Washington, D.C. – The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law responds to YouTube for taking a step in the right direction to address the proliferation of hateful activity on its platform. YouTube announced today that it would no longer allow videos alleging that a group is superior in order to justify discrimination, segregation, or exclusion based on qualities like race, religion, age, gender, caste, sexual orientation, or veteran status.
“YouTube and other social media platforms have a responsibility and obligation to protect their users from violent and hateful activity, including harassment, discrimination, and the promotion of racial violence on their services,” said Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “YouTube has been a center of proliferation for extreme views. When online platforms offer their services to the general public, they have a duty to ensure that their platforms are safe. To confront growing levels of white supremacy and white nationalism, platforms must continue to take action to block the spread of hate online.”
A report last fall found that YouTube’s recommendation algorithm systematically amplified white nationalist voices and conspiracy theories. As YouTube implements these new rules, it is essential that it put in place policies for transparency and effective, well-resourced, and non-arbitrary enforcement.
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law recently undertook action to address Facebook’s now abandoned policy which allowed white nationalist and white separatist activity on its platform.
About the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, was formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to involve the private bar in providing legal services to address racial discrimination. Now in its 56th year, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is continuing its quest to “Move America Toward Justice.” The principal mission of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is to secure, through the rule of law, equal justice for all, particularly in the areas of criminal justice, fair housing and community development, economic justice, educational opportunities, and voting rights.
Contact
Reynolds Graves, Lawyers’ Committee, RGraves@LawyersCommittee.org, 202-662-8375
