Identity, Belonging and Extremism

The project “Identity, Belonging and Extremism” (IBE) is a media content based project that is delivered in local schools. The project is tailor-made on the local needs and created in consultation with students and their needs. It focuses on both online (digital resilience) and offline engagement. The project seeks to engage students on issues relating to the online world with an offline engagement medium. The themes are generic but central to understanding radicalisation and extremism. It targets both mind-set and behaviour.

The majority of extremist narratives offer three simple modes of engagement and understanding: 

• A sense of Identity
• A sense of belonging
• A sense of loyalty/duty

I.B.E tackles these modes by discussing Racism, Islamism, Islamophobia, Stereotypes & Social Media. The project is able to exploit topics like:

• Isolation
• Grievance
• Anger
• Lack of self-esteem
• Lack of purpose
• Lack of excitement and status

The project targets the visual, emotional and social reality of an individual, and offers an alternative that is based on individual reasoning and ‘group think’ behaviour. I.B.E attempts to counter this stimulus at both an emotional and intellectual level. It locates its narrative within the person and not the ‘problem’ or situation. In the project they show the person how they are in control of their response behaviour as opposed to the situation. It seeks to engender critical thought into the process of how actions affect the person. It works because we deliver it with openness and a personal context. We tell a story, about disability, stigma, bullying, expectations, norms, values, extremism, choices, situations and solutions. We let the students engage their own minds and then think about how they use them.

Contact details:

Email: enquiries@fidamanagement.com