Educate in "dark times". Hate speeches and pedagogical responsibilities

Abstract

In the field of pedagogy, hate has most frequently been presented as a grey area to be illuminated, materiality to be sublimated, or an obstacle to be removed via appropriate and timely educational action. Today, a pedagogy that developed its positions during the “post-Cold War” period – the pedagogy of “et-et” approaches, the integration of ideas, conflict negotiation, etc. – is confronted by an all-pervasive social education to (various forms of) hate, where hatred cannot be interpreted as a mere residue of the past or as the result of too little, or no, education. Rather, it represents both content and praxis in cultures that theorize and deploy it to foster aggregation, identities, and the “non-common good”. The present article explores the scope for, and onus on, pedagogy to engage with hate speech and discourses of hate by unpacking their educational implications and situating them among the critical economic, social, and democratic issues afflicting contemporary society.