Instagram has landed itself in hot water again as numerous celebrities participate in protest of parent company Facebook.
Kim Kardashian West, Katy Perry and Leonardo DiCaprio are amongst other celebrities took part in an Instagram ‘freeze’ mid-September. They claim Facebook has failed to tackle violent and hateful content and election misinformation.
West posted to Twitter:
I love that I can connect directly with you through Instagram and Facebook, but I can’t sit by and stay silent while these platforms continue to allow the spreading of hate, propaganda and misinformation – created by groups to sow division and split America apart pic.twitter.com/XkxzABn7qw
— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) September 15, 2020
What Is The #StopHateForProfit Movement?
The #StopHateForProfit movement is an ongoing campaign that aims to hold social media companies accountable for hate on their platforms. It comprises of thousands of businesses as well as civil rights groups and non-profit organisations. Collectively, they urge social media platforms to prioritise people over profit.
Over the Week of Action in September, the estimated reach of #StopHateForProfit was 1 billion. Their goal was to raise awareness for Facebook’s harmful impact on our society as well as enact critical changes to their product ahead of the U.S. November election. During the week of September 14, many posted to social media in participation, demanding change.
As the most consequential election in America looms ahead, the campaign demands Facebook to adopt changes in regards to racism, violence and hate. Furthermore, they call for accurate election information. A petition has also been created on their website.
The movement also criticised Facebook’s handling of online material such as the recent Kenosha shootings. Self-proclaimed militia group called Kenosha Guard issued a “call to arms” ahead of protests. Facebook has since taken down the page, after an armed teenager killed two people. Mark Zuckerburg admitted that the delayed removal of the page despite a large number of initial complaints was “largely an operational mistake”. Facebook is now facing a lawsuit where they are accused of encouraging violence against protestors.
Earlier this year in July, the #StopHateForProfit movement demanded changes to Facebook, in which they have acted upon. However, it was not enough to decrease their harmful impact on society.
What You Can Do
As an individual, your voice can be heard. One can stop online hate by urging Facebook to adopt the campaign’s recommendations or by posting on social media using #StopHateForProfit.
Find out more here.
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