February 13, 2023
According to a survey conducted by GLAAD, Amnesty International, and the Human Rights Campaign, LGBTQ organizations have recently reported an increase in hate on Twitter.
Following Musk’s takeover in late October, five of the 11 LGBGT organizations surveyed reported increased abuse and hate speech. During the same time period, none of the groups experienced a decrease in targeted hate. The hatred is directed at individuals and organizations that support LGBTQ rights. The tweets contain violent, harmful language that frequently promotes discrimination.
According to the report, abusive tweets directed at the LGBTQ community increased by more than 600% within 24 hours of Elon Musk’s tweet. The study also discovered that Twitter’s current anti-hate speech measures are insufficient, as the platform is still used to spread hateful and discriminatory messages toward the LGBTQ community.
Amnesty International is calling on Twitter to take stronger measures to combat hate speech on its platform in response to these findings. The organization is urging Twitter to step up its anti-hate speech efforts and take concrete steps to protect marginalized communities, including the LGBTQ community, from harmful and abusive speech.
The survey, which only included accounts with more than 10,000 followers, was intended to capture a “snapshot” of the social media landscape in the months following Musk’s $44 billion takeover. Musk quickly reversed many of Twitter’s content moderation decisions after purchasing the company, including some high-profile cases that set an ominous precedent for the platform’s many LGBTQ users.
The report emphasizes the importance of taking more action to address the rise in hateful and abusive speech directed at the LGBTQ community on Twitter. The report found that Twitter’s current measures to combat hate speech are insufficient, and it calls for the platform to take stronger action to combat this issue.
The sources for this piece include an article in TechCrunch.
