The Role of Adult and Non-Formal Education in the Eradication of Hatespeech as a Catalyst for National Disintegration in Nigeria

Abstract

Hate is among the most powerful of human emotions – it has caused great suffering – and yet it has been understudied by psychologists. The study was conducted to assess the role of adult and non-formal education in the eradication of hate speech as a catalyst for national disintegration.” Hate speech undermines the essence of public good. “When a society is defaced with anti-Semitic signage, burning crosses and defamatory racial leaflets,” the assurance of security “evaporates.” The study set out with the objectives of finding out the causes of hate in the society; to evaluate the strength and implications of language use; to ascertain the disintegrating socio-economic effects of hatespeech if left to continue; to ascertain the level of government commitment of fostering unity among its geopolitical zones and to ascertain the strategies to be employed in addressing hatespeech and helping those affected by verbal and non-verbal abuse. A simple random sampling technique was used to sample 90 respondents. The simple frequency and percentage was used to analyse the data gotten. The results arrived at include that Freedom of speech, though sacrosanct, is not absolute. Our freedom is a shared one, limited by the freedom of others. Citizens must draw the line between free speech and arbitrary spite. For a multi-ethnic state with fault lines such as ours, the lasting solution lies in healing the cleavages that promote ethnic division. This also means the triumph of a national identity that transcends the opportunistic ethnocentric group identity, which has been the bane of Nigeria’s nationhood. On this note this research seeks to reiterate the call for the restructuring of Nigeria in a manner of true federalism.

Keywords: Adult, Non-Formal Education, Eradication, Hatespeech, National Disintegration.

DOI: 10.7176/JEP/10-9-20

Publication date:March 31^st 2019