TAAO – Together Against Antigypsyism Online
Since March 2024, the Romaversitas Foundation has been implementing a project within an international partnership framework aimed at monitoring online anti-Gypsyist hate speech, disseminating knowledge related to this phenomenon, and advocating for stronger action against antigypsyism.
Within the framework of the project, our Foundation is responsible for carrying out joint monitoring activities in cooperation with partner countries. The multi-country study entitled “Together Against Antigypsyism Online (TAAO) in Europe” examines the scale, forms, and impacts of online antigypsyism, as well as the effectiveness of countermeasures, across six European countries: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia. Conducted over a 12-month period from October 2024 to September 2025, the research employed a mixed-methods approach. The study involved 30 young Roma monitors who collected quantitative data from 3,147 cases using a standardized monitoring tool (MT) and carried out qualitative analyses of 54 selected case studies. The methodology included sentiment analysis across various topics and content types, as well as aggressivity scales developed for both explicit and implicit forms of hate speech.
Based on the data collected in each country, we are currently organizing workshops and a public conference aimed at identifying possible solutions and moving toward the reduction of anti-Gypsyist hate speech.
As part of the project, we also had the opportunity to conduct two-day training sessions for Roma youth aged 16 to 30. The trainings progressed from general knowledge (attitudes, prejudices) through sensitization exercises (reflection on one’s own prejudices) to an overview of the Hungarian legal framework regulating hate speech and an examination of current phenomena observed on online platforms, along with possible responses (reporting to platform operators, “comment wars,” community-based awareness-raising, etc.).
Young people involved in monitoring and training activities within the project:
Kovács Dezdemóna Mária, Fehér György, Markócs-Mezei Tímea, Menyhért Attila, Végh Zoltán
Project organizers and coordinators:
Horváth Aladár, Trendl Fanni
