

The twenty-second of April, Deputy Llywydd, marked the twenty-sixth anniversary of the death of Stephen Lawrence and the first national Stephen Lawrence Day. We marked his life and the achievements of his family, which have created an important legacy to be safeguarded and built upon. Last year, here at the Senedd, we worked with Windrush community elders from Race Council Cymru to celebrate the contribution of the Windrush generation to British and Welsh life. That was such a powerful, moving and joyful event that we will be holding similar events around Wales, funded by the Welsh Government this year, and, I hope, for years to come.