firewall – tackling hate online
firewall - tackling hate online
Tackling hate online
The internet and social media make many things possible that are useful to our everyday lives, but they also confront us with discrimination, hateful comments, misinformation, and conspiracy theories almost routinely. This has become a real problem for our democracy. Young people in particular are exposed to a great deal of hate speech online. What can we do about it? What does civil courage look like in digital spaces? How can we shape a better democratic discussion culture online?
Firewall works against content that is hateful, degrading, and supportive of conspiracy theory ideologies: building a firewall against online hate. To this end, we are creating a nationwide network of trainers, and offering interactive, practice-oriented workshops. These workshops empower young people, teachers, and professionals to recognise hate online and proactively shape digital spaces through counterspeech and positive narratives.
Contact: firewall@amadeu-antonio-stiftung.de
More information (project flyer): click here
What firewall is about
Anti-democratic attitudes and content that is undermining of human dignity currently pose serious challenges to our society. Online, discrimination and hate speech are taking on dramatic proportions. And digital violence has very real consequences: people increasingly withdraw from discussions in order to avoid continued exposure to aggression, threats of violence and hatred. Digital spaces thus also require social commitment and civil courage.
Many people want to do something against hate online, but are often unsure of how to report, delete or comment on hateful posts. In short, they're not sure how best to put civil courage into practice in digital spaces. Existing options for action must first be recognised as such and employed as effective and concrete counter-strategies. We have to learn how to deal with online content that is hateful, degrading, and supportive of conspiracy theory ideologies, and actively shape virtual spaces with counter-arguments and democratic narratives.
Firewall offers workshops and training sessions to practice and promote precisely such civil courage and democratic discussion cultures in digital spaces. With this goal in mind, we are building up a nationwide network of trainers and offering workshops in which young people, teachers and professionals can learn concrete strategies for dealing with degrading, hateful and discriminatory content on the internet.
What firewall offers
Trainings for multiplicators
Firewall is building up a nationwide network of young people who focus especially on empowering youths and young adults in dealing with online content that is hateful, degrading, and supportive of conspiracy theory ideologies.
Workshops for young people
Firewall offers interactive workshops – nationwide, online, and offline. Young people can learn how to deal with online hate, digital Antisemitism, conspiracy theories, misinformation, and right-wing extremism, as well as practice different strategies for action.
Specialist events and networks
Firewall takes regular and active part in specialist events, conferences, and network meetings, in order to work together with other participants in developing new ideas, strategies and concepts for dealing with online radicalization trends and content that is hateful, derogatory or undermining of human dignity.
Upcoming events
February to June 2023 I Online
"Smart snacks to go": Workshop series with our Firewall-trainers (everything held in German)
27.02.2023: Mental Wellbeing in the digital space - from every day business to critical situations
I 17:00 Uhr - 19:00 Uhr I Karoline Wodara
06.03.2023: TikTok - in the wake of "FYP". Why is this App so different to others?
I 17:00 Uhr - 18:30 Uhr I Luise H., Charlotte L.
14.03.2023: Bad Game, Troll! Dealing with toxic behaviour in gaming communities
I 17:00 Uhr - 19:00 Uhr I Sergej Klein aka Genosse Digital
03.04.2023: Stories everywhere! How stories, heroines and narratives of enemies shape our perception of the digital space
I 14:00 Uhr - 15:30 Uhr I Julian Kasten
17.04.2023: #TateSpeech - Masculinity, antifeminism and the role of the Internet exemplified by Andrew Tate
I 17:00 Uhr - 18:30 Uhr I Angela Frick
04.05.2023: Hate Speech and extremist speeches in Social Media - approaches for media education practice
I 17:30 - 19:30 I 2 teamers
25.04.2023: Conspiracy theories: No way back? Identity and crisis, tips and help for affected individuals
I 17:00 Uhr -19:00 Uhr I HP
17.05.2023: Manipulation of DeepFake Apps - How can I protect myself and my photos on the Internet in a better way?
I 18:00 Uhr - 19:30 Uhr I Lisa Weber
16.06.2023: Hate Speech makes us sick - we learn how to counterattack rhetorically clever I 18:00 Uhr - 20:00 Uhr I Fluky
more infos here
28.03.- 30.03.2023 I Utøya, Norway
"DEMRED": Teacher training project
more information here soon
16.04.- 18.04.2023 I Lublin, Poland
German-polish youth forum
more information here soon
Contact
Stephanie Häusinger
Project Manager
General queries, cooperation and network partnerships, interview requests
stephanie.haeusinger@amadeu-antonio-stiftung.de
Phone +49(0)15142043632
Cornelia Heyken
Network Coordinator
Nationwide network coordination, pedagogic consulting, workshop requests, digital streetwork
cornelia.heyken@amadeu-antonio-stiftung.de
Phone +49(0)15142025217
Charlotte Lohmann
Educational Advisor
Pedagogic queries, educational materials, cooperations, interview and workshop requests
charlotte.lohmann @amadeu-antonio-stiftung.de
Phone +49(0)15142043651
Funded by
Translation from German into English by poco.lit
