Dear fellow MoveOn member,
Facebook's proposed revision of its hate speech policy to consider "Zionist" as a proxy for "Jew" or "Jewish" is highly concerning. The proposed policy would too easily mischaracterize conversations about Zionism—which is a political ideology that has led to the founding of the state of Israel—and by extension, Zionists, as inherently anti-Semitic. Facebook is conflating criticism of Zionism with anti-Semitism, two things that are totally separate, thereby harming Facebook users and undermining efforts to dismantle real anti-Semitism and all forms of racism, extremism, and oppression.1
The proposed policy is the wrong solution to a real and important problem: Those who fuel anti-Semitism online will continue doing so, with or without the word "Zionist." In fact, many anti-Semites, especially among white supremacists and evangelical Christian Zionists, explicitly support Zionism and Israel, while engaging in speech and actions that dehumanize, insult, and isolate Jewish people.
Importantly, this move will prohibit Palestinians from sharing their daily experiences and histories with the world, be it a photo of the keys to their grandparent's house lost when attacked by Zionist militias in 1948 or a livestream of Zionist settlers attacking their olive trees in 2021.3 And it would prevent Jewish users from discussing their relationships to Zionist political ideology.
Facebook scrutinizing specific words won't keep any of us safe, but it will prevent us from connecting on the political issues important to all of us and block us from holding people and governments accountable for their policies and actions. The current Israeli government and some of its supporters have demanded that Facebook add "Zionist" to its hate speech policy. This would shut down conversations about accountability for policies and actions that harm Palestinians.4
Similar attempts by elected officials in states such as Alabama and South Carolina led to quashing protest on campuses and harming student organizations for denouncing Israeli attacks on Palestinians.
Facebook should refuse to cooperate with those who seek to build more walls to keep us apart. We call on Facebook to not add "Zionist" as a protected category in its hate speech policy. If they do, this would block important community conversations on the world's largest social media platform; restrict valid, constitutionally protected political speech; and deprive Palestinians of a critical venue for expressing their political viewpoints to the world.
Social media is increasingly a space for people to share and document their experiences with state violence and repression, upending previous power imbalances, government censorship, and state-controlled media. This has been a game-changer for global social movements for justice, including the growing movement in support of Palestinian human rights and criticism of the Israeli government.
Social media is a powerful tool to help us share our stories and support one another and our common humanity—no matter our religion, race, or nationality. We know Facebook is considering its responsibility to implement guardrails to keep the platform safe and accessible for us to connect across space and difference.
Facebook should allow us to hold governments accountable, not shield governments from accountability. That means Facebook should make sure we can discuss, debate, and even disagree about Zionism, about government policies and actions and accountability, and about our lives and families—as part of our commitment to safety for Palestinian people and Jewish people wherever they are in the world.
Click here to add your name to this petition, and then pass it along to your friends.
Thanks!
–Dave Zirin, Sports Editor, The Nation
Sources:
1. "Facebook might censor criticism of Zionists. That's dangerous," The Guardian, February 11, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/149962?t=10&akid=290976%2E10220574%2Et2k1fD
2. "Redefining anti-Semitism on Facebook," Aljazeera, September 22, 2020
https://act.moveon.org/go/149963?t=12&akid=290976%2E10220574%2Et2k1fD
3. "Facebook Says It Is Deleting Accounts at the Direction of the U.S. and Israeli Governments," The Intercept, December 30, 2017
https://act.moveon.org/go/149964?t=14&akid=290976%2E10220574%2Et2k1fD
4. "GREATEST THREAT TO FREE SPEECH IN THE WEST: CRIMINALIZING ACTIVISM AGAINST ISRAELI OCCUPATION," The Intercept, February 16, 2016
https://act.moveon.org/go/149965?t=16&akid=290976%2E10220574%2Et2k1fD
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