History forced ‘tolerance’ upon us. History also gave us a strong sense that human rights and the freedom of expression are good – even essential – for an open society. Same goes for ‘Integration’, ‘diversity’, ‘multiculturalism’, ‘social cohesion’, etc.

Meanwhile stereotypes remain alive, well and interacting in Europe. There’s the charming but corrupt Italian, the snotty French person, the spendthrift Greek, the cold-hearted Swede, the radical Muslim as woman oppressor, etc. These types often seem to lie just under the skin of ‘tolerance’.

But how relevant is any of this when it comes to a person meeting a person? Are we individually responsible for these different ideas or are they imposed by society? And what exactly is the state of stereotyping in Europe today?

The questions we put forward to Ece, Kinan, David, Lina, Iryna, Neel and Chrissie are:

Q1: You are the Minister of Integration. Your first action? 

Q2: Who is ‘the other’ for you?

Q3: Can you name a stereotype that has a negative influence on public debate? What are its consequences?

Q4: Take the point of view of  a Chinese, Brazilian or Nigerian. Now look at a European. What do you see?

And how about you? What do YOU think?