According to research, the level of prejudice towards "the others" is the highest in Poland and Hungary out of eight countries. (Ebert Foundation Report, 2011). Hate speech is observed on the web, in media and in everyday situations. It is very common among young people, who have difficulty defining the very concept of hate speech, research suggests. They exclusively associate it with vulgar attacks on the Internet but fail to see the connection with discrimination. According to a report published by the Anti-discrimination Education Society, schools in Poland are not equipped to counteract hate speech.
The project aimed at engaging with youth to encourage action against hate speech and help develop skills of 'critically reading' xenophobic, racist, anti-Semitic, anti-Roma, homophobic or sexist content.
Project participants, mainly middle school students, learned to identify manifestations of hate speech. They launched peer-to-peer initiatives in their own schools and communities as well as online actively standing against hate speech. The project was implemented in 150 schools.
Young people organised an Against Hate Speech Day in each school. A number of activities and campaigns were organised, including meetings with educators, researchers, community activists, representatives of religious, ethnic and cultural minorities and hate speech experts. Street performances were staged to promote tolerance. Young people produced or contributed to videos, blogs, murals, communication campaigns, poems, concerts, training courses and education materials on fighting hate speech.
Project beneficiaries included students of middle and secondary schools in Poland and Norway.
The partnership with the European Wergeland Center from Norway helped include the project in the Council of Europe "No Hate" campaign. Moreover, the Wergeland Center delivered a training for student group leaders and contributed to developing education materials based on similar projects implemented in Norway.