Meta’s Oversight Board is currently reviewing two anti-transgender posts shared in 2024 that have been reported for hate speech, bullying, and harassment. One post on Facebook depicts a trans woman being confronted in a bathroom, misgendered, and questioned about using a women’s restroom. The other post on Instagram shows a transgender girl winning a sports competition with spectators expressing disapproval and misgendering the athlete. Despite Meta’s hate speech policy banning attacks based on gender identity, both posts were initially left up after user reports. Following appeals to the Board, Meta maintained their decision, citing the newsworthiness of the Facebook post due to ongoing political debates about transgender people’s access to bathrooms. Public comments are now being sought on Meta’s policies, the challenges of enforcing them, and the sociopolitical context of the posts to assess whether they respect users’ freedom of expression and the rights of transgender individuals. This instance highlights Meta’s consistent pattern of violating trans rights, as seen in previous cases where Instagram posts discussing transgender healthcare were wrongly taken down and a report from GLAAD criticized Meta for failing to moderate anti-trans hate speech on their platforms.
