Ultraviolet
The petition to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri reads:
The public outcry against the reported atrocious gang rape committed by seven fraternity members at Cornell University in 2024 is warranted and necessary. That’s why, as a group of women, sexual assault survivors, and allies, we are sickened to hear reports that Instagram is placing warning labels on posts calling attention to this horrific case, awareness, and advocacy. These warning labels dangerously signal that sounding the alarm on rape culture is worse than rape itself, as well as make it difficult for some users to gain access to this important content. While it’s important to warn users about explicitly violent content, these warning labels on posts about Cornell — which result in shadow banning and outright censorship — are being put up on non-explicit content that do not violate Meta’s safety policies. This is particularly ironic given Meta’s active fueling of violence against women and survivors through 1) content moderation rollbacks that explicitly allow for the dehumanization of women, even allowing for the likening of women to household objects, 2) the promotion of AI glasses being used to stalk, harass, and enact violence against women, and 3) the recent findings that Meta ran over 300 ads containing suspected child sexual abuse material. It feels blatantly obvious that Meta doesn’t prioritize women’s safety, but our silence. Stop censoring posts about the Cornell rape case. Let us keep each other safe.
The public outcry against the reported atrocious gang rape committed by seven fraternity members at Cornell University in 2024 is warranted and necessary. That’s why, as a group of women, sexual assault survivors, and allies, we are sickened to hear reports that Instagram is placing warning labels on posts calling attention to this horrific case, awareness, and advocacy. These warning labels dangerously signal that sounding the alarm on rape culture is worse than rape itself, as well as make it difficult for some users to gain access to this important content.
While it’s important to warn users about explicitly violent content, these warning labels on posts about Cornell — which result in shadow banning and outright censorship — are being put up on non-explicit content that do not violate Meta’s safety policies. This is particularly ironic given Meta’s active fueling of violence against women and survivors through 1) content moderation rollbacks that explicitly allow for the dehumanization of women, even allowing for the likening of women to household objects, 2) the promotion of AI glasses being used to stalk, harass, and enact violence against women, and 3) the recent findings that Meta ran over 300 ads containing suspected child sexual abuse material.
It feels blatantly obvious that Meta doesn’t prioritize women’s safety, but our silence. Stop censoring posts about the Cornell rape case. Let us keep each other safe.