U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib (D-13th District) sent a letter to parent companies Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok urging social media platforms to end censorship of Palestinian political speech following a report they censor content and deactivate user accounts raising awareness of recent Israeli state-sponsored violence against Palestinians.

“With mainstream media reporting often ignoring and silencing Palestinian voices, social media has become a crucial source of news, images and videos documenting the injustices Palestinians face,” the member wrote. Tlaib Congress. “Social media accounts have been among the only places Americans have access to first-hand accounts of the occupation and Palestinian violence on the ground. This is why these reports are particularly disturbing – Palestinians often have nowhere to turn to make their voices heard outside of social media. “

Congresswoman Tlaib also referred to another recent report illustrating a “worrying double standard: As posts and accounts sharing Palestinian perspectives are censored and restricted, Israeli extremist groups openly use Facebook-owned WhatsApp to coordinate violent attacks crowd against the Palestinians.

“I cannot understand how Facebook can justify censoring peaceful Palestinian voices while providing an organizing platform for extremist hatred,” the letter continued.

In conclusion, Tlaib posed a series of questions in hopes of clarifying the policies of the respective companies on topics such as the role of human moderators in their businesses to determine if content should be removed, if those human moderators have ever received specific training in content related to Israel. and Palestine, ensuring that Palestinian voices are heard in your decision-making process regarding the treatment of content on Palestine and Israel, etc.

Source: Office of Rashida Tlaib