For months, Meta has been restricting content with LGBTQ-related hashtags from search and discovery under its “sensitive content” policy aimed at restricting “sexually suggestive content.”
Posts with LGBTQ+ hashtags including #lesbian, #bisexual, #gay, #trans, #queer, #nonbinary, #pansexial, #transwomen, #Tgirl, #Tboy, #Tgirlsarebeautiful, #bisexualpride, #lesbianpride, and dozens of others were hidden for any users who had their sensitive content filter turned on. Teenagers have the sensitive content filter turned on by default.
When teen users attempted to search LGBTQ terms they were shown a blank page and a prompt from Meta to review the platform’s “sensitive content” restrictions, which discuss why the app hides “sexually explicit” content.
Meta reversed the restrictions on LGBTQ search terms after User Mag reached out for comment, saying that it was in error. “These search terms and hashtags were mistakenly restricted,” a Meta spokesperson said. “It’s important to us that all communities feel safe and welcome on Meta apps, and we do not consider LGBTQ+ terms to be sensitive under our policies.”
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Under mounting pressure from lawmakers and amidst a moral panic about young people’s social media use, last year, Meta introduced a new set of “sensitive content” restrictions across Instagram, Facebook, and Threads, aimed at teenagers. “We will start to hide more types of content for teens on Instagram and Facebook,” the company said at the time.
In September, Meta doubled down, forcing users under the age of 18 to use “Instagram Teen Accounts,” a setting which could only be reversed by a parent or guardian. The goal of this change, in Meta’s words, was to “limit … the content [teenagers] see, and help ensure their time is well spent.”
These changes quickly resulted in LGBTQ+ content getting restricted across Meta apps. Meanwhile, heterosexual content, tradwife content, and content featuring straight cisgender couples (even those engaged in romantic activities) has flourished.
“Meta categorizing LGBTQ hashtags as ‘sensitive content’ is an alarming example of censorship that should concern everyone,” said Leanna Garfield, social media safety program manager at GLAAD.
Some LGBTQ teenagers and content creators attempted to sound the alarm about the issue, but their posts failed to get traction. For years, LGBTQ creators on Instagram have suffered shadow bans and had their content labeled as “non-recommendable.” The restrictions on searches, however, are more recent, coming into effect in the past few months. Meta said it was investigating to find out when the error began.
“A responsible and inclusive company would not build an algorithm that classifies some LGBTQ hashtags as ‘sensitive content,’ hiding helpful and age-appropriate content from young people by default,” a spokesperson for GLAAD said. “Regardless of if this was an unintended error, Meta should… test significant product updates before launch.”
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Several LGBQT teenagers I spoke to said that they weren’t even aware of the sensitive content restrictions, but said that they struggled to find other LGBTQ young people to connect with through Instagram.
“For many LGBTQ people, especially youth, platforms like Instagram are crucial for self-discovery, community building, and accessing supportive information,” Garfield said. “By limiting access to LGBTQ content, Instagram may be inadvertently contributing to the isolation and marginalization of LGBTQ users.”
The downranking and hiding of LGBTQ+ content comes as LGBTQ rights across the country are under attack.
On December 4th, the Supreme Court heard a major case on banning healthcare for trans youth. Trump has pledged to roll back protections for LGBTQ students, and right wing groups like the Heritage Foundation are working together with Democrats to dismantle civil liberties and restrict young people from accessing social media under dangerous proposed legislation such as the very poorly named Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA).
KOSA co-sponsor Rep. Marsha Blackburn claimed that it’s essential to restrict teens access to social media to “protect minor children from the transgender [sic] in this culture and that influence.”
One of the most prominent voices pushing legislation like KOSA and boosting policies like Meta’s sensitive content restrictions is NYU Stern School of Business professor Jonathan Haidt, whose dubious book, The Anxious Generation falsely ties social media use to teen mental health issues in order to push a moral panic about kids and technology use. This moral panic is then used to justify harmful laws that restrict speech and civil liberties online, and do immense harm to marginalized LGBTQ youth.
“Meta categorizing LGBTQ hashtags as ‘sensitive content’ is an alarming example of censorship that should concern everyone”
Mark Zuckerberg recently dined at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida and is seeking an “active role” in Trump tech policy as the two are “now warming to each other,” according to The Guardian.
The increased censorship of LGBTQ content online is already having devastating effects on young people. For queer teens who rely on social media to connect with their peers and find support, these policies are cutting off vital access to community and representation.
“Meta should not only stop suppressing LGBTQ content in this way, it should also clarify how and why [this error occurred],” said Garfield.
User Mag is a 100% reader-supported publication. To support my work, become a free or paid subscriber. I could not do this work without your support.
The thing I like about the video is that she points out how the state claims it must do this to protect kids from the dangerous drugs yet allows their use for straight cis children just not for trans children. The law states it is about making kids accept their birth assigned gender and keeping them from transitioning.
They tried these laws with kids who were gay decades ago and some still fight for it. Force gay kids to accept a heterosexual orientation through conversion methods and then outlaw being homosexual along with erasing anything homosexual from society. It did not work. The courts vigorously defended and backed up gay people’s rights to exist as themselves and have full equality of societies benefits as straight people do.
