Seven out of every ten cases of racism in Catalonia are never formally reported, a stark new report has found. The anti-racism organisation SOS Racisme presented its annual study, INvisibles: The state of racism in Cataluña, on Thursday, revealing a significant gap between the reality of racial discrimination and the official statistics that track it.
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The 17th edition of the report documents 251 specific cases of racism handled by the organisation’s complaint service in 2025, part of a wider survey that identified 583 discriminatory situations across more than 70 municipalities. However, the authors warn this is just the tip of the iceberg. The primary reasons for this profound underreporting, the study suggests, are a deep-seated lack of trust in institutions and the immense emotional strain victims face when considering a formal complaint.
The Rise of Interpersonal Conflict
The report highlights a troubling increase in discrimination between private individuals, which now accounts for 28% of all documented cases. SOS Racisme directly links this trend to the normalisation of hate speech and the growing influence of the far-right.
“There is an impunity in the expression of racism that is noticeable in the increase of cases between individuals, driven by campaigns that work, like the ‘great replacement’ theory,” said Gemma Ferreón, the director of SOS Racisme Catalunya, during the report’s presentation. “Racism has always been present, but the institutionalisation of this discourse generates greater social impunity to express it.”
After conflicts between individuals, the second-largest complaint category, at 17%, involved abuse or aggression by public security forces. This was followed by violations of access to social rights like housing, healthcare, and education, accounting for 15% of cases. The struggle for adequate housing remains a critical issue in the region, with the city council recently announcing plans to tender land for 625 affordable rental homes to address social needs.
Barriers to Justice
The emotional cost of reporting acts as a major deterrent. “This situation causes emotional drain for victims and their families,” Ferreón explained, adding, “Lack of access to the complaints process also hinders the fight against racism.”
The report, detailed in Spanish media outlets like El País, outlines other reasons for not reporting: victims often seek immediate resolution, fear reprisals, struggle to identify aggressors, or simply wish to record an incident without enduring a lengthy legal process.
This fear becomes particularly acute in cases involving the police. Úrsula Ruiz, head of the organisation’s Attention and Complaint Service (SAiD), noted the persistence of ethnic profiling. “Physical appearance becomes the main variable for a police intervention,” she stated. “When the person asks for the reasons for being stopped, officers often interpret it as resistance and the case escalates.”
The Profile of the Victims
Data on who reports racism reveals significant inequalities. While Spanish nationals made 40% of complaints and foreign nationals with legal residency filed 32%, only 17% of official reports came from undocumented migrants. SOS Racisme insists this figure dramatically underrepresents the reality on the ground.
“When you have no stability in anything, you don’t risk reporting,” Ferreón stressed. The precarious legal and economic status of many migrants, often exploited in black markets such as the recently dismantled fake work contract ring in Barcelona, creates a powerful disincentive to interact with authorities.
The report identifies Muslim women, often targeted for both their gender and visible religious identity, and young men of North and sub-Saharan African descent as the most affected groups.
A Call for Systemic Change
SOS Racisme leaders criticised public administrations for failing to adequately prevent and prosecute discrimination, arguing that political rhetoric reinforces structural racism. Ferreón noted this was not limited to the far-right, suggesting that some left-wing parties have also “partially assumed their arguments.”
Although the Catalan government previously positioned itself as a pioneer in anti-racist policies in Europe, advocacy groups argue that political attention, often consumed by issues like the recent withdrawal of the 2026 budget, means consistent and effective action on racism is falling short.
The report serves as a call to action, urging stronger legislation and a more robust institutional commitment to combat this largely invisible problem.
