A/71/297 of Nicolaus Copernicus University and John Felice Rome Center, Loyola University, Chicago, United States. The event gathered together students and academics from both organizing institutions. Mr. Balcerzak gave a pr esentation on the activities of the Working Group, in particular in the context of its country visit to Italy in June 2015. 38. On 31 October 2015, Mr. Balcerzak participated in a meeting with representatives of the Society of African Students, held at Turgut Özal University, Ankara, Turkey. The meeting was a side event of the conference on international law and domestic policies organized by the university. Mr. Balce rzak presented and discussed the activities of the Working Group and informed them about th e aims of the International Decade. 39. Mr. Balcerzak also contributed to a special issue of the Journal of Business Economics and Political Science on the United Nations, issued in April 2016 by Turgut Özal University, Turkey. III. Conclusions 40. The Working Group is deeply concerned by the escalation of racism, racial discrimination, Afrophobia, racist hate speech, xenophobia and related intolerance targeting Africans and people of African descent in many parts of the world. The Working Group condemns police violence and other forms of violence against people of African descent. In this regard, independent accountability mechanisms, whose officials should include people of African descent, are essential. 41. The Working Group country visits and allegations received under the communication procedure show how structures based on racial bias or discrimination, including, racial phenotypes, still have a lasting and detrimental effect on Africans and people of African descent in the diaspora. This legacy must be addressed in an open dialogue in order to understand and address the roots of racial tensions and discrimination in society. In certain societies, the invisibility of people of African descent on account of policy assimilation prevents different forms of intolerance from being addressed appropriately. The collection of disaggregated data along ethnic lines based on voluntary self-identification is an important starting point in the conversation of identifying the disparities between, and addressing the human rights of, people of African descent. 42. The Working Group is ready to continue actively participating in the International Decade for People of African Descent and to assist stakeholders and strengthen partnerships between Governments, civil society, Africans and people of African descent in order to fully implement the programme of activities. The Working Group calls on States and civil society to hold joint launchings of the International Decade in their own countries and to adopt positive measures to accelerate the process of its implementation. As part of this process, States are urged to also address the negative racial stereotypes and the blackface phenomenon that people of African descent face. Criminal sanctions must be imposed not just for hate speech, but also for stereotyping. Furthermore, as with hate speech, stereotyping ought to provide a basis for 10/11 16-13578