Social media channels are places where people share a wide range of views, some of which are extreme and may be abusive or where they try to recruit people into their ideologies.
Racist, misogynist, homophobic, Islamophobic, anti Semitic, transphobic and ableist bullying is increasingly common on many platforms. Abusing people, whether individuals or whole communities, online is not the same as sharing views people might not agree with.
Challenging hate online
It can be tempting to respond to challenging extremist views directly. Whilst expressing solidarity and showing allyship is important, how we do this can make the difference between effective allyship and inadvertently aiding haters.
Extremists get attention from people engaging with their posts on social media helping them spread their ideologies, emboldening others and in some cases making money.
Well meant challenges can reinforce negative views unless carefully framed and can lead to hate or aggressive behaviour being redirected to the individual making the challenge.
Do:
- Send solidarity messages directly to individuals affected by online hate
- Proactively and regularly put out positive information about equity and diversity
- Use plain language understandable by people with no specialist experience of equalities issues
Don't:
- Share negative content, even when rebutting it, as it gives them more visibility
- Use a myth busting approach as it can reinforce the myth
- Attack individuals for their views, as this fuels the persecution narrative many extremists use to engender support
What to do if the hate is targeted at you
We advise that individuals do not get into protracted exchanges with those who don’t agree with them on social media. In extreme cases where individuals target you with abuse or threaten you, you should seek advice urgently from your employer, university or the CSP. Depending on the nature of the abuse recommendations could include:
- blocking offensive accounts
- reporting accounts to the social media provider
- temporarily or permanently leaving a social media channel
- reporting incidents to the police
Legal context
Note this section is provided as general information and not specific legal advice. In extreme cases behaviour may breach criminal law or be subject to civil legal action. CSP members can access free legal advice through our solicitors.
Some of the legislation which may be relevant includes:
- Malicious Communications Act 1988 and the Malicious Communications (Northern Ireland) Order 1988 - An offence may be committed where a message is sent to someone, or posted on a network, that is indecent, grossly offensive, obscene, threatening or menacing.
- Harassment Act 1997 and Protection from Harassment (Northern Ireland) Order 1997 - This applies where there are at least two examples of content that cause alarm or distress this may constitute the offence of harassment.
- Public Order Act 1986 - This covers threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour, or displays of visible representations, which are likely to cause fear of, or to provoke immediate violence, intentionally cause alarm or distress, or are likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress.
- Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 - Under the Act it is an offence to communicate in a way that a reasonable person would consider to be threatening or abusive where that abuse is based on the victim’s prescribed characteristics.
- Defamation Act 2013 – Under the Act people who make statements which cause serious harm to others can, in some circumstances, be sued for damages.