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Banning Holocaust denial on Facebook has sent a clear message
Facebook's VP Nicola Mendelsohn says with antisemitism on the rise, and alarming levels of ignorance about the Holocaust, the social media giant felt it was time to act.
As a proud member of the Jewish community, it hits me hard to see any form of antisemitism; it makes me sad and it makes me angry.
It’s a deep-rooted and dangerous ignorance, a serious problem on the rise which we need to work together to stop.
I’ve always been proud to work at Facebook because we stand against hate of any kind.
We don’t want it on our platform, and we work hard to constantly re-evaluate and update our policies to tackle it.
This week I was especially proud as we took another step forward in this effort, updating our hate speech policy to prohibit any content that denies or distorts the Holocaust.
We’ve long removed posts that praise hate crimes or mass murder, including the Holocaust. But with antisemitism on the rise, and an alarming level of ignorance about the Holocaust, especially among young people, we felt it was time to go further.
Education and access to the right resources are also crucial in tackling this problem. From later this year, we will direct anyone searching for terms associated with the Holocaust or its denial to credible information off Facebook.
Conversations and feedback from experts and community groups, including Community Security Trust and Antisemitism Policy Trust, in the UK, played a key role in these decisions and I would like to thank them for their contribution and continued partnership with us.
It strikes me as an incredibly sad reality that some people in society wish to spread hate. Especially when the vast majority are using our platforms as a force for good. I hope that our decision sends a clear message to the rest of the world that there should be no place for Holocaust denial.
Not online.
Not offline.
Not anywhere.
Our efforts to keep hate speech, in any guise, off our platforms will continue, so we can keep Facebook a safe space for everyone to enjoy.
- Nicola Mendelsohn, Vice President, Facebook Europe, Middle East & Africa
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