IFWEA and Euro-WEA’s affiliate, the Verband Wiener Volksbildung in Austria, has been involved in co-ordinating an education programme against racism using art to challenge traditional ways of thinking. Christine Pirker and Oswald Bazant describe their work.

For over a year, the Verband Wiener Volksbildung (VWV) has received unusual mail - interestingly designed envelopes, painted postcards, eye catching letters - in short, works of art. All this work was supported in a very efficient and consistent way by the MAIL ART project against racism.

Since the European Year against Racism in 1997, the VWV as an institution of adult education has tried to sensitise the people living in Vienna with the MAIL ART project against racism. MAIL ART is a form of artistic communication which uses the mail as its central medium. Everybody who participates takes part in a quick artistic exchange of new ideas by using postal communication. We have tried to change the patterns of people’s thinking. It is vital to develop concrete strategies against racism. It is futile to find and single out individual racists and just let the issue pass with their example.

The change in thinking has to start with us. On public transport in Vienna, you still hear discriminatory remarks such as "foreigners smell badly" or "they are taking away our jobs". In other words, the assumption is that migrant workers are bad whilst Austrians are good. The fear of losing a job is a good way to explain the tenacity of stereotyped patterns of thinking. No matter what the real reasons are, migrant workers are always seen to be responsible for job loss. This pattern of thinking is not new. Scapegoats have remained virtually the same since the time of national socialist ideology. Stereotypes produce a limited, incomplete picture of the world which guarantees incomprehension. The fear of being overrun by foreigners combined with social, religious and other factors generate a picture of threat.

Like many other institutions, the VWV assumes that there are no human races. There is no genetic basis for the assumption that there are a variety of races. But in spite of this knowledge, these ideas have not died out in our everyday thinking. Racism survives even without the existence of races. It is better to speak about this misguided way of thinking than to remain silent about racism.

The initiators of MAIL ART against racism intended a global sensitisation programme against racism. MAIL ARTists and international organisations were asked to form a symbolic chain against racism around the globe by means of letters and postcards. All interested people, including artists, intellectuals, workers and researchers were invited to rethink old patterns of thinking and to find answers for themselves. These answers were put on paper and mailed to the VWV. About 200 artists from 31 countries participated in the MAIL ART project against racism. Letters and postcards arrived from Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Costa Rica, Chile, Denmark, Germany, UK, Finland, France, Guatemala, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Canada, Croatia, Holland, Norway, Austria, Panama, Poland, Rumania, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, Czech Republic, Uruguay, the USA and Yugoslavia. These have now formed part of an exhibition which is meant to initiate a process of reflection and sensitisation with the visitors.

The exhibition consists of 200 works. It has been shown in various adult education centres in Vienna as well as other cities. It can be seen around the clock on the Internet at http://www.vhs.at/specials/galerie.htm. In this way, the European Year against Racism will continue to have its effects through the exhibition aimed at changing people’s way of thinking.