Meta’s Oversight Board looks into anti-trans posts that the company won’t remove

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Meta’s Oversight Board looks into anti-trans posts that the company won’t remove

Meta’s

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shared in 2024 that were reported multiple times for hate speech, bullying and harassment. The first is a video shared on

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that shows a trans woman being confronted in the bathroom by another woman. The post misgenders the person as a man and questions why they should be allowed to use a women’s bathroom. The other case looks at a video posted on

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in which a transgender girl wins a women’s sporting competition, with some spectators audibly expressing their disapproval. The post also misgenders the athlete as a boy.

The company’s hate speech policy prohibits any direct ******* on an individual due to their gender identity. Yet, in both instances, Meta left the post live after users reported them. Then, following individual appeals to the Board, Meta took another look under its Hate Speech and Bullying and Harassment policies and came to the same conclusion. It also told the Board that it would have left the

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post up regardless, as it’s newsworthy given that “transgender people’s access to bathrooms that correspond to their gender identity is the subject of considerable political debate in the ******* States.”

The user who appealed the

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post argued to the Board that Meta is allowing a transphobic post to remain on one of its platforms. The assertion for the

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post was that the attacks lobbied at the athlete violate Meta’s Community Standards.

The Board is now seeking public comments through September 12 on aspects such as Meta’s policies, the challenges of enforcing them and how the content of each post and accompanying video could be seen from a sociopolitical context. It’s combining these two cases “to assess whether Meta’s approach to moderating discussions around gender identity respects users’ freedom of expression and the rights of transgender and non-binary people.” Meta has 60 days to respond once the Board makes a recommendation.

This latest instance is part of a consistent pattern from Meta of violating trans rights and well-being. Last year, the Board ruled that Meta wrongly took down two

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posts of a transgender and non-binary couple with bare chests but covered nipples. Both posts discussed transgender healthcare and how they were raising money so one of them could afford gender-affirming surgery. Meta argued the posts violated its ******* solicitation policies after getting user reports and automatic system alerts. The couple then appealed to Meta and the Board, with Meta reversing their decision. The Board still looked into it and agreed that the posts should never have been removed.

Outside entities have also criticized Meta’s lack of protections. Early this year, LGBTQ+ advocacy group

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outlining how Meta fails to enforce its own policies around anti-trans hate speech. The report showed dozens of clear examples demonstrating hate speech across

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,

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and Threads between June 2023 and March 2024, including anti-trans slurs, dehumanizing language and promotions of conversion therapy.

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#Metas #Oversight #Board #antitrans #posts #company #wont #remove

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