Videos disparaging trans women aren't hate speech, Meta board says
Wednesday and ruled that the two posts about trans people didn't violate the company's hate-speech rules.
The board's decisions on specific cases are considered binding.
Get Starting Point
A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday.
Enter Email
Sign Up
The ruling focuses on disparaging comments accompanying two videos, one showing a trans woman using a woman's bathroom and another showing a trans girl winning a female sports competition. The videos and posts responding to them circulated on social media last year. In both cases, Meta determined that while posts about the videos questioned a trans person's gender identity, they didn't violate its rules against hate speech or harassment.
Advertisement
Both posts came to the Oversight Board's attention after being reshared by conservative activist Chaya Raichik, who operates several controversial social media accounts known as Libs of TikTok, according to four people familiar with the matter. Raichik's social media accounts have become a fixture in American politics, and she has amassed an audience of millions while routinely attacking the cultural acceptance of trans people. Libs of TikTok has been blamed for sparking threats at hospitals and encouraging restrictions on LGBTQ+ -related content in schools. Raichik said the allegations about hospitals are false.
Related
:
Advertisement
The Oversight Board's ruling is the first major test of Meta's latest efforts to rebrand itself for a MAGA-dominated Washington. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg pledged in January to take the company back to its roots by 'restoring free expression' after years of what he said were too many restrictions on speech. That same month, Meta weakened its hate-speech rules, offering users greater freedom to call for gender-based restrictions in bathrooms, sports and specific schools, and to characterize gay people as mentally ill.
The Oversight Board as a whole
said the posts didn't violate Meta's new or old hate-speech rules because they did not directly attack people based on their gender identity. A minority on the board argued that the posts would have violated Meta's old hate-speech rules
The board on Wednesday also issued a broader critique of Meta's latest policy changes, including calling on the social media giant to improve how it enforces violations of its bullying and harassment rules.
The Oversight Board planned to release the gender identity case ruling, among several others, next week but moved up the announcement to early Wednesday after a Washington Post reporter requested comment this week on the pending ruling. Ayobami Olugbemiga, a spokesperson for the Oversight Board, said the group would offer a comment for this report by the end of the day Tuesday but did not.
Advertisement
Meta spokesman Corey Chambliss said in a statement Wednesday that the company appreciates 'the work of the Oversight Board' and welcomes its decisions. Clegg didn't respond to a request for comment.
Even before Wednesday's ruling, the board's judgment on the gender identity cases had become a lightning rod among social media policy watchers, attracting scores of comments about how the group should rule, including from LGTBQ+ advocacy groups and conservative critics. The ruling could also affect how other internet platforms draw the line about what is considered acceptable speech amid a fierce global debate about the rights of trans people.
Related
:
'This ruling tells LGBTQ people all we need to know about Meta's attitude towards its LGBTQ users — anti-LGBTQ hate, and especially anti-trans hate is welcome on Meta's platforms,' Sarah Kate Ellis, CEO of
Critics argue that leaving the content up could open the door to more harmful rhetoric about trans people, at a time when the LGBTQ+ community is facing rising harassment and legislative efforts to limit trans people's ability to use bathrooms or compete in sports competitions in accordance with their gender identity. Meanwhile, conservative free-speech advocates argue that people should be allowed to criticize the rights of trans people — a position that polls show is gaining popularity among the general public in the United States.
'This isn't hate speech,' said Beth Parlato, a senior legal adviser for Independent Women's Law Center, a conservative group that advocates for restrictions on trans people's participation in sports and their presence in bathrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity.
Advertisement
'More than half of the country believes there are two sexes — male and female — and we should not be quieted or censored from discussing any issues that involve transgenders,' she added.
The Oversight Board is undergoing its own reinvention, five years after it launched as an experimental way for Meta to off-load contentious content-moderation decisions to an independent party. Critics of the board, both inside and outside the company, have alleged that it has moved too slowly to issue decisions, failed to substantially change the company's approach to moderation, and operated at too hefty a price tag.
Some have also characterized the Oversight Board as too liberal, applying pressure that incentivized the group to take up the gender identity cases in the first place, one of the people said.
