#HITproject has kicked-off in Nicosia in Otcober 2018. In the next two years, it will work in 6 countries in Europe to engage and empower young people in becoming “hate interrupters” through inclusive and arts-based practices. Hate speech against migrants and minorities is worryingly rising across the continent and we all feel urged to work on that.
The first meeting of “Hate Interrupter Teams: Youth counteracting hate speech towards migrants and minorities through participatory and creative campaigning” was held on the 8th and 9th of October. The project is funded by the European Program “Rights, Equality and Citizenship”.
MetropolisNet was present, together with representatives of the organizations of HFC Hope For Children CRC Policy Center (Cyprus – Leading Partner), Rinova Limited (United Kingdom), Associazione Culturale Mulab (Italy), Associacio Per A La Creacio I Estudis De Projectes Socials C.E.P.S. (Spain), Collage Arts (United Kingdom), Frederick University (Cyprus), Metropolisnet, The Smile of the Child (Greece) and Gender Alternatives Foundation (Bulgaria) took part in the meeting.
The project’s duration is 24 months and aims at developing a new model of European youth empowerment to tackle racism, xenophobia and discrimination. During the meeting, the project team reviewed all the activities of the project and discussed on the roles and the implementation of the main components of the project: Best practices in creative counteracting of hate speech and behavior, Implementation of Collaborative work: Hate Interrupter Teams and Stakeholder Boards and Development & Implementation of online awareness prevention & support tools .