Why now?

Young people are constantly being exposed to various narratives through engagement with online content that often has real world effects.

Research finds that young people are increasingly exposed to misogynist and anti-LGBTQIA + narratives. Toxic masculinity and harmful gender and sexuality narratives are gaining traction online and offline, resulting in serious real-world impacts. Notorious masculinity influencers, are spreading harmful ideologies around sexism which are filtering through to boys’ and young men’s behaviours. These influencers are part of the so-called ‘Manosphere’, a loosely connected network of online platforms and communities characterised by masculinist and anti-feminist ideologies that threaten gender equality, social cohesion and can contribute to gender-based violence.

The overlap between extremism and misogyny and anti-LGBTQIA+ hate is complex and has led to real-world violence in NSW in recent times. This includes the Bondi Junction knife attack in April 2024, where the sole attacker deliberately targeted women, and the attack on a group of pro-trans protesters in March 2023 outside a church in Belfield in Western Sydney, which was fuelled by a group called Christian Lives Matter.
All Together Now’s Design Against Hate project will follow international evidence and best practice in its efforts to build positive solutions to the problem. Our program aims to address the early stages of engagement with hateful or extremist narratives and ideas.