Ramping up the battle against online hate
The Online Hate Prevention Institute has set up monthly programs for 2020 to combat online hate.
Dr Andre Oboler
CEO Dr Andre Oboler says: “New government data reveals that 1 in 7 adults was targeted by online hate speech and 1 in 5 witnessed it happen to someone else.
Cyberbullying of children is closer to 1 in 5.
Those in minorities (whether based on race, religion, sexual preference, or other factors) are further impacted by group-based base speech. A 2018 study from Monash University, for example, found that in a 12 month period, 80% of Australian Jews had seen antisemitism online.”
OHPI is Australia’s only Harm Prevention Charity dedicated to reducing online hate and has eight years of experience and leadership in this field.
Dr Oboler added: “We’re ramping up both our efforts to tackle online hate in 2020 and our efforts to collaborate, train and support others wanting to take action in this space. This starts with the announcement of 11 one month campaigns.”
February: Holocaust denial, distortion and glorification (NOW RUNNING)
March: Racism against Indigenous Australians (IN PREPARATION – support here)
April: Islamophobia (support here)
May: Misogyny (support here)
June: Antisemitism (support here)
July: Homophobia and Transphobia (support here)
August: Countering Trolling (support here)
September: Racism and Xenophobia (support here)
October: Anti-Christian Vilification (support here)
November: Countering Terrorism (support here)
December: Cyber bullying (support here)
The Online Hate Prevention Institute is seeking volunteers to assist both our general efforts tackling online hate and with each of our campaigns for 2020.
A range of skills are needed and there are opportunities to contribute to this important work in a number of different ways. If you can contribute at least 8 hours a month and are interested in any of the roles below, please contact peter@ohpi.org.au. Volunteers will carry out their work with us online, there is no need to travel and the opportunity is open to all our supporters globally.
We are also happy to coordinate with and provide training and support to staff and/or volunteers from partner organisations supporting our campaigns.
Volunteers are needed in these areas”
News Analysts
These volunteers will find and draft summaries of online news articles about online hate and efforts to tackle it. The summaries will be shared publicly by OHPI.
Researchers and Writers
Volunteer researchers and writers will find, document and write about examples of online hate across a range of platforms. Some will focus on specific types of hate, for example supporting a campaign, while others may become experts in a particular platform.
Artists and Graphics Designers
Each of our campaigns involves publishing multiple articles online. These articles are promoted with graphics to draw in the reader’s attention. We invite artists and designers to help us create the images we need to promote our campaigns and other work.
Sub-Editors
Assisting our volunteer writers, our sub-editors will review draft articles and work to improve their readability. Experience writing or editing is essential for this role, though that experience may be at any level from student papers through to professional journalism.
Sponsorship Team Members
Volunteers in the sponsorship team will seek to secure funding to sponsor OHPI’s campaigns. Regular Sponsorship of a campaign is $500 and Major Sponsorship is $2,000. These funds will allow larger and more impactful campaigns.
Partnership Team Members
The Partnership Team will contact relevant organisations and groups (including on social media) inviting them to partner in our campaigns. They will manage the relationship with these partners and seek to build synergies that increase the impact of our joint efforts tackling online hate.
