HATE SPEECH LEXICONS

Design and research: PeaceTech Lab (United States); Collaborators: Local media, civil society, and nongovernmental organizations; Locations: Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Iraq, Kenya, Libya, Mombasa, Nigeria, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Yemen; Years: 2009–present

An investigation by Iraqi journalists, who noticed the dangers of inflammatory language used in media coverage, led to the development of the Hate Speech Lexicons. These carefully researched guides include words, phrases, and examples of how and why certain words can cause strong and even violent reactions. With the rise of social media, PeaceTech Lab pioneered a process for identifying and contextualizing hate speech using machine learning, workshops, and interviews with local communities. The resulting lexicons, freely available online, offer alternative words and phrases that can be used to stop the spread of inflammatory language. A future lexicon focused on the United States is planned, once funded.

VIEW AND DOWNLOAD CAMEROON LEXICON

VIEW AND DOWNLOAD YEMEN LEXICON

Image: Social Media and Conflict in Cameroon: A Lexicon of Hate Speech Terms, 2018; Researched, designed, and published by PeaceTech Lab; Image: Courtesy of PeaceTech Lab