- Consumer Information Center

Hate - How to protect and support our children?

On March 31, a meeting with parents of first-grade students was held at the Complex of Catering and Hotel Schools at Majdańska Street in Warsaw, devoted to the problem of hate in the school and online environment. The meeting was led by Joanna Dubel and Małgorzata Tymińska - experts from the Department of Consumer Policy.

During the presentation, the phenomenon of hate was discussed in detail. The reasons why young people commit hate were presented, indicating, among others, anonymity on the web, the need for peer acceptance, lack of awareness of consequences and the influence of negative role models from social media. The experts emphasized that hate is not only a problem for victims, but also for perpetrators, who often experienced violence themselves or have emotional problems.

During the presentation, special attention was paid to the effects of hate, both psychological and social. It is important for parents not to trivialize the problem of hate and to take an active interest in the lives of their children, both at school and on the Internet.

One of the interesting elements of the presentation was a discussion on the ways in which young people hide offensive or controversial content in instant messaging. Examples of emoticons used to encrypt messages were presented. Parents were made aware of how difficult it can be to detect such content and how important it is for them to be vigilant and educate themselves about new forms of communication used by young people.