Human Rights Online: Call for offline action

On the occasion of the Action Day for Human Rights Online on the 10th December 2016 the No Hate Speech Movement is inviting youth workers, teachers, youth leaders and all other supporters to organise local events for students and young people. For this the Movement provides the following guidelines as recommendations.

The specific objectives of the offline events can be:

• to mobilize young people to stand up for Human Rights of individuals and groups targeted by online hate speech, to replace ignorance with reaction and solidarity,
• to raise awareness about the importance of Human Rights online, and explain what it means for the Internet users, using the Council of Europe Guide for Internet Users
• to promote Human Rights education tools that can empower young people how to prevent, counter and argue against hate speech when they are targeted or when they witness it,
• to produce and share counter narratives for different hate speech patterns, giving arguments against hate speech and devaluing hate speech patterns in general,
• to give visibility and celebrate people that speak up for Human Rights of others, counter hate speech online and offline, in the past and today though the initiative of UNITED for Intercultural Action,

We recommend the organisation of peaceful and respectful activities in schools, public places for and with young people about human rights and hate speech. The purpose of such an event shall be to raise awareness about the 10th of December as the international Human Rights Day, to empower young people and to advocate for Human Rights and to combat hate speech. Try to involve young people and organise the event together with them.

The content of the offline action can be based on any of these Council of Europe documents: Guidelines Protecting Human Rights on the Internet, Guidelines for Internet Users on the Movement website and the leaflet Your Digital Rights in Brief.

The event can take different formats. Please find here some examples:

• Organise an educational session such as seminar, workshop or a thematic meeting (see some possible exercises below) ,

• You can create a Big Message Wall by installing a big white board, or black board or a bigger piece of paper on the wall or on the floor of a public place and invite young people to write their thoughts in relation to a question that you consider important and relevant for the day,

• Organise a Flashmob on a busy square or in a popular shopping mall, or in front of a public institution to raise awareness about the importance of respecting Human Rights and combating hate speech, (please find here some examples: Flashmob by No Hate Week , Budapest, Flash mob No Hate , International Human Rights Day - Flash Mob OMCT - Geneva - December 2012, to know more about flashmob visit: How to Organize a Flash Mob or 12 great examples of flash mobs;

• Promote Human Rights and solidarity building on the UN slogan ‘Stand up for Someone’s Rights Today! Write on a piece of paper ‘I stand up for ‘fill in name of person or group’ Rights Today!take a selfie or a group photo and share it on social media.

• Take a photo with a No Hate sign (sticker, postcard, balloon, T-shirt etc) in front of an institution, political party, website etc. that work against hate speech and speak up for Human Rights or a place where you wish hate speech would not be tolerated, and share it on social media.
• Invite your group to upload their selfie to the No Hate Chain to Stand for Human Rights online!

We also recommend that you facilitate one of the exercises from the Educational Manual Bookmarks,

• Freedom Unlimited and its Online Version
• Race of rights (page 82)
• Reading the rules (page 88)
• Roots and Branches (page 94)
• The story they tell (page 107)
• Understanding Hate Speech (page 111);