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In 1999, the International Centre for Cultures and Languages (Internationales Zentrum für Kulturen und Sprachen) in Austria developed a program that pairs police officers with an immigrant or refugee to foster positive relations between the police force and the foreign-born population. While educating the officers about citizens who they may have held negative stereotypes about, this program also gives the refugees and immigrants an opportunity to communicate with the officers about racial profiling and other racial issues.

Many police officers in the area where the program began had held negative perceptions of refugees and migrants. For example, there was a stereotype that all Africans were drug dealers. These inaccurate stereotypes would impact how the officers interacted with these communities and who the officers chose to arrest. This educational program developed out of a need to facilitate an exchange between the officers and the refugee and immigrant communities.  

This program was originally developed for social workers and refugees.  The International Centre for Cultures and Languages thought that this program would be appropriate for police officers as well.  This course is funded by the Ministry of the Interior.  The officers must apply to take the course.  The course for police officers lasts seven to nine months, from September to June, and has 20-25 officers participants and 20-25 immigrant or refugee participants.   Each officer is paired with a partner. The officers participants in all of the seminars, while their partner participates in a special series of five evenings.  The seminars focus on topics like human rights, racism, discrimination, communication, and conflict resolution.  Role plays are included in the curriculum.

The second part of this program is the “Intercultural Tandem,” which is the exchange between the officer and the refugee or immigrant.  The officers have an opportunity to develop a relationship with an individual from another part of the world including various African countries, Turkey, Hungary, and the former Yugoslavia.  The officer and their partner work on an agreed upon project, and do activities together such as going out to eat, watching a football match, or taking a walk.  The officers learn about their partner’s family, job, and culture.  The officers are often astonished when they realize how their partner is actually living a life that is not so different from their own.  The officers often come to the realization that not all immigrants and refugees fit their stereotypes.  In addition, the refugees and immigrants have an opportunity to discuss how they feel people in their communities are being unfairly arrested because of racial discrimination.  

The officer receives a professional development certificate for taking the course and the refugee or immigrant’s investment is acknowledged as well.  The number of applications has risen steadily as the great reputation of the course spreads.  Initially, officer participants were coming from only two districts from the eastern part of Austria.  This year officers will be coming from all over Austria.  Some officer participants have said that this program was the most valuable experience they have had.  Some officer participants have stayed friends with their partner, and had their two families get together.  One coordinator mentioned an officer participant who was very aggressive at the beginning of the course and created some difficulties.  That participant says that he now sees things very differently.  Additionally some of the officers who attend the course pass what they have learned on to their colleagues.  Because it can be difficult to criticize colleagues at police stations, the role play exercises have proven to be very useful and helpful in this educational process.  

This tactic of seminars and Intercultural Tandem could be used in many situations where discrimination exists.  For example, it could be used with employers who are exhibiting racial discrimination in their hiring practices.

This paper was completed on November 10, 2003.