The rise in hate crimes and racial abuse, activist movements like #BlackLivesMatter, and a recent survey revealing that half of Europeans fear the arrival of refugees are all signs of societies becoming more divided. With the continued increase in international migration, what will it take to build more pluralism, tolerance and equality into our communities and societies?
Changing times in the US
The situation in the US is the first focus of the discussion. Maina Kiai, a lawyer who has explored race relations in the US on behalf of the UN, highlights the presence of institutionalised racism, and the importance of movements such as #BlackLivesMatter.
The outcome of the US election raises questions about future race relations policies, especially given that the racial mix in the US is changing.
Dealing with the refugee crisis
The panel then turns to scoping out the scale of the refugee crisis. William Lacy Swing, Director General of the International Organization for Migration, points out that the world is currently experiencing the largest migration of people since World War II.
In terms of forced migration, he cannot see a solution on the horizon.
The challenge then, is to integrate refugees better, especially in places that have not traditionally been destinations, such as many European countries.
Yasmina Filali, Founder and President of Fondation Orient Occident in Morocco, explains that as a result of Spain shoring up its borders, Morocco turned from a transition country into a host nation. She insists that education and culture were critical to integrating mainly Christian Africans into Morocco's predominantly Muslim society.
Changing the narrative
Yet, refugees come with negative connotations, there is a fear of the other, the panel agrees. Therefore it will be critical to invert perceptions of refugees.
Maina Kiai, suggests the LGBT community as a good example of how this can be done. He stresses that both in the US and Latin America, support for gay marriage has turned around completely over the last 15 years.
Abdullahi Alim from The Lighthouse Strategy in Australia says that one way of achieving such a change of public opinion is by giving refugees and other minorities greater exposure in media and on digital platforms. The implication is that this will provide a reality check for any prejudice.
Refugee-friendly policies are another critical part of the mix, as William Lacy Swing points out on a final note.