Every month, players from Ajax Amsterdam's men's and women's teams receive more than 1,500 hate messages on social media.
This figure is based on research data provided by the club. Unfortunately, they are not the only people to experience this kind of online hate. Social hate is a growing trend, affecting millions of people.
This weekend, in an effort to silence social hate, Ajax's men's and women's teams will play with three white dots instead of the usual names on their jerseys. The three dots are a globally recognised symbol representing silence.
They also represent the menu icon you select to report hate messages and associated accounts. Social hate is a major social problem, impacting millions of people on a global scale.
Research shows that 82% of Dutch people are affected by reading hate messages or offensive comments on social media. These include threats, discrimination, harassment and other forms of aggression directed specifically at an individual or posted on another person's timeline.
However, only 25% of social media users take action to stop it. This means that social media users unknowingly contribute to an environment in which social hate is becoming increasingly normalised.
With its #SilenceSocialHate initiative, Ajax wants to start a discussion on the impact of social hate and how we can silence it together. Social hate will continue to exist for as long as we allow it to.
By ensuring that hate messages are reported more often, it increases the pressure on social media platforms to remove the offensive content and improve their response to social hate. Establishing and reinforcing these boundaries, results in making social media a better place for current and future generations.
