NONVIOLENT ACTION AND #STOPHATEFORPROFIT
On July 1, 2020 over 800 companies worldwide pulled their advertising from Facebook.
The #StopHateForProfit campaign asked advertisers to boycott Facebook[1] for at least the month of July in an effort to pressure the social media corporation to step up its moderation of hateful and violence-inducing rhetoric and misinformation in the wake of widespread activism and support of Black lives after George Floyd’s death.
So what does that have to do with us here at Climate Reality? Why write about this nonviolent action when we could be talking about Greta Thunberg’s school strike[2] and her plans to use her latest award to support climate action? Because, while #StopHateforProfit focuses on racist hate speech, and racism and climate justice are inextricably bound together, the boycott is about far more.
It is about how Facebook moderates their platform, or doesn’t, and the massive quantities of information that flow through it.
If there is one thing climate change activists know, it is that Facebook’s moderation practices are horrendous. Couched in the notion of everyone being able to voice their opinion, the company elevates falsehoods to equal footing with facts, allows scientists’ and specialists’ voices to be drowned out by bots and trolls and advertising that pushes false narratives.
Elevating climate deniers and restricting scientists has dire repercussions for our work and our planet.
Initially when news of the campaign hit the front pages, and large corporations like Patagonia, Ben and Jerry’s, Honda, Unilever, and Coca Cola joined the effort, Facebook’s stock prices dipped.
Hope that finally something might initiate true change began to percolate.
But weeks into the month it appears that despite holding a few, largely unproductive meetings with its staff, advertisers, and activists, Facebook has decided to simply wait it out, and move forward with business as usual.
This must not stand.
So what we do? We are small potatoes compared to Unilever or Coca Cola Inc. Most of us don’t advertise on Facebook, and very few of us work for them.
But here’s the thing, a lot of us use Facebook.
We are the bread and butter of the business.
Without us clicking around, connecting, touching base with our friends and fellow activists, without us letting an algorithm form an advertising platform just for us, there is no Facebook.
So we each have a voice.
Together we have a loud one. How we employ it matters.
Logging out and killing your account off is one tactic a number of people employed in the wake of the link between the platform and meddling in the 2016 US presidential election. It was a pretty satisfying cold turkey end to the relationship for those folks.
But if you want any business to change, you have to leverage your power to exact change. Walking away means leaving that potential behind.
So how can you, as a Facebook user, leverage your power, ideally in concert with other climate change advocates, with regards to the #StopHateforProfit campaign?
It is time to employ a consumer boycott.[3] And, to escalate the pressure you apply over time.
First, (after signing the petition) make it clear on your Facebook feed that you support the boycott. Pin a post saying it, so that is the first thing everyone who comes to your page sees. Second, make your support of the companies who have pulled their advertising a public display. If you buy a Patagonia product or a pint of Ben and Jerry’s, post a picture, and a note tying that purchase directly to the boycott.
Then wait, a week, a month, maybe. See what happens.
Does Facebook move forward with any moderation changes?
No? Ratchet up your action.
Step away from your accounts for a while. Leave them logged in but avoid using them. Again, place a post in a prominent location noting why you will not be using the platform.
Wait. No response? Ratchet up your action further.
Log out of your account.
If, after a few weeks, there is still no response from Facebook, it is time to leave. There is no reason to continue wasting your time, precious mental energy, and valuable data there.
Delete your account.
But wait, you say, Facebook is where I connect with all of my climate change folks. It’s where I see the calls to protest, where I keep track of my old friends, where I get the best memes. I don’t want to lose that.
I get it. I do. It’s convenient to hop onto Facebook and scroll through for a quick catch up. But there are other ways of staying connected, of keeping a finger on the pulse of protests. There are safer ways, where your every move is not cataloged, and your personal data isn’t sold to any business or political campaign willing to pay.
The strategy I suggest above can, and should, be a multi-month process. Beyond serving as a weaning off the platform window, it also gives you time to explore other options, like Telegram (an encrypted messaging app) used by the Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters and Extinction Rebellion for organizing, activism, and connection, or Civ.Works, a “non-profit, privacy-protected, ad-free social network built for civic action”.
Even after you delete your account you can continue to apply pressure to the company, though not the platform. Facebook has its finger in many pies. Expand your nonviolent action, your consumer boycott to another of their platforms. And then another, and another (Instagram and WhatsApp are both under their umbrella).
Their loss is our gain.
You have power to stand with Black lives and the #StopHateforProfit campaign against Facebook.
It is time to use it.
Additional resources:
Businesses participating in the #StopHateforProft campaign
Politico: Inside the Ad campaign to boycott Facebook
#StopHateforProfit timeline through July 8
Jim Steyer: Founder and CEO of Common Sense takes on Mark Zuckerberg
Racial Justice is Climate Justice
Josey Goggin
Josey Goggin is a former architect and academic. Now I’m a writer. You can find her blogging about nonviolent action at JoseyGoggin.com.
[1] Gene Sharp cataloged 198 methods of nonviolent action including twenty five different kinds of boycott. #StopHateforProfit most closely resembles No. 89: Severance of funds and credit where those resisting cut off their opponents source of money.
[2] Nonviolent action No. 62: Student Strike
[3] Nonviolent action No. 71: Consumer boycott, No. 76: National Consumers’ boycott, and No. 77: International Consumers’ Boycott