HATE-LESS France 🇫🇷 | Workshops 2 & 3: Lived Experience, Youth Participation and Citizen Media

On 4 and 5 June 2026, MITRA FRANCE organised the second and third sessions of its HATE-LESS cascade training for youth workers in Paris.

The two sessions were held at Le Local des Autrices, a creative space dedicated to women writers. The venue welcomed the HATE-LESS project and provided support throughout the training.

The workshops continued MITRA FRANCE’s delivery of the HATE-LESS Methodology Guidelines following its first cascade training session in May.

Bringing Different Perspectives into the Training

The training brought together participants with a range of professional, academic and community backgrounds.

The group included members of organisations involved in preventing radicalisation, street educators, a sociology student specialising in discrimination, a representative of the City of Paris and professionals working in education.

The sessions began with introductions. Each participant was invited to describe their background and share their perspective with the group. They also discussed their motivations for participating in the project.

These initial conversations opened a discussion about how participants could equip themselves with tools and strategies for addressing racism and discrimination.

Involving Young People in Socio-Educational Activities

Particular attention was given to the involvement of young people in socio-educational activities.

Participants discussed approaches that encourage young people to take an active role in these activities. This focus connected the subjects of racism and discrimination with the question of how young people can participate in the conversations and activities that concern them.

The group considered this topic alongside the different professional and personal perspectives represented during the sessions.

Addressing Racism and Discrimination Through Lived Experience

The training also included an autoethnographic exercise.

This activity allowed each participant to address racism and discrimination through their own lived experience and perspective. Rather than discussing these issues only in general terms, participants were able to consider them in relation to their individual experiences.

The exercise formed part of the wider discussions taking place across the two days and allowed each person to contribute their own point of view.

Exploring Participatory Citizen Media

Participants then explored participatory citizen media approaches through examples provided by Ligne16.

The sessions also covered social media, the use of artificial intelligence, and the creation of deepfakes. These topics were included in discussions about media participation and the ways different realities can be represented and shared.

The group was encouraged to reflect critically on the realities they wanted to communicate and those they wanted to construct collectively.

By bringing these subjects together, the workshops addressed racism and discrimination through personal reflection, youth participation and participatory media.

Continuing the HATE-LESS Cascade Training in France

Workshops 2 and 3 continued MITRA FRANCE’s HATE-LESS cascade training in France. Across the two sessions, participants shared their backgrounds and motivations, examined racism and discrimination through lived experience, discussed young people’s active participation, and explored citizen media, social media, artificial intelligence and deepfake creation.

The training brought these discussions together within the HATE-LESS framework and provided space for the different participants to contribute their experiences and professional perspectives.