Hate against LGBTQ+ community surges on Twitter under Musk

Twitter under Elon Musk has failed to protect LGBTQ+ organisations and individuals from online violence and abuse, according to a new survey.

The survey by Amnesty International USA (AIUSA), GLAAD and the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) revealed that the harassment of LGBTQ+ activists intensified since Musk acquired Twitter in October 2022.

About 60 per cent of respondents reported that they had experienced an increase in abusive and hateful speech on Twitter since Musk took over as CEO.

The other 40 per cent reported that they had experienced the same level of abusive and hateful speech as before. None of the survey respondents reported a decrease in abusive and hateful speech.

"Twitter considers itself a 'common digital town square', yet it's a town square where LGBTQ+ voices are all too often shouted down and silenced by constant hateful speech and harassment," said Michael Kleinman, senior director of technology and human rights at Amnesty International USA.

"It's disappointing, to say the least, to hear that the problem of hateful and abusive speech on Twitter is only getting worse," Kleinman added.

When respondents tried to report the abuse to Twitter, 88 per cent (eight out of nine respondents) said that Twitter took no action to mitigate or take down the reported content.

"GLAAD's Social Media Safety Index, released in July, gave Twitter a 48 out of a possible 100 score, and Twitter remains an unsafe place for LGBTQ+ people," said a GLAAD spokesperson.

About 60 per cent of all respondents said that hateful and abusive speech has impacted how they use the platform including posting to Twitter less frequently, sharing less information regarding their work, and limiting with whom they interact on the platform.

This problem was particularly acute among activists, with eight of nine activists surveyed reporting that harassment impacts how they use the platform.

About 65 per cent of all respondents said that there is more hateful and abusive speech on Twitter compared to other platforms they use.

"We urge Twitter to do the right thing and provide a platform free of hate," said Kelley Robinson, President of the Human Rights Campaign.