The 21-member Oversight Board, which is funded by the tech company but operates independently, includes a global roster of well-known public figures in media, politics, civil society and academia. Its members include former Danish prime minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt, University of Notre Dame professor Paolo Carozza, Prospect magazine editor Alan Rusbridger, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Tawakkol Karman and Cato Institute Vice President John Samples.
The Oversight Board reviewed a Facebook post that shared a video in which a woman films herself confronting a transgender woman for using the women's bathroom, according to the board's description of the case.
The woman asked the trans woman why she was using the women's bathroom. The board is also reviewing an Instagram post sharing a video of a transgender girl winning a sports competition in the United States, with some spectators expressing disapproval of the result. The post refers to the trans athlete as a boy, according to the board.
Related
:
Advertisement
Both posts, which were shared last year, were reported by users as violating the company's hate speech and bullying and harassment policies. But Meta left the posts up, determining that the videos or posts didn't specifically call for the exclusion of trans people, according to one of the people and a description of the case from the Oversight Board. At least two of the users who originally reported the content appealed that decision to the board.
Meta's old hate-speech or anti-harassment rules banned users from calling for the political, social or economic exclusion of people based on characteristics such as race, gender, or sexual orientation. Meta's new rules give users the freedom to say certain jobs, such as the military or teaching, should be limited by gender. Social media posters are also free under the new rules to say they support denying access to certain spaces on the basis of gender. Meta's rules never blocked users from 'misgendering' people, by using someone's non-preferred pronouns.
Meta initially told the Oversight Board that the posts didn't break the rules but that even if they did, they would be considered exempt under the company's newsworthiness allowance. Later, Meta reviewed its new hate-speech rules with the Oversight Board, whose members took them into consideration for its ruling, two of the people said.
Since the board took
up the cases in August, activists on both sides of the issue have weighed in. GLAAD argued that the posts should be considered a violation of the company's hate-speech rules because misgendering someone is equivalent to 'denying [the] existence' of people based on a sensitive characteristic. By contrast, the Independent Women's Forum argued that allowing the contested videos to be posted is a crucial tool for women to be able to advocate against having trans women, whom they call men, use women-only spaces.
Advertisement
For now, Meta is
siding with the latter. Zuckerberg told podcaster Joe Rogan in January that one reason the company changed its rules is because then-defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth's previous criticism of policies allowing women in combat would probably be debated in his confirmation hearing.
'If it's okay to say on the floor of Congress, you should probably be able to debate it on social media,' Zuckerberg said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
San Francisco Chronicle
30 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
By sending troops to D.C. and eyeing Oakland, Trump continues targeting Black-led cities
When President Donald Trump announced Monday that he will deploy National Guard troops to the streets of Washington D.C. to combat crime, he named several other cities where he might take similar action. 'We have other cities also that are bad. Very bad,' Trump said during the White House news conference. 'You look at Chicago, how bad it is. You look at Los Angeles, how bad it is. We have other cities that are very bad. New York has a problem. And then you have, of course, Baltimore and Oakland. We don't even mention that anymore there.' Trump and other members of his administration, while often using false or misleading statistics, have cited rampant crime as the justification for deploying federalized troops within U.S. cities. But these cities share another commonality: They're led by Black mayors. Critics don't think that's a coincidence. Trump's focus on Washington D.C., Chicago, Baltimore, New York and Oakland is part of a larger pattern in which the president has suggested cities with majority-Black populations, or those led by Black leaders, are hotbeds of crime and corruption and symbols of American decline. 'I see this as a political dog whistle to his base, evoking long-running stereotypes that Black mayors cannot adequately govern or are soft on crime in their cities,' said Jordie Davies, a professor of political science at UC Irvine. 'Donald Trump is engaging in political theater so he can be seen as responding to the racist ideas that these cities are poorly run and overrun with crime — even as statistics demonstrate that violent crime in major U.S. cities, including D.C., is down this year.' Reports of violent crimes — homicides, robberies, assaults and sexual abuse —have seen steep declines over the last two years, the Washington Post reported. 