Extremism, in its different forms, is destroying many societies around the world. When people feel threatened to express their views, it means that the environment they are living in is not healthy. A group of students from the media department at Notre Dame University – Louaize (NDU) started a campaign called
to challenge extremism and promote moderation. The slogan is “Break down fear X Build up Tolerance.” In fact, “box out” is a term that is used in basketball. Players are boxing out when they are positioning their body in a way to prevent their opponents from getting rebounds. So, the creators of the campaign are aiming at boxing out extremism by creating environments that promote tolerance. The students are encouraging people to post their pictures making an “X” sign and challenging their friends to do the same by tagging them on the posts. The brand ambassadors are the basketball players Rony Fahed, Amir Saoud, and Basel Bawji. The team is also filming an awareness video based on social experiments. The students even did a research project which was conducted with young extremists. They were asked to swap their lives for one day with the issue they are facing. This campaign is a part of Facebook Global Digital Challenge. The latter is a project that is conducted over the course of one academic term. It consists of finding a solution to a social issue by reaching to the designated audience. The top three teams will compete in the United States to compete for prizes that range from $1,000 to $5,000. Also, the best teams will be supported enough to develop their campaign which will have a positive impact on the target community. Post your picture using the following hashtags:
- #BoxOutExtremism
- #ChallengeExtremism
- #ChallengeAccepted
Don’t forget to tag your friends!
