A/HRC/39/69 54. Institutional and structural racism and racial discrimination are the legacies of enslavement, colonialism, neocolonialism and centuries of dehumanization. People of African descent are disproportionately discriminated against in the administration of justice. Racial profiling gives rise to police brutality and other violations, particularly against people of African descent. Trends ranging from stop and search to the killing of people of African descent by law enforcement agents are of grave concern to the Working Group. 55. The overrepresentation of people of African descent in prisons is a major concern for the Working Group. People of African descent are less likely to be granted bail than others, thereby spending more time in jail before they are even convicted of a crime. They are more likely to receive harsher sentences for the same crimes than others. Once incarcerated, people of African descent are more likely to be segregated and subjected to violence at the hands of prison staff, and are more likely to die while in custody. People of African descent are also underrepresented in employment in the justice system. 56. The Working Group is concerned by the growing trend of criminalization and sexual exploitation of women of African descent. That also leads to infringement of the rights of children, some of whom are born and remain in prisons or detention centres for prolonged periods of time. 57. In the criminal justice system, language barriers can be compounded by social or cultural pressure to speak a language that migrants, refugees and asylum seekers of African descent do not understand. Some may not be aware of the right to use their language or have access to interpretation where it is available. Such barriers can lead to miscommunication and grave injustices. 58. For people of African descent, land is a strategic resource. Among other things, it is a source of livelihood and economic activity for them and informs their identity, culture, spirituality and self-worth. Historically, people of African descent have been subjected to violent dispossession of their lands and continue to struggle to maintain collective control of them. In urban settings, people of African descent confront documented, egregious racial discrimination related to security of tenure, including in their access to housing. 59. Women are especially vulnerable to multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, which heightens their exclusion from land rights. Patriarchal cultural practices, in combination with legal frameworks, exclude women from realizing their land rights. That is despite the pivotal role that women play in productive land use and supporting families and communities, often doing so in the absence of compensation for and recognition of their fundamental roles. 60. A growing number of people of African descent aspire to return to their ancestral lands in Africa. Those who return to Africa require support to facilitate access to landownership. 61. People of African descent have a right to reparations, which should be proportional to the gravity of the violations and the harm suffered. The consequences of the trade in enslaved Africans, enslavement, colonialism, neocolonialism and discrimination go beyond mere financial inequalities. They include injustices, such as intergenerational health issues, disproportionately high illiteracy rates and the erasure of collective culture, history and identity. Reparations include the right to restitution, rehabilitation, compensation, and safeguarding and protection from future violations. 62. The Working Group is concerned by the risk of people of African descent making contributions to State funds, including through taxation, that could be used to pay reparations to descendants of enslaved Africans. 63. The principle aspect of the draft declaration should be made clear: that people of African descent are particularly vulnerable to structural discrimination and various forms of inequity with respect to the enjoyment of human rights. Equality and non-discrimination are foundational principles of human rights. 15