Education for Citizenship and Fundamental Rights: Equality and Non-Discrimination – European Values
Education for Citizenship and Fundamental Rights: Equality and Non-Discrimination – European Values

Summary/Abstract: The mission of education goes beyond the mere utilitarian goal of acquiring skills and professional qualifications, even though these contribute to economic freedom and individual well-being. The turbulent history of the struggle against inequality, the nonviolent resistance championed by Gandhi, and Martin Luther King’s pursuit of the “dream” all demonstrate the crucial role of education in promoting democratic culture, fundamental rights and the rule of law. It is no coincidence that the words Simone Veil, the first President of the European Parliament, wished to have inscribed on her Immortals’ sword upon her admission to the French Academy were the number tattooed on her at Auschwitz (78651), the motto of the French Republic -“Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”and the motto of the European Union - “United in Diversity”. These symbols collectively remind us that education is not merely a pathway to individual success, but a vehicle for preserving dignity, freedom, equality, and human solidarity. Civic awareness and education in the spirit of European values become the “soft weapons” we can activate against discrimination, violence, xenophobia, and extremism within a society marked by diversity, social cohesion, equity, and inclusion. The article explores how the protection of human rights has evolved from judicial protection to codification through treaties and the expansion of the principle of non-discrimination beyond its traditional areas of application, including education and vocational training. It further outlines recent developments and identifies areas that remain insufficiently articulated, requiring more effective judicial protection. The analysis employs (i) a normative approach, by examining relevant provisions, more precisely, through grammatical, systematic, and teleological interpretation of the instruments related to the right to education within the international system of the United Nations and at the European level, and (ii) a practical approach, through the analysis of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union, highlighting the added-value elements concerning discrimination in access to education on grounds of ethnic origin, nationality, or genetic characteristics.

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