By Jamie-Paige Tucker
Twitter has been a popular form of social media since it launched in 2006, with its current 330 million users all around the world. But in more recent times, the application has become a platform for racism, hatred, and discrimination. Which really gives it a bad reputation, for an app that was previously known for its 280 character limit.
Cases of racial abuse on Twitter aren’t uncommon. Unfortunately, the abuse comes in many forms too, from derogatory comments on ethnic features… to ‘jokes’ and ‘memes’ insulting black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) groups. So, when was it allowed to become such a negative platform? And what are twitter doing about it?
Twitter have a Hateful Conduct Policy which states that its company “are committed to combating abuse motivated by hatred, prejudice or intolerance, particularly abuse that seeks to silence the voices of those who have been historically marginalized.” Which in theory is great. However, when it comes to actually putting that policy into action, many cases slip through the net.
Racial activist, Larissa Ekwuru, often takes defence into her own hands, and isn’t afraid to correct anyone who makes uneducated remarks on the social media platform. Larissa explained: “It’s so important to pull people up for their ignorance online because it’s extremely damaging to receivers of these slurs. I refuse to allow the same trauma I received growing up to be brought onto the younger generations”.
Larissa’s frustration was expressed when she said: “Everybody is educated enough to know that calling a person of colour a slur is wrong, however the ignorance comes in other forms of reposting song lyrics, sharing politically incorrect terms and making tone deaf statements online.” And it’s in these cases that twitter fairs to reprimand those responsible.
One huge issue with the platform is that they aren’t seen to be doing enough to prevent these type incidents from reoccurring. A recent example, concerning Manchester United players Anthony Martial and Axel Tuanzebe, has been brought to light. The players received online abuse after the team’s recent loss against Sheffield United. Many fans flocked online to defend the Manchester united players and begged Twitter to take responsibility, step up and stop allowing this to happen.
Journalist, Kafui Okpattah however argued that he’s not entirely sure what more twitter could do to punish these accounts. He said: “I don’t know what penalising those trolls will do. They’ll just start a new account and carry on from there.” Which makes you question what will actually make racism online end?
Twitter insist that they are doing everything they can to eliminate this type of abuse from their platform. However, in some cases they are going to miss. With an estimated 145 million daily users, the platform have a lot to monitor and maintain. So, if you are receiving racial abuse online, should you be reporting it to a higher power?
The answer is yes. In many cases, it seems that these ‘trolls’ and abusers online forget that racism is a hate crime, which is a form of criminal behaviour. If reported, it can lead to police action, and potentially worse. PC Olivia Orme said: “Racist crimes are a force priority. Obviously, there is no excuse for these comments and there is usually action against the suspect in question”. If you are receiving racial abuse, don’t be afraid to contact the police, they are there to help and will take your report seriously.
In 2021, racial abuse should not still be happening. As a society, the aim is to put an end to racism, both online and offline. With 2020’s Black Lives Matter movement, and all of the other historic events that have happened over the years, there is now more than enough information and resources out there to educate everyone on why racial slurs and insults will not tolerated.
To find out more about twitters Hateful conduct policy, visit https://help.twitter.com/en/rules-and-policies/hateful-conduct-policy
To report any racial incidents on the Twitter, visit https://help.twitter.com/en/contact-us