Violent extremist recruitment continues to threaten Tunisian youth, especially those in vulnerable and marginalized communities. With the help of the International Institute of Debate, the Observatoire National de la Jeunesse, the graphic designers of Lab 619, Tunisian media company Snapshot Production, and our donors, we launched The Adventures of Daly project to provide alternatives to violent extremist narratives through comic books.
The Adventures of Daly premiered in August 2017 as a twelve-month graphic novel campaign. It sought to not only to provide Tunisian youth with comic books and alternative narratives to violent extremism, but also to equip them with the skills necessary to understand, develop, and discuss relevant alternative narratives to violence while using the comic books as a launching point of discussion.
Central to this project’s success is a highly collaborative, participatory, and localized development process that has guided nearly every step of the comic books’ creation. Before the comic books were designed and printed, we held a series of regional dialogues where Tunisian youth from the five target communities helped inform the comic books’ storylines. We then partnered with Lab 619, a local collective of comic book designers, to develop five storylines that reflect the young people’s ideas and highlight alternative narratives to violent extremism. After producing five comic book stories, written in Tunisian dialect, we tested the stories through focus group discussions and edited them further to ensure they resonated with Tunisian youth. By involving young people so closely in creating the comic book stories, we provided youth with another outlet to have their voices heard.
As part of this initiative, we also partnered with the International Institute of Debate to train Tunisian youth and religious leaders to facilitate community discussions around the comic books’ themes. Youth and religious leaders then employed the International Institute of Debate’s main tool for discussion, “Café Talks,” in which youth gather in public spaces to participate in facilitated dialogues around sensitive topics. In this case, they discussed issues related to radicalization, violence, stigmatization, and other issues youth face. Thus far, over 500 young people have participated in Café Talks around The Adventures of Daly.
Photo credit: I.I Debate. Café Talk in El Khwet Middle School, Siliana.
We have worked with a number of other local partners to distribute the comic books and foster discussions around nonviolence and peaceful solutions. Most recently, we presented and distributed over 4,000 copies of The Adventures of Daly at Tunisia’s annual Comic-Con event where we also delivered a master class on the prevention of violent extremism through comic books.
 Bouraoui Ouni, Project Manager, and Moez Tabia, Comic Book Creator, deliver a master class at Comic-Con on preventing violent extremism using comic books. |
 People gather eagerly to receive the stories and a personalized autograph from the main artist behind the comic books. |
We also worked with the Observatoire National de la Jeunesse to provide underprivileged youth with copies of the comic books and engage them in discussions surrounding radicalization in various youth centers known as Dar al-Shabaab.
To date, we have distributed 12,000 copies of The Adventures of Daly in the five target communities. To expand our outreach further, we will meet with Les Scouts Tunisiens to present and discuss the comic books with young boys, in addition to launching a web portal where youth throughout Tunisia can interactively engage with Daly, view short films based on the comic book stories, and discuss the comic books’ messages.
For more information and updates regarding The Adventures of Daly, follow the project’s Facebook page.
 Photo credit: I.I Debate. Café Talk, Kasserine. |
 Photo credit: I.I Debate. Café Talk, Oued Lil’s Youth Center, Manouba/Tunis. |