What is OHS?

Scholar Definitions

Online hate speech (OHS) is increasingly visible in social media, targeting individuals based on their group membership (e.g., ethnicity, race, sexual orientation, religion). It generally refers to bias-motivated, derogatory language targeted at a person/group because of their group membership and leads to avoidance and aggression. A central characteristic of hate speech is that it is dehumanizing and is used to discriminate, denigrate, and harm the target. Ultimately it can lead to hate crimes, or genocide, as discrimination and dehumanization are well known early stages of human genocide. The detrimental consequences of OHS are pervasive and impact societies as whole. Besides the harmful consequences for the victims, OHS also impacts the larger audience exposed to it. Increased exposition to OHS creates a sense of normativity, decreasing individual’s sensitivity to hateful content, that ultimately prevents counteracting it. One of the major criticisms and challenges to effectively tackle OHS is the lack of a clear conceptual definition. Without a clear definition of what OHS is, and what are its key features, research on this socially relevant topic is compromised. Without clear conceptual definitions, we cannot assess this complex phenomenon, nor clearly understand its multiple manifestations, triggers, and motivations which ultimately hinders its effective tackle.

In kNOwHATE we define OHS based on the recent guidelines provided by the Council of Europe in its latest Recommendation (CM/Rec/2022/16), as well as on scholarly work (Siegle, 2020):  

OHS refers to bias-motivated, derogatory language targeted at a person/group because of their group membership (e.g., perceived characteristics as ethnicity, race, sexual orientation, etc) that spread, incite, promote, or justify hatred, exclusion, and/or violence/aggression. 

Definitions by the European Union

Council of Europe in its latest Recommendation (CM/Rec/2022/16)

“ hate speech is understood as all types of expression that incite, promote, spread or justify violence, hatred or discrimination against a person or group of persons, or that denigrates them, by reason of their real or attributed personal characteristics or status such as “race”, colour, language, religion, nationality, national or ethnic origin, age, disability, sex, gender identity and sexual orientation. (…) As hate speech covers a range of hateful expressions which vary in their severity, the harm they cause and their impact on members of particular groups in different contexts, member States should ensure that a range of properly calibrated measures is in place to effectively prevent and combat hate speech. Such a comprehensive approach should be fully aligned with the European Convention on Human Rights and the relevant case law of the European Court of Human Rights (the Court) and should differentiate between:

  1. hate speech that is prohibited under criminal law; and
  2. hate speech that does not attain the level of severity required for criminal liability, but is nevertheless subject to civil or administrative law; and
  3. offensive or harmful types of expression which are not sufficiently severe to be legitimately restricted under the European Convention on Human Rights, but nevertheless call for alternative responses, as set out below, such as: counter-speech and other countermeasures; measures fostering intercultural dialogue and understanding, including via the media and social media; and relevant educational, information-sharing and awareness-raising activities.”

Definitions by the United Nations

“There is no international legal definition of hate speech, and the characterization of what is “hateful” is controversial and disputed. In the context of this document, the term hate speech is understood as any kind of communication in speech, writing or behaviour, that attacks or uses pejorative or discriminatory language with reference to a person or a group on the basis of who they are, in other words, based on their religion, ethnicity, nationality, race, colour, descent, gender or other identity factor. This is often rooted in, and generates in tolerance and hatred and, in certain contexts, can be demeaning and divisive”
 

Strategy and Plan of Action for Hate Speech

  • CDE Plan/Activities – Communication, Dissemination and Exploitation Plan and Activities​
  • OHS – Online Hate Speech​
  • OCS – Online Counter Speech​
  • CSOs – Civil Society Organisations​
  • Target Audiences – main recipients of our communication and dissemination activities: civil society organisations, public authorities, academia and general public​
  • Target Groups / Target Communities – minority groups and communities most affected by OHS (LGTBI+ community, immigrants communities and ethnic/racialized minorities such as Roma people, and Afro-descendents)​
  • KPIs – Key Performance Indicators​
  • SEO – Search Engine Optimisation