Washington, D.C., January 23: In a significant move, the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law lauds Meta’s Oversight Board for taking a stance against Holocaust denial. Alyza D. Lewin, the Center’s president, issued a statement expressing appreciation for Meta’s decision, citing it as a crucial step in combatting anti-Semitism.
“We commend Meta’s Oversight Board for recognizing the inexorable logic that using anti-Semitic conspiracy theories to attempt to falsely deny mass atrocities conclusively proven in court and admitted by the perpetrators is anti-Semitic, and consequently falls within Meta’s hate speech policy. While free speech is vital, Meta has chosen to prohibit hate speech on its own platforms. When companies do that, they can’t leave out anti-Semitic hate speech – they must provide Jewish users with the same protections as everyone else.
We know that online hate helps drive the record levels of anti-Semitism we are seeing across the country, as well as the horrific discrimination against and harassment of Jewish students we see on campus. If Meta implements this decision properly, it will serve as a very important step in beating back spiking anti-Jewish hate.” – Brandeis Center
Lewin commended Meta’s acknowledgment that using anti-Semitic conspiracy theories to deny well-established historical facts is inherently anti-Semitic and falls under Meta’s hate speech policy. The Center emphasized the importance of extending equal protection to Jewish users and applauded Meta’s commitment to prohibiting hate speech on its platforms.
Days ahead of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Meta’s Oversight Board, an independent entity overseeing content moderation decisions, ruled that Meta had erred by allowing Holocaust denial content on its platforms. The Board, aligning with the Brandeis Center’s arguments, deemed Holocaust denial as anti-Semitic hate speech, a violation of Meta’s content moderation policies.
The Brandeis Center underscored the irrefutable evidence of the Holocaust as the most documented genocide in history, proven at the Nuremberg Tribunal. Holocaust denial, the Center argued, relies on anti-Semitic stereotypes and conspiracy theories, constituting a form of hate speech under international human rights law.
Meta’s Oversight Board adopted the Brandeis Center’s reasoning in its decision, citing the Center’s public comment. The Board called on Meta to enhance its measures against Holocaust-denying content, including improving algorithms, providing better training for human moderators, and addressing Holocaust distortion.
International law expert Arthur Traldi and President Alyza D. Lewin submitted the Brandeis Center’s comment. The Center, in its ongoing fight against anti-Semitism, has produced a fact sheet and webinar on Holocaust denial.
The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, an independent nonprofit, is dedicated to advancing civil and human rights for the Jewish people. Through research, education, and legal advocacy, the Center addresses anti-Semitism on college campuses and beyond, empowering students and educating administrators on combating racism and anti-Semitism. Not affiliated with any specific institution sharing the name, the Center operates independently to honor the late U.S. Supreme Court justice, Louis D. Brandeis.
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