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Another notable finding was that many mothers were

unaware of how social media poses a risk. For example, one

mother shared how she discovered that her son was using

Facebook to encourage others to pelt stones, as a form of

protest. This alarmed the other mothers and they vowed to

be more aware of their children’s phone and computer use.

Overall, following the workshops, mothers expressed

feeling empowered and better equipped to address the threat

of violent extremism. “I think I am a better person today with

a better understanding of my role as a mother, as a woman.

Earlier I thought we are just born to work for our families:

cook food for them, wash their clothes. I was wrong. I had

restricted my vision of being a woman. Today I am a person

who dreams of bringing peace into society.”

In light of these successes, Women without Borders is

scaling up the Mothers Schools concept to the global scale. It

is bringing the model to Europe to address the rising number

of Western youth becoming radicalized. The first European

Mothers School is now implemented in Austria and intends

to build out the European network.

The Mothers School concept extends beyond the

curriculum and the workshops, however. While mothers

are placed at the heart of a preventative CVE paradigm,

support from broader civil society magnifies the outcomes

of the Mothers Schools in building community resilience.

Addressing the social, emotional and psychological factors

that drive youth to adopt extremist ideologies requires

guidance and attention for every child; a task that requires

many trusted and willing individuals drawn from various

corners of society. Therefore, the Mothers School concept,

in addition to building capacity among mothers, seeks to

secure the essential supports to pre-empt and respond to

disaffected and emotionally vulnerable youth from multiple

angles. It works to ensure that children feel seen and heard

in many of their social spheres.

The response to preventing radicalization must reflect the

way the process evolves: beginning at the individual level

and rising to threaten local, national and global society. The

step beyond the home sphere is the school, which also serves

an important role in instilling the values and life skills neces-

sary for healthy development and successful integration

into society. Teachers, like mothers, contribute to security

in two key ways. First, they are responsible for actively

guiding youth into adolescence and young adulthood and

are similarly well placed, in the classroom, to use construc-

tive dialogue to promote moral values and tolerance, while

challenging ideas including racism and discrimination.

Secondly, they also have close interactions with youth and

are thus able to recognize and respond to early warning

signs of radicalization. The school, therefore, understood as

a microcosm of broader society, serves as an additional space

to root out some of the underlying factors that drive youth

towards violent extremism, and root in qualities and coping

skills that draw them away.

SAVE training in Yemen: working with mothers to address the growing problem of extremism

Image: Women without Borders/SAVE

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