Twitter does not protect organizations and people who defend the LGBTQ+ community from violence and abuse on the internetaccording to a new survey carried out by Amnesty International United States (AIUSA), GLAAD and Human Rights Campaign (HRC). Furthermore, since Elon Musk acquired Twitter in October 2022, harassment of those who advocate for LGBTQ+ rights has intensified.
All of the people surveyed said they had seen hateful and abusive expression on Twitter. 60% of people surveyed indicated that they had seen an increase in abusive and hate speech on Twitter since Elon Musk became its CEO. The remaining 40% expressed having detected the same level of abusive and hate speech as before. None of the people surveyed reported a decrease in such speech.
The survey included 11 LGBTQ+ organizations, as well as 9 high-profile LGBTQ+ individuals who are dedicated to LGBTQ+ advocacy. The survey focused on organizations and individuals with large Twitter followings; 70% of their accounts had at least 10,000 followers on Twitter. The aim of the survey was to gain an overview of the environment facing LGBTQ+ organizations and activists following the significant changes to Twitter, including the layoffs of the global Human Rights team and much of the Trust & Safety staff. , among others.
The survey asked, among other things, if there had been any change in the frequency of hateful and abusive expressions on Twitter since Elon Musk became CEO of the company, if such expressions had been reported to Twitter , how they affected the way you use the platform and how your experience on Twitter was compared to other social networks.
“Twitter must do more to protect LGBTQ+ activists and organizations on the platform. Twitter calls itself the ‘digital commons square,’ but it’s a forum where constant hate speech and harassment all too often stifle and silence LGBTQ+ voices.. According to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, all companies have a responsibility to respect those rights; It is disappointing to say the least to hear that the problem of hateful and abusive speech on Twitter is only getting worse,” said Michael Kleinman, Director General of Technology and Human Rights at Amnesty International USA.
Of the people surveyed, 9 tried to report this abuse to Twitter; 88% (8 of those 9) reported that Twitter had not taken any action to mitigate or remove the reported content.
“A GLAAD is deeply concerned about the safety of LGBTQ+ people — and all those who are marginalized — on Twitter. GLAAD’s Social Media Safety Index, released in July, gave Twitter a score of 48 out of 100, so Twitter remains an unsafe place for LGBTQ+ people. Misinformation, misinformation, and hateful content have real-world consequences and irrevocably harm our community. Everyone in leadership positions at the corporate, government, and community levels has a responsibility to provide education, provide facts and truth, and disempower those who actively contravene democratic principles,” a GLAAD spokesperson said.
“The disproportionate importance that social media has acquired in our lives means that platforms like Twitter have an obligation to provide a space free from violent rhetoric and harassment, an obligation they have long ignored,” says Kelley Robinson, President of the Human Rights Campaign. Independent research has shown that online bullying is directly linked to hate in the physical world, and we have seen time and time again that when hate is allowed to spread online, it ultimately ends up having tangible consequences. Once again, we urge Twitter to take appropriate action and provide a platform where hate has no place.”
60% of people surveyed said that hateful and abusive speech had an impact on how they used the platform, which meant posting on Twitter less frequently, share less information about their work and limit who they interacted with on the social network. This problem was especially acute among activists, with 8 out of 9 activists surveyed saying that the harassment affected how they use the platform (compared to 4 out of 11 organizations saying the same).
65% of all people surveyed said that there was more hate and abusive speech on Twitter than on other platforms they used. 15% of the people surveyed reported a lower presence of hateful and abusive expressions, while 20% stated that the number of such expressions was similar on Twitter and on other platforms. Again, individual activists reported a more negative experience on Twitter than organizations. Of 9 activists, 8 noted that the number of hateful and abusive expressions on Twitter was higher compared to other platforms; 5 out of 11 organizations reported the same.
Furthermore, hateful and abusive speech appears to have become more of a problem on Twitter than on other social networks since Elon Musk took over the company. 30% of all respondents indicated that hateful and abusive speech had increased on other platforms (besides Twitter) since October 2022, compared to 60% who reported an increase on Twitter. 30% (3 organizations and 3 activists) had also observed an increase in violence in the real world since October 2022 and reported increased hate and abusive speech, as well as protests, threats, harassment and violence.