About SMASH
“SMASH – Journalistic theatre for Social Media Action against Online Hate Speech” centres around digital education and involves 6 partners from 4 European countries: La Xixa Teatre (coordinator) and FUNDACIÓN ARC-XAMFRA in Spain, The Critical and Pragiedruliai Panevėžys Creativity Centre in Lithuania, Respect Zone in France, and DANILO DOLCI in Italy.
#Smashthehate is the official hashtag of the project, as it captures its very essence: using creative, collective action to dismantle online hate speech. It reflects our commitment to empowering young people to critically engage with social media, challenge harmful narratives and foster empathy, digital responsibility and inclusive dialogue through artistic tools.
Context & Needs
The rapid growth and digitalisation of human experiences increase the risks to communities in more vulnerable situations. As violence does not stop at the border, it also spills from the real into the virtual world, disproportionately affecting communities that are already in more vulnerable situations. SMASH focuses on smashing cyberbullying, enhancing digital competence and empowering individuals to recognise, challenge, and prevent online hate, while fostering inclusive and respectful digital spaces.
Because social media and online communication are essential to young people, they are more inclined to feel a negative influence from online interactions, shaping their real lives. SMASH centres around migrant youth and young workers, empowering them to reclaim a safe and inclusive online space. The project brings together partners' expertise in arts and theatre, youth work, digital media research, hate speech, and cyber violence prevention. The tools that are used in the project are the Theatre of the Oppressed - Newspaper theatre, Critical Incident Methodology, and Process-oriented psychology.
Objectives
SMASH´s general objective is to empower young people with migrant backgrounds and youth workers through the development, piloting, and multiplication of the SMASH method and SMASH resources for the acquisition of digital readiness and resilience to combat hate speech online and foster a more inclusive online environment for underrepresented groups.
Educational Resources
Develop educational materials tailored to non-formal education methods, incorporating elements of theatre of the oppressed, critical incident techniques, and process-oriented psychology. These resources should be accessible, engaging, and sensitive to the diverse backgrounds of the target groups.
Empowerment Strategies
Implement empowerment strategies for young people facing exclusion to build resilience against online hate speech. This may involve confidence-building activities, skill development, and creating support networks.
Online Safety Workshops
Conduct workshops focusing on online safety, responsible digital citizenship, and methods to counteract hate speech. Equip young people with practical tools for navigating online spaces positively.
Peer-to-Peer Approaches:
Encourage peer-to-peer education and support systems. Engage young people as advocates against online hate speech, fostering a sense of responsibility within their own communities.
Training for Youth Workers
Training for Youth Workers: Provide comprehensive training for youth workers on identifying, addressing, and preventing online hate speech. This should include strategies for creating safe spaces, fostering open dialogue, and promoting digital literacy skills.
Collaboration and Networking:
Facilitate collaboration and networking opportunities for youth workers and youth in more vulnerable situations. Encourage the sharing of experiences, best practices, and strategies for tackling online hate speech.
Cultural Sensitivity
Address cultural nuances and specific challenges faced by communities in more vulnerable situations. Tailor interventions to be culturally sensitive, recognising the unique experiences of different groups.
Target groups
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Young migrants and young people with a migrant background facing situations of racism, discrimination, and hate speech.
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Youth workers and professionals working in the field of youth work.
Methodology
The SMASH method is a combination of offline/online innovative, creative, and collaborative methodologies and approaches aiming at strengthening young people’s critical thinking, empowerment, digital and social emotional capacities to combat hate speech online. It blends Theatre of the Oppressed (TO), Critical Incident Methodology (CIM), Process Work or Process-oriented psychology, DigComp, and the UN policy paper “Countering and Addressing Online Hate Speech: A Guide for policy makers and practitioners”.
Theatre of the Oppressed
(TO) was developed in the seventies by Brazilian playwright Augusto Boal and has been one of the main tools of participatory communication and popular education movements in Latin America. Unlike many social aspects of the theatre, the Theatre of the Oppressed (TO) is a political theatre. It is a collaborative encounter for emancipation. Based on the epistemology of Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire, TO uses theatre games to de-mechanise our perceptions, making us aware of our cultural filters by making explicit and re-enacting our own conflicts and experiences. The bringing to life on stage of individual issues and subsequent extrapolation to the experiences of the group, TO allows to search and creation of alternatives to conflicts that often prove difficult to resolve from an individual position.
Newspaper theatre
is one of the methods constituting the methodology of the Theatre of the Oppressed (TO). Newspaper theatre allows exploring new ways of communication and self-expression while developing a critical view and way of using media and communication channels in a safer, responsible, and informed manner. In addition, newspaper theatre tools used in combination with digital skills and methods offer alternative innovative ways to tackle the subjects and needs related to racism and hate speech by deconstructing the discriminatory and exclusive narrative in favour of a more integral approach towards diversity, inclusion, and community-building among youth in both online and offline contexts.
Critical Incident Methodology
was developed by Margalit Cohen-Emeriquea and proposes suspending the theoretical debate and changing the registry to focus on the level of practice, hence providing a passage between these two approaches. It proposes a strategy to uncover the assumed set of cultural norms, values, and behaviours that people have when meeting with others. The increase in negative emotional turmoil bordering the intercultural misunderstanding helps us to be more aware of our own culture and invites us to explore frameworks of cultural references more objectively to open a margin for negotiation where prejudice has a lower weight.
Process Work or Process-oriented psychology
is a method that provides a model that integrates and uses contributions from various disciplines to facilitate the transformation and growth of individual and collective groups. This methodology is applied in different areas: community and organisational development, diversity and leadership training, individual psychotherapy and family relations, counselling and group facilitation, and focuses mainly on developing a state of consciousness by helping individuals and groups to realise how they perceive and live their experiences, learn to change their approach and find the information which is not noticed or marginalising and hence limits a person’s ability to respond. Process Work teaches us to connect with our deeper self and learn to be creative and flow amid extreme circumstances.
DigComp – Digital Competence Framework
DigComp, officially referred to as "DigComp: A Framework for Developing and Understanding Digital Competence in Europe”, is a framework developed by the European Commission to define and standardise the digital skills and competences that individuals need to possess in the digital age.
The DigComp framework is designed to provide a common language and reference for digital competences across Europe. It consists of a set of key components and levels, outlining the skills and competencies required for individuals to use digital technologies effectively in various contexts. It serves as a valuable tool for designing digital literacy programs, training initiatives, and policy development at both national and European levels. The framework is periodically updated to reflect changes in technology and digital practices.
UN Strategy – Countering Online Hate Speech
The UN policy paper “Countering and Addressing Online Hate Speech: A Guide for policymakers and practitioners” sets out strategic guidance to address hate speech at the national and global level. The Strategy comprises 13 commitments of action to address and counter hate speech in line with international human rights norms and standards, the right to freedom of opinion and expression in particular.
The Strategy further emphasises the importance of partnerships in tackling hate speech, and among its guiding principles it notes: ‘tackling hate speech is the responsibility of all – governments, societies, the private sector, starting with individual women and men. All are responsible, all must act.’
