Multiculturalism, gender equality, and inclusion are constituent elements of global citizenship and necessitate a high-quality education system that addresses social injustices and inequalities, while fostering critical awareness of these issues. From an early age, students ought to actively and responsibly engage with global challenges and actively contribute to the realization of a fair, peaceful, tolerant, inclusive, secure, and sustainable world (UNESCO, 2014: 15; O’Flaherty, Liddy, 2018). Educational and training programs must equip young individuals with the necessary tools to overcome prejudices and stereotypes through critical thinking, interpersonal relationships, and mutual understanding, in order to promote an increasingly indispensable culture of coexistence (Reimers et al., 2018: 7). The ERASMUS YOUTH project, «Against Hate Speech towards Roma Community, Migrants, Ethnic minorities and Any vulnerable groups Discrimination (AHEAD),» aims to advance non-discrimination among young people and combat racism, xenophobia, and other forms of intolerance targeting Roma, ethnic minorities, and migrants. Spanning from 2022 to 2024, the project focuses on enhancing the capacity of young victims and safeguarding minority youth, while facilitating the development of innovative mechanisms for public consultations in partner countries. The overarching objectives encompass addressing non- discrimination and countering hate speech directed at ethnic minorities, Roma, and migrants. The project emphasizes social inclusion and digital transitions, and the promotion of youth participation in democratic life, aligning with priorities and activities outlined in the European Education Area, Digital Education Action Plan, and European Skills Agenda. The project endeavors to tackle hate speech, including online platforms, and combat discrimination impacting minorities across five civil rights domains: education, employment, housing, healthcare, and goods and services. A core focus area of the project is enhancing the capacity of young victims and minority groups by providing support through structured mechanisms during public consultations in partner countries. The research project adopts a phenomenological approach (Mortari, 2007; 2010) within a research-education framework, employing professional writing methodology (Perla, 2012; 2013) to develop narratives grounded in human rights principles (Keen, Georgescu, & Gomes, 2016). This approach aims to contribute to the challenge and deconstruction of the stereotypes that underlie discriminatory narratives. This contribution presents the findings of a comparative research study examining discrimination against young people and online hate speech within the target group. The data examines levels of perceived discrimination among young individuals aged 16 to 31 in partner countries, namely Albania, Italy, Bosnia, and Romania. The results reveal that many young people perceive themselves as subject to discrimination, experiencing unequal treatment relative to the majority. The sample predominantly consists of students (70% students, 21% workers, 9% unemployed). The workplace is identified as the primary context for ethnic discrimination (37%), followed by educational institutions (32%), and discrimination in goods and services (13%). Regarding representations, over half of the sample (52.30%) perceive «nomads» as «free spirits,» while 20% view them as «economically disadvantaged individuals,» and 19% as «non-conformists.» Concerning the representation of «Roma,» the most common response is once again «free spirits» (43.77%), followed by «economically disadvantaged individuals» (30.87%), while 19.58% of the sample selected «other» without specifying further details. Immigrants are considered «economically disadvantaged individuals» by 33% of the sample, «non-workers» by 27.41%, 92 and «persecuted individuals» by 17.28%. It is worth noting that this question allowed for multiple responses and offered an opportunity to provide explanations in the «other» category. These representations will serve as the foundation for human rights education training projects, which will culminate in the development of human rights narratives during subsequent project phases. The objective is to disrupt the dynamics of oppression entrenched within a «us versus them» worldview, thereby creates fertile ground for hate speech and discrimination. In the upcoming project phase, training courses will be conducted to construct alternative narratives capable of yielding long-term impact, while deconstructing stereotypes and discriminatory perceptions. Special attention will be given to the Human Rights Education (HRE) framework and its integration with Civic Education, serving as potent instruments for preventing online and offline hate speech and ethnic discrimination with young people.
AHEAD: a project to fight discrimination and hate speech
gallelli
Membro del Collaboration Group
2024-01-01
Abstract
Multiculturalism, gender equality, and inclusion are constituent elements of global citizenship and necessitate a high-quality education system that addresses social injustices and inequalities, while fostering critical awareness of these issues. From an early age, students ought to actively and responsibly engage with global challenges and actively contribute to the realization of a fair, peaceful, tolerant, inclusive, secure, and sustainable world (UNESCO, 2014: 15; O’Flaherty, Liddy, 2018). Educational and training programs must equip young individuals with the necessary tools to overcome prejudices and stereotypes through critical thinking, interpersonal relationships, and mutual understanding, in order to promote an increasingly indispensable culture of coexistence (Reimers et al., 2018: 7). The ERASMUS YOUTH project, «Against Hate Speech towards Roma Community, Migrants, Ethnic minorities and Any vulnerable groups Discrimination (AHEAD),» aims to advance non-discrimination among young people and combat racism, xenophobia, and other forms of intolerance targeting Roma, ethnic minorities, and migrants. Spanning from 2022 to 2024, the project focuses on enhancing the capacity of young victims and safeguarding minority youth, while facilitating the development of innovative mechanisms for public consultations in partner countries. The overarching objectives encompass addressing non- discrimination and countering hate speech directed at ethnic minorities, Roma, and migrants. The project emphasizes social inclusion and digital transitions, and the promotion of youth participation in democratic life, aligning with priorities and activities outlined in the European Education Area, Digital Education Action Plan, and European Skills Agenda. The project endeavors to tackle hate speech, including online platforms, and combat discrimination impacting minorities across five civil rights domains: education, employment, housing, healthcare, and goods and services. A core focus area of the project is enhancing the capacity of young victims and minority groups by providing support through structured mechanisms during public consultations in partner countries. The research project adopts a phenomenological approach (Mortari, 2007; 2010) within a research-education framework, employing professional writing methodology (Perla, 2012; 2013) to develop narratives grounded in human rights principles (Keen, Georgescu, & Gomes, 2016). This approach aims to contribute to the challenge and deconstruction of the stereotypes that underlie discriminatory narratives. This contribution presents the findings of a comparative research study examining discrimination against young people and online hate speech within the target group. The data examines levels of perceived discrimination among young individuals aged 16 to 31 in partner countries, namely Albania, Italy, Bosnia, and Romania. The results reveal that many young people perceive themselves as subject to discrimination, experiencing unequal treatment relative to the majority. The sample predominantly consists of students (70% students, 21% workers, 9% unemployed). The workplace is identified as the primary context for ethnic discrimination (37%), followed by educational institutions (32%), and discrimination in goods and services (13%). Regarding representations, over half of the sample (52.30%) perceive «nomads» as «free spirits,» while 20% view them as «economically disadvantaged individuals,» and 19% as «non-conformists.» Concerning the representation of «Roma,» the most common response is once again «free spirits» (43.77%), followed by «economically disadvantaged individuals» (30.87%), while 19.58% of the sample selected «other» without specifying further details. Immigrants are considered «economically disadvantaged individuals» by 33% of the sample, «non-workers» by 27.41%, 92 and «persecuted individuals» by 17.28%. It is worth noting that this question allowed for multiple responses and offered an opportunity to provide explanations in the «other» category. These representations will serve as the foundation for human rights education training projects, which will culminate in the development of human rights narratives during subsequent project phases. The objective is to disrupt the dynamics of oppression entrenched within a «us versus them» worldview, thereby creates fertile ground for hate speech and discrimination. In the upcoming project phase, training courses will be conducted to construct alternative narratives capable of yielding long-term impact, while deconstructing stereotypes and discriminatory perceptions. Special attention will be given to the Human Rights Education (HRE) framework and its integration with Civic Education, serving as potent instruments for preventing online and offline hate speech and ethnic discrimination with young people.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
