LGBTQ+ advocates raise alarm as Twitter removes protections for transgender users

Twitter has recently made changes to its Hateful Conduct Policy, removing long-standing protections for its transgender users. The move was spotted by the nonprofit organization Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD). The updated policy no longer includes a line that specifically prohibits the "targeted misgendering or deadnaming of transgender individuals." This line was added to the policy in 2018 after Twitter made adjustments to better clarify its protections against abuse.

GLAAD describes the removal of these protections as a step back for the platform, particularly as Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube do not even maintain the same protections for trans people that Twitter once had. 

In its 2022 Social Media Index, GLAAD gave each of these platforms low scores for LGBTQ safety, privacy, and expression, noting that Twitter and TikTok were the only two platforms that had specific policies against deadnaming and misgendering trans users.

GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis criticised the changes in a statement, saying that "social media companies committed to maintaining safe environments for LGBTQ people should be working to improve hate speech policies, not deleting long-standing ones."

It is worth noting that Twitter still explicitly prohibits attacking others based on "race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age, disability, or serious disease."

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