'If he is going to start lying about major American cities to justify sending the military there, it is not surprising to me that he would pick cities with Black leadership and significant Black populations,' state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, said Monday. 'That is straight up Donald Trump's alley and straight out of his racist playbook.' Crime is also falling in Oakland, a trend that Mayor Barbara Lee cited Monday in arguing that Trump was less interested in facts than in scoring 'cheap political points by tearing down communities he doesn't understand.' Oakland experienced a 6% increase in reported violent crimes in 2024, but saw a decrease in homicides and property crimes, according to a Chronicle analysis. So far in 2025, violent crimes including homicides are down significantly in the city. 'We're making real progress on public safety in Oakland, and while we acknowledge we have more work to do, we are doing this work each and every day,' Lee said. 'Our comprehensive public safety strategy is working — crime rates are coming down even though we still face many challenges. And let me repeat, President Trump is wrong.' Before Trump accepted the Republican presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last year, he reportedly called the city 'horrible.' 'Trump is a lot of things but he certainly isn't subtle—all of the cities he denigrates have one important thing in common: they all have significant Black populations,' DNC Chair Jaime Harrison said in a statement to the Daily Beast at the time. In 2020, Trump said of Detroit, Oakland and Baltimore, 'these cities, it's like living in hell.' 'And everyone gets upset when I say it, they say, 'Is that a racist statement? ' It's not a racist,' Trump told Fox News. 'Frankly, Black people come up to me, they say, 'Thank you. Thank you sir for saying it.'' Davies, the UC Irvine professor, said using the fear of crime — especially the idea of 'Black crime' — has always been an effective political message in the U.S. It was a message Trump hammered consistently in the 2024 election, a race in which he doubled his share of Black voters from 2020. (still, Trump's opponent, then-Vice President Kamala Harris, won 83% of Black voters.) 'Crime evokes fear and fear provides a political vacuum that can be filled with state violence,' Davies said. 'It will be important for experts, politicians, and journalists to call out Trump's lies about crime in these places and name this for what it is: a racist attempt to dominate Black cities and a performance of power for his base.'
UPI
an hour ago
- UPI
Trump extends China tariff deadline by another 90 days
Aug. 11 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump has signed an executive order, delaying the deadline for the United States to implement higher tariffs on Chinese goods by another 90 days, the White House announced Monday. The order was signed just before midnight, Sunday, hours before the current tariff pause was set to expire. The extension to Nov. 9 follows progress last month in Stockholm, Sweden, during talks between U.S. and Chinese trade negotiators. "We hope that the U.S. will work with China to follow the important consensus reached during the phone call between the two heads of state ... and strive for positive outcomes on the basis of equality, respect and mutual benefit," foreign ministry spokesman, Lin Jian, said in a statement. Last week, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he, too, was optimistic about "the makings" of a trade deal with China. China is one of the United State's largest trade partners. In June, Trump announced a trade agreement with China over rare earth minerals. Under the deal, China would export rare earth minerals to the United States with both countries reducing their tariffs for 90 days. Rare earth minerals fuel energy sources for mobile devices and electric vehicles. As Trump signed the executive order Sunday night, he called on China to quadruple its purchases of American soybeans to reduce the United States' trade deficit with China. "China is worried about its shortage of soybeans. Our great farmers produce the most robust soybeans. I hope China will quickly quadruple its soybean orders," Trump wrote in a post on X. "This is a way of substantially reducing China's Trade Deficit with the United States. Rapid service will be provided. Thank you President Xi." Despite ongoing trade threats, China's economy posted second quarter Gross Domestic Product growth at 5.2% last month, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, as exporters took advantage of the Trump administration's pauses in reciprocal tariffs, which were announced April 2. Since the announcement, Trump hit China with tariffs as high as 145%, while China threatened retaliatory tariffs of 125%. During the initial 90-day truce, the United States reduced its China tariffs to 30%, with China dropping its tariffs on U.S. goods to 10%. "We'll see what happens," Trump told reporters at the White House. "They've been dealing quite nicely. The relationship is very good with President Xi and myself." Over the past few weeks, the Trump administration announced trade deals -- to lower tariffs in exchange for larger U.S. investment -- with Japan, South Korea and the European Union.
Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Miami Herald
Pope Leo calls for release of gang hostages in Haiti amid changes on security front
Pope Leo XIV is calling for the release of eight hostages in Haiti, including a 3-year-old boy and a longtime Irish missionary who remain in captivity after being abducted from a mountaintop orphanage by armed gangs in the middle of the night. 'I make a heartfelt appeal to all responsible parties to release the hostages immediately,' the pope said. The pontiff's heartfelt appeal came Sunday during a prayer service where he condemned the widespread 'violence of all kinds, human trafficking, forced displacement and kidnappings' in the volatile Caribbean nation. The comments marked the pope's first public acknowledgement of the unraveling situation in Haiti, where some of his ancestors were from, since the U.S.-born pontiff became the Catholic Church's first American pope in May following the death of Pope Francis in April. During the prayer service, in which he also highlighted other global conflicts, the pope called on the international community to provide tangible support to help create the social and institutional conditions 'that will allow the Haitian people to live in peace.' A week ago Sunday armed gangs breached the Saint-Hélène Orphanage in Kenscoff, an expansive rural enclave in the mountains above Port-au-Prince that has been under constant attack since the start of the year. Once inside, gangs grabbed Gena Heraty, an Irish national who has been working in Haiti since 1993, along with other adults and children. The orphanage is affiliated with Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos, NPH International, which confirmed the abductions on its website. The charity was founded by Father William Wasson, a Catholic priest, and serves vulnerable children in nearly two dozen countries across Latin America and Haiti. The kidnappings once more brought Haiti's rise in gang violence to the forefront. In Haiti, Saint-Hélène's orphans include children with disabilities from other orphanages that were attacked. 'The situation of the Haitian people is increasingly desperate,' the pope later said in a post on X. On Friday, the new head of Haiti's beleaguered Transitional Presidential Council, Laurent Saint-Cyr, said the climate of fear, violence and instability that reign inside the country has made life unbearable for the population of nearly 12 million. This includes more than 1.3 million who have been forced to flee their homes, of whom nearly 500,000 are children. Haitians are demanding only one thing, security, Saint-Cyr said, as he announced the firing of the head of the Haiti National Police, Rameau Normil , after 13 months and 20 days on the job. He was replaced by André Jonas Vladimir Parison, the former head of security for the National Palace. The change in leadership of the police came amid growing frustration with the force's failure to rein in armed gangs that now control about 90% of Port-au-Prince and are expanding elsewhere. Last year, more than 5,600 people died in Haiti in gang-related violence, according to the United Nations, and already this year, the country has logged more than 4,000 deaths. EarIier this month, the U.N. announced that more than 1,500 Haitians had been killed between April and June, while hundreds of kidnappings and rapes continue to be documented. At the same time, members of the powerful Viv Ansanm gang coalition had pillaged and/or burned at least 410 residences and other buildings, including six schools, health centers and local nongovernmental organizations during the period. Normil first served as director of the Haiti National Police in August 2019 when he replaced Michel-Ange Gédéon. He was fired in November 2020 and then brought back in June 21, 2024, replacing Frantz Elbé. But his tenure was marked by questionable arrests, too much territory lost to gangs, poorly executed police operations, a combative personality and a slow pace in recruiting new cops. Normil also faced questions over corruption and competence after the disappearance of a hotel manager and U.S. veteran, Patrice Miot Jacquet, who was working with a private military contractor in Port-au-Prince and disappeared along with police-issued weapons. But the most damning criticism Normil faced was the loss of 18 territories in 10 months to increasingly powerful gangs despite having more resources at his disposal than Elbé.. Despite that support, the police continued to face issues as Normil failed to effectively coordinate with the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission, cast aside qualified senior officers over accusations they were not loyal to him or were after his job, and his officers became overwhelmed while facing better armed gangs. Paraison, known for his 'warrior' approach to fighting gangs as he defended the National Palace earlier this year, has the confidence of most of the ruling presidential council but faces tough scrutiny as he takes on mired in corruption and human rights abuse allegations. Saint-Cyr called on Paraison to prove himself as a man of action, telling him 'to take all necessary measures to restore security' with the support of the Haitian Armed Forces and the Kenya-led mission. 'Rally your valiant... officers, earn their trust, intensify operations on all fronts, secure vulnerable areas, consolidate the territories we control, and liberate one by one those territories where our compatriots can no longer live in peace,' Saint-Cyr said 'Fear must change sides.'
