Citizen initiatives to “celebrate and defend democracy which is under attack from all sides at the moment”. Shelved in 2020 due to Covid-19, the Democracy Prizecreated in 2015 by the Marc Sangnier Institute, was taken over in 2023 by ASDPH (owner of 20 minutes at 50%)*. The 2024 edition is awaiting applications for the three prizes at stake: the Democracy Prize, the Local Democracy Prize and the Youth Democracy Prize intended for under 25s. These will be delivered to Caen, Peace Memorialon June 26, 2024. Each winner will be given a check for 5,000 euros.
Are you wondering who is eligible for the Democracy Prize? Well, almost everyone: associations, sports clubs, municipalities, citizens. The ambition is to “defend everything that underpins democracy, starting with free, independent and responsible information”, announces David Guiraud, president of the ASDPH.
For this, the Democracy Prize wants to “highlight initiatives launched in the following areas: the full exercise of citizenship and freedoms; exchange and pluralistic dialogue between citizens; the promotion of social justice, equal opportunities and the responsibility and freedom of each person; the promotion of solidarity actions in favor of the poorest, the most vulnerable, victims of disasters, oppressed minorities; the promotion of actions favoring the deepening of European construction; the fight against all forms of disinformation, information education…” explains Jean-Bernard Cazalets, project manager at the ASPDH and deputy editor-in-chief of West France.
All you have to do is encourage anyone working in this direction to submit their application before December 31.
*The ASDPH (association for the support of the principles of humanist democracy), is a non-profit association under the 1901 law, owner of all the titles of the Sipa group: five daily newspapers (West France ; The Western Mail ; Ocean Press ; Free Maine ; La Presse de la Manche), the 90 weeklies of the company Publihebdos, three radio stations (Hit West, Océane, Clazz), the news sites ouest-france.fr and actu.fr. ASPDH also owns the advertising agency Additi and, at 49.7% (with the Belgian group Rossel), the free newspaper 20 Minutes and the information site 20minutes.fr.