Bye Bye, Facebook!

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I recently deactivated my Facebook account (I know: *GASP*).  I had percolated on doing so for a while, but recent events made the decision a very easy one. Perhaps you've already heard about Facebook's adherence to its "Terms and Conditions" (actually, lack thereof in this case) when it came to images depicting (and condoning/encouraging) violence against women and children.

Let me give you an example: When an image of a mother breastfeeding is reported as "against terms and conditions" (presumably it was seen as pornographic), Facebook would delete it almost immediately. However, when an image of a woman beaten, bloody, and bruised with a caption that reads, "Don't wine her and dine her. Tape her and rape her" or, "Next time, don't get pregnant" is reported as gendered hate speech (speech which is against Facebook's Terms and Conditions), it does not get taken down. When a gang of teenage boys gang raped a girl and posted the video on their Facebook accounts, it took the corporation an eternity to remove the content. I found these stories absolutely repugnant, not to mention life-threatening.

I posted an article from one of the feminist pages I had been following- about the #FBRape Twitter campaign. In this post, I also let my friends and family know I was going to delete my account in one week. When I logged on the next day, my post was no longer there- I assume it was deleted by Facebook. That evening, I deactivated my account (is there any way to delete your account entirely?). There was a section available to explain why I was doing so. Needless to say, I leapt at the opportunity to tell them how reprehensible their behavior was. Here is the message I sent:

 

I disapprove of Facebook's blatant disrespect for women. You will delete a picture of a mother breast feeding and dismiss it as pornography, but when an image arises that is blatantly sexist (the first picture that comes to mind reads, "Don't wine her and dine her. Tape her and rape her."), you claim it is not against your terms and conditions. This is not okay. Violence against women in a pandemic worldwide, and when a company as recognized and as adored as Facebook condones it (which is what your behavior insinuates you are doing), the situation is worsened. People actually begin to think violence against women is okay! I implore you to think about the message you are sending when you allow individuals to post such hateful things without any repercussions. Women’s lives are at stake.

 

Violence in general is condoned in our society. Think about it for a moment. When a woman is hit, it is said she "Must have had it coming" or it is asked, "What did she do to make this happen?" We see a similar trend in violence against men. When the perpetrator of violence against a man is a woman, we shrug it off saying things like, "Oh, he's a man. He can take it."

NO NO NO!! Does anyone else realize how royally fucked up that is?! No one deserves to have violence done against them. Violence against anyone is bad- gender is completely and utterly irrelevant.

Anyway, my friend Yasha sent me an email a few days after I deactivated my account with an article attached. Evidently corporate pressure and the almighty dollar made Facebook finally crack down on misogynistic images and statements. Lovely. They wouldn't change their ways when all that was at stake was women's lives... but lose one damned penny and they're all about enforcing their Terms and Conditions.

 

Fuck you, Zuckerberg.