Violence in schools – 130 lawyers point out the dangers to young people

Whether it’s brawls in the park next to the school, threats against classmates or online hate speech, violence in schools is on the rise. This was also made clear by a director of a focal point school in Floridsdorf – we reported.

The theme of violence runs through the entire education sector. The ‘Hate on the Net’ pilot project, in which lawyers have worked to raise awareness in schools, was very popular last school year. For that reason, the Education and Bar Association is now starting a new edition.

All Viennese schools from the 7th to the 9th grade can participate in the initiative. In the summer semester 2022, 107 schools with 394 classes and 10,000 young people were already on board.

Young people lack criminal knowledge
This offer is open to 50,000 other students. Do you have enough capacity for this? “130 lawyers have already agreed to go to the schools for this important case,” says RAK Vienna President Michael Enzinger. Pupils, but also parents, often do not know exactly where the red lines of criminal law lie. The send button on social media is quickly pressed once and young people are often unaware of the consequences. The legal areas are covered from the basics such as “criminal offences” to the type of punishment, the right of young people to hate on the internet, cyberbullying or unauthorized recording.

“Young people often do not know what a criminal record means for their future life,” reports lawyer Kerstin König, who did educational work at the MS Enkplatz. Finally, Enzinger emphasizes, “Even though it’s our job to represent clients in court, it’s our duty not to let it get that far in the first place.”