Competencies

INTRODUCTION

• Facilitator presents three questions. They can be written on a board, displayed on a screen as Slides, or printed on a handout. (Slide presentation can also be found under the Resources tab.)

DISCUSSION

• Participants consider these three questions (also under Discussion Questions tab): 

1. 1. What is the difference between free speech, hate speech, and incitement to anger within a religious sphere?
   2. How might preaching about religion or belief discriminate against other believers or atheists?
   3. What responsibility do faith actors bear in denouncing hatred that incites violence, discrimination, or hostility?

• After taking time to think about and write down their responses, participants share some of their impressions with the group. Participants may record their ideas in their Faith for Rights notebooks, if provided.

CONCLUSION

• Participants may be encouraged to share their ideas with family members or friends or within their faith communities. 

• What is the difference between free speech, hate speech, and incitement to anger within a religious sphere?
• How might preaching about religion or belief discriminate against other believers or atheists?
• What responsibility do faith actors bear in denouncing hatred that incites violence, discrimination, or hostility?

Facilitator may use Slides to guide participants’ discussion. Discussion Questions are presented all on one slide, as well as each question on a separate slide, to provide flexibility.

• Editable PowerPoint file: Incitement to Hatred Unpacking Activity
• PDF:  Incitement to Hatred Unpacking Activity

• The #Faith4Rights modules are flexible and require adaptation by the facilitators before their use. Case studies related to peer-to-peer exercises in the 18 modules need to be selected by the facilitators from within the environment where the learning takes place. The #Faith4Rights toolkit is a prototype methodology that requires contextualization, based on the text of the 18 commitments, context, and additional supporting documents.
• Not all issues raised need to be resolved. This would be an impossible and even a counterproductive target. The aim is rather to enhance critical thinking and communication skills, admitting that some questions could receive many answers, depending on numerous factors.
• Tensions may occur during discussions related to “faith” and “rights.” Most of these tensions are due to human interpretations. Learning sessions are spaces for constructive dialogue in a dynamic process where tensions can be reduced with the help of clear methodologies, including pre-emptive situation analysis and evidence of positive results in areas of intersectionality between faith and rights.
• When preparing the sessions, facilitators need to factor in the profile, age, and backgrounds of participants. Focused attention on the learning objectives can transform tensions into constructive exploration of new ideas.
• Meaningful engagement requires democratically pre-established rules. Facilitators should dedicate time with participants to elaborate these rules together at the outset and act all along the training as their custodians.
• The time frames suggested in this #Faith4Rights toolkit are merely indicative. Facilitators may adapt them freely to suit the needs of their group of participants. The key balance is between respecting the overall time frame while not cutting short a positive exchange momentum.
• To ensure optimal and sustainable benefit, facilitators may create a “training notebook” for participants during their peer-to-peer learning sessions. It would contain a compilation of templates to help participants keep track of what they have learned throughout the program and eventually use this notebook as their personalized follow-up tool.
• When technically feasible, facilitators are also advised to project the module under discussion on screen in order to alternate between discussions thereon and showing the audio-visual materials listed in each module or any other items selected by the facilitator.

• “Now this is the command: Do to the doer to make him do.” (Ancient Egyptian Middle Kingdom)
• “Repay injury with justice and kindness with kindness.” (Confucius)
• “What is hateful to you, don’t do to your friend.” (Talmud, Shabat, 31,a)
• “Whatever words we utter should be chosen with care for people will hear them and be influenced by them for good or ill.” (Buddha)
• “By self-control and by making dharma (right conduct) your main focus, treat others as you treat yourself.” (Mahābhārata)
• “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against your kinsfolk. Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Leviticus 19:18)
• “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 7:12)
• “Ascribe not to any soul that which thou wouldst not have ascribed to thee, and say not that which thou doest not.” (Baha’u’llah)