Racist slogans against the Roma community were sprayed on billboards installed by an equal opportunities campaign in Głogów. The slogans were often repeated by young people who launched racist social media pages during the campaign. Discriminatory comments against people living in regenerated communities (families affected by unemployment and poverty) were found in local news portals.
The project aimed at integrating existing initiatives against hate speech in Lower Silesia and developing trainers and young activists to run anti-hate speech education activities.
The objective was met. A youth activist network has been created in Lower Silesian communities including Głogów, Bolesławiec, Wrocław, Złotoryja and Świdnica; young people received training; as part of peer education, a group of activists made a presentation about the problem of hate speech in their middle or high schools. A project website and an Online Helpdesk were created for individuals who had been experiencing online hate speech. An online anti-hate speech campaign was organised; a publication entitled Hate Stories in Polish and in English was published. Young people organised their own online campaigns, two radio shows were broadcast as well as two videos and three gifs about hate speech were created; an Innovation Lab for Social Change was held.
The project participants were middle and secondary school students in Lower Silesia.
The project was implemented in partnership with Amnesty International Norway, which helped develop publications and education materials based on Norwegian experience. Moreover, Amnesty International Norway was responsible for co-organising the study visit and the Innovation Lab for Social Change.