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Description
The rise of various forms of intolerance - fueled by populist parties and politicians - poses a growing threat to Slovakia and the European Union as a whole, and to our fundamental values. The situation among young voters in Slovakia is particularly serious. Surveys have repeatedly shown that in this group of voters right-wing extremists have the highest support in the long term. This points to the need for more effective education of young people on civil and human rights issues. Working with young people in general and specifically with groups at risk of extremism is extremely demanding and is significantly undersized in Slovakia. Informal youth education is very poorly represented in Slovakia, as is social work with youth. At the same time, youth work is the most important component of the fight against extremism and radicalism in society.
The aim of the project was to contribute to education in human rights and democracy and the prevention of extremism among young people. The primary target group was youth workers working in both formal and non-formal education. The main activity of the project was a summer school in June 2019 in Ružomberok. Approximately 50 youth workers and lecturers from six EU countries met here to share experiences and tested and successful methods suitable for educational and social work. The summer school was also one of the outputs of the two-year project of the international consortium. Within the framework of this international project, after the end of the summer school, the outputs were published in the form of a professional handbook, which contains an overview of tried and tested examples of good practice. long-term NGOs dealing with human rights education and de-radicalization from five EU countries: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Germany and Bulgaria. The primary target group of the project were youth workers working in both formal and non-formal education, including field social workers.
Summary of project results
The goal of the project was to contribute to education in the field of human rights and democracy and prevention of extremism among young people. The primary target group was youth workers who work in both formal and informal education. The main activity of the project was the summer school planned for June 2019 in Ružomberok. About 50 youth workers and lecturers from six EU countries met at it, and its main content was to share experiences and tried and successful methods suitable for educational and social work. The summer school was also attended by representatives of several youth organizations from six Central and Eastern European countries, including the German organization Cultures Interactive. In addition, representatives of Slovakia also participated in the Summer School, e.g. organizations such as Youth Street, Slovak Debate Association, etc.
Based on the conclusions of the summer school and the meeting of the CEE Prevent Net consortium, which took place in July 2019, a call was formulated on the importance of work with youth, which was addressed to Michal Vašeček, the chairman of the working group for the creation of the prepared Concept of Combating Extremism from 2020, which was established at the Committee for the Prevention and Elimination of Racism, Xenophobia, Anti-Semitism and Other Forms of Intolerance of the Slovak Government Council for Human Rights, National Minorities and Gender Equality for the Prevention and Elimination of Racism (VRAX).