IGF 2021 WS #171
3 Tools to push human rights online

Organizer 1: Menno Ettema, Council of Europe

Speaker 1: Julia Mozer, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 2: Alessandra Coppola, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 3: Debora Barletta, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 4: Sina Laubenstein, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 5: Victoria Carasava, Civil Society, Eastern European Group

Moderator

Menno Ettema, Intergovernmental Organization, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)

Online Moderator

Debora Barletta, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)

Rapporteur

Victoria Carasava, Civil Society, Eastern European Group

Format

Break-out Group Discussions - Flexible Seating - 60 Min

Policy Question(s)

Ensuring a safe digital space: How should governments, Internet businesses and other stakeholders protect citizens, including vulnerable citizens, against online exploitation and abuse?

Safe digital space requires speaking up for human rights and values as a means to push back against hate speech and enabling environment for freedom of expression and democratic participation online for individuals and groups in vulnerable situations. CSO's and activists use counter narrative, but report difficulties to not only counter hate arguments but rather define their own narrative based on human rights values and principles and use online digital platforms effectively to take the online public space.

SDGs

4. Quality Education
16. Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions


Targets: Speaking up for human rights and values as a means to push back against hate speech, enables environment for freedom of expression and democratic participation online for individuals and groups in vulnerable situations.

Description:

The CoE-EU co-funded project 'We CAN 4 Human Rights Speech' developed three interconnected tools to support activists assess severity of hate speech incident and appropriate response; build a human rights based message; and effectively communicate it. Following a short general introduction to the tools, participants will be spilt in groups and can work with one of the tools and experience some of the steps using concrete example(s). Participants will also be informed of ongoing campaign efforts against anti-Roma & Travellers, antisemitic and anti-Muslim hate speech they can engage with after IGF.
Tool 1. The hate speech calculator: will help you assess the severity of the hate speech incident, its potential to spread online and its damage to individuals and groups. Based on the results you will be better able to judge whether to ignore, push back or report the hate speech.
Tool 2. The Human Rights Narrative builder tool allows you to define your arguments for human rights on a particular topic/issue. It helps you clarify your messages to push back against hate or to simply campaign for human rights online.
Tools 3. The online tool-box will help you develop a communication strategy. It provides step by step guidelines and checklists to help you communicate online: What should you consider when drafting a communications strategy, where and how can you reach your target audience? This tool includes specific tips for effectively using digital platform tools.

Expected Outcomes

Participants gain understanding how to use the tools and may engage in online campaigns against anti-Muslim, anti-Semitic and anti-Roma & Travellers hate speech.
Feedback from participants will help develop the tools further for future activists.

The 15-minute plenary opening will include a short presentation of the 3 tools. This would be done on screen in plenary and this screen can shared the livestream. A IGF technician, if available, could switch between speaker and screen for the online participants to follow.
The breakout sessions could be held online and in person pending number of participants in the room and online. We anticipate two people attending IGF, while additional 3 team members join online. This allows us to split the groups in different configurations (physical group only, online group only, and hybrid group for example).
Hybrid group is dependent on technical possibilities at IGF, the facilitator can share screen with online participants, while a smartly set up webcam and screen could catch discussion in the physical group for the online participants to follow and contribute to.

Online Participation



Usage of IGF Official Tool. Additional Tools proposed: The 3 tools are available online. Participants will be shown the tool and can interact with it during the session. They will need individual devises to do so, while the facilitators will work on main devise to show the tool in the plenary and online.
Team could use menti-meter to asses existing experiences and gather questions from among the audience in the plenary and online.