We’re all still reeling from the news that Meta—and by extension Instagram and Threads—will commit to turning a blind eye to anti-LGBTQ+ hate speech for the foreseeable future. But a new detail found on the site’s “transparency center” shows just how worrisome the new change is.
Meta literally created a LGBTQ exception for calling someone mentally ill as an insult. You can't do it for any other group except LGBTQ people.
— Alejandra Caraballo (@esqueer.net) January 7, 2025 at 5:51 PM
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“We do allow allegations of mental illness or abnormality,” the guidance states, “when based on gender or sexual orientation, given political and religious discourse about transgenderism and homosexuality and common non-serious usage of words like “weird.””
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Basically, they’re giving anti-trans folks carte blanche to fall back on the old saw that trans folks are mentally ill because of their transness. After fighting hard for transgender status to be removed as a mental illness from the DSM for years, we’re falling back into a moment where it’s considered normal and fine to question someone’s sanity on the basis of their gender orientation or identity alone.
Obviously it’s part and parcel of the whole deal. Tech billionaires are letting the incoming administration know where they stand by offering total compliance before they’ve even been asked to change anything about their business model. And if this trend continues—which it probably will—online safety for queer people could be a thing of the past.
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