Facebook announced on Wednesday a comprehensive ban on white nationalism and white separatism, two ideologies that the company previously viewed as different from white supremacy, which the social network blocked in 2018.
But activists and civil rights groups have long argued that the tenets make up distinctions without a difference.
“Today we’re announcing a ban on praise, support and representation of white nationalism and separatism,” the social media giant said in a statement. “It’s clear that these concepts are deeply linked to organized hate groups and have no place on our services.”
The new policy comes less than two weeks after a white supremecist killed 50 worshippers at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. The accused terrorist live-streamed the attack in a horrifying 17-minute video. He also posted a manifesto laden with racist and white nationalist parlance on social media before going into the mosques.
Facebook said it did not originally include white nationalism and separatism in its ban on white supremacy because the company understood them in “broader concepts of nationalism and separatism — things like American pride and Basque separatism, which are an important part of people’s identity.”
In recent months, however, the company realized “that white nationalism and separatism cannot be meaningfully separated from white supremacy and organized hate groups.”
Facebook said its realization came after speaking with activists in civil society, academics, and other experts on race relations.
The Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors hate groups in the U.S. and pressured Facebook to make the change, praised the decision on Twitter.
However, the group criticized the platform for banning white supremacy but allowing white nationalist and separatist content to spread “despite the lack of difference between ideologies.”
Facebook was also pressured by the social justice organization Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law to update its policy.
“Took hard work to achieve this victory but our work is not over,” tweeted Kristen Clarke, the group’s president and executive director. “We will be monitoring Facebook closely to ensure that they implement this policy fully. We can't allow violent white supremacists to incubate, organize & recruit on our online platforms.”
In addition to external counsel, Facebook said it conducted an internal review of hate figures and organizations on the platform, which revealed an overlap between white nationalism and separatism and white supremacy.
Moreover, when future users search for terms associated with white supremacy, Facebook will direct them to Life After Hate, a counter-extremist group that works to interrupt violence committed in the name of ideological or religious beliefs.
“Unfortunately, there will always be people who try to game our systems to spread hate,” Facebook’s statement added. “Our challenge is to stay ahead by continuing to improve our technologies, evolve our policies and work with experts who can bolster our own efforts.”
The ban will apply to Facebook and Instagram and go into effect next week.
Jack Miller, Head of Trading at Baird, joined Closing Bell to break down how the Securities and Exchange Commission's proposals would change the landscape for individual investors, as they face stiff opposition from brokerages like Robinhood.
Robotics automation technology company Symbotic made its market debut on the Nasdaq via a SPAC merger with SVF Investment Corp. 3, a special purpose acquisition company sponsored by an affiliate of SoftBank Investment Advisers. Symbotic rang the Opening Bell at the Nasdaq to celebrate the occasion this morning. Its debut on Wall Street comes amid an urgent need for logistics solutions, as it aims to reimagine supply chains with its A.I.-powered robotic and software platform. Tom Earnst, CFO of Symbotic, and Vikas Parekh, managing partner at Softbank Investment Advisors, join Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
The critically acclaimed film "The Northman" is now available on Peacock, DVD, and Blue Ray, and director Robert Eggers joined Cheddar News to discuss the process of getting everything right about his brutal drama. “Me and my collaborators were working with some of the finest Viking historians and archaeologists in the field when we were making this," he said. "So the material, culture, and the spiritual world is you know, the best attempt at historical accuracy."
Catching you up on today's top entertainment stories with Julia Garner of "Inventing Anna" has been considered as a front runner for the upcoming Madonna biopic, a "Joker" sequel has been confirmed, and Matthew McConaughey visited the White House to speak on the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting, and more.
Meta announced its plans to join the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. This is leaving businesses and customers wondering what the tech giant has in store for the event. Nicola Mendelsohn, the vice president of the global business group at Meta, joined Cheddar News to preview what the tech giant will discuss at this year's festival. "We're going to be showcasing more about reels. We're going to be talking about our commerce solutions, are messaging solutions, and of course, the method of us speaking of new ways to kind of connect with customers," she said.
On today's episode of On The Job: Cheddar gets a look at how the salon and beauty industry has pivoted throughout the pandemic; Mark Brim, President of Aquent's Recruiting Division Vitamin T, breaks down how remote work has transformed hiring and recruiting process across the board;
Julie Bauke, President & Chief Career Strategist at The Bauke Group, breaks down why companies are being 'ghosted' by new hires, and what repercussions can come from this.
Mark Brim, President of Aquent's Recruiting Division Vitamin T, joins On The Job to discuss how remote work has transformed hiring and recruiting process across the board, and the latest trends surrounding remote hiring across the globe.
