Abstract Summary
Word of the year initiatives can increase society-at-large’s awareness of Applied Linguistics. In this presentation, we discuss empirically based measures to raise the value that twinning word of the year initiatives and Applied Linguistics can add to both theory and practice of folk linguistics.
Abstract :
This paper investigates folk perceptions of hate speech in Denmark. Recent migration into Europe in general and Danish society in particular has caused greater tension between the perceived majority and ethnic/religious minority groups, resulting in severe instances of hate speech in a variety of societal domains (Assimakopoulos et al. 2017). While the concept of hate speech was previously viewed as a relevant to academics and legislators primarily, it has become a concern for the public at large (Brown 2017), demanding theoretical perspectives that take folk definitions of hate speech into account.
The current paper addresses this gap by analyzing 30 semi-structured interviews with native speakers of Danish. The interviews explore a variety of topics, focusing on definitions of hate speech and their link to current legislation, while eliciting information about the covert and indirect nature of hate speech (Brindle 2016; van Dijk 2016). 15 participants were presented with predefined definitions of hate speech (e.g., speech used to denigrate people of other nationalities, ethnoracial backgrounds, religions, and gender/sexual orientations) and were asked to evaluate said definitions, and 15 participants produced definitions freely without being primed.
The analysis reveals that the priming condition did not change overall perceptions of hate speech between the two groups, since both groups generally defined hate speech as unpleasant, condescending language directed towards minority groups that overgeneralizes and creates stereotypes. In addition, the primed group thought to a greater extent that incitement to violence should be considered a legal offence, and that politicians often are the cause of hate speech.
The current study seeks to contribute to the growing body of research on hate speech that aims to understand how discriminatory content and pejorative discourse about minorities are legitimized and mainstreamed in modern society.