Sadly we have much different courts now stacked with bigots and racists by bigots and racist who will push and promote the bigotry. But in the law itself they wrote the bigotry out loud, clear, and easy to see. The republican lawmakers are making it plain this is about erasing trans kids and that will make erasing trans adults much easier. I wonder if they will succeed, but I am worried. The video is well worth the watch. If you do not wish to watch the video but prefer to read the transcript she provides a link to it in the description box. Many of the podcasters now do. Hugs
President-elect Donald Trump repeatedly pledged to roll back rights for transgender people during his campaign. Kate Sosin, LGBTQ+ reporter for The 19th, joins “America Decides” to discuss how those Americans are preparing for the incoming Trump administration.
Three transgender youths and their families from Arizona traveled across the country to ensure their voices were heard on the steps of the Supreme Court as justices heard oral arguments for the most important transgender rights case the court has ever reviewed — one that could have significant consequences on the future of lifesaving gender-affirming care for youth in the country. About a third of the teenagers in the United States who identify as transgender live in states that have limited access to puberty-blocking medication and hormone therapies. In an election cycle that saw Republicans spend at least $215 million on attack ads about transgender rights, these families share their fears, hopes, and determination to fight for their right to exist. Lucy Kafanov explores the emotional toll of anti-trans legislation, the fight for bodily autonomy, and what it means for trans youth to lose access to life-saving care.
Ben Shapiro vs Neil deGrasse Tyson: The WAR Over Transgender Issues
Ok I know I posted a clip of this from a different channel but this one gives more of Neil deGrasse Tyson’s full answer with a calmer host who did not chop it up. I like this version better because you can see how forceful and direct Tyson is being and that he is clearly amused by the trans hater who think someone’s gender expression is their business. It also shows Shapiro’s growing apprehension as he realizes that Tyson doesn’t agree with him. He clearly thought incorrectly that Tyson would echo his own bigoted opinion. He gets flustered because at the point he normally bullies someone and talks over them, Tyson doesn’t let him do it. This is a beautiful short well crafted answer to any transphobe. Hugs
Join renowned astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and political commentator Ben Shapiro in a thought-provoking debate exploring one of today’s most complex and polarizing topics: transgender identity and rights.
In this intellectual face-off, Tyson brings his scientific expertise and philosophical perspective, emphasizing individual identity, societal progress, and inclusivity. Meanwhile, Shapiro approaches the topic from a traditionalist and legalistic angle, focusing on biological realities, societal norms, and policy implications.
The discussion between Ben Shaprio and Neil deGrasse Tyson dives deep into the intersections of science, culture, and ethics, tackling questions about gender identity, biological sex, free speech, and the role of government in regulating such matters. As always, both figures present their arguments with their characteristic wit and rigor, challenging viewers to think critically about the nuanced dimensions of the topic.
Whether you’re here to learn, debate, or deepen your understanding of the issues, this conversation promises to spark reflection and dialogue. Don’t forget to share your thoughts in the comments below—respectful discussion is encouraged!
A small conservative group in Lancaster, Ohio targeted local businesses and institutions that were LGBTQ+ friendly in response to an annual family-friendly pride event that held an outdoor drag show. When the group failed to get the city to penalize drag performers—and ban drag altogether—they then circulated a boycott list. Local business owners, however, were not harmed by the boycott. In fact, they saw a major influx in traffic after people drove from out of town to support the businesses after seeing them on the anti-LGBTQ+ boycott list.
This is for those who think Joe Rogan is the top of the right wing media thinkers. Like Tim Pool, he doesn’t think about what he is to say or post. Rogan decided that he needed to post about kids in schools demanding cat litter boxes in schools without ever looking into it claiming it was because of furry kids. During the transphobia panic. Not bothering to ask any school about it. Yes some schools did have buckets of cat litter in the classrooms, not for kids who were furries but for kids who were in a mass shooting situation that had to pee. I am tired of these sad right wing media lying assholes. Hugs
Hello everyone. This is a hard post but one I feel I must make for my own continued healing and to explain why this season hits me so hard. Before I get to the abuse let me tell everyone that yesterday taking things out of the car I was standing sideways with my knee pressed hard against the seat of the car as I reached across needing just an inch or two to grab the package … and as I strained to grab the parcel my knee snapped, I heard a grinding sound and fell to the ground. I fell to the ground seeing stars.
Ron rushed to me as soon as he saw me on the ground, we got me into my room and realized that my knee cap had been pushed into the cartilage beneath the cap. What ever happened to my knee caused me agony and lost me the ability to stand or use my leg. The pain made moving my leg in any way mind-blowing excoriating pain. Remember I take two kinds of morphine and other pain relievers. Ron got my walker from the bedroom but even using that was not able to help me move around. I went to bed. During the night I was OK if I did not move. The longer I stayed still the more the knee healed and the few times I had to get up to pee, well I had the walker and now understood how to hold my leg. The more it healed, the better it got. So this morning I was able to get up, and using the walker make my way to the kitchen and make my coffee. Then on to the Pink Palace to start my day.
Now to the reason for my post. I seriously warn for abuse trigger warnings. Please. The reason for this post, I am going to post something I wrote to a fellow survivor about why I get so withdrawn during this time. I appreciate his care and concern, plus I want you to know that it was Randy my grand realbrother who talked to me this morning and made it possible for me to deal with posting this time in my life. I won’t include what he replied when I showed him the stuff I wanted to post but I assure you he was a comfort unparalleled in giving me the strength to do this. When I look to the past, what happened in late 2013 and in 2014 forward I wonder if I would be here if not for the unflagging love and care of my grand brother Randy.
Below is what I wrote to a fellow survivor who was worried about me.
Christmas always brings depression and a desire to hide or withdraw from life for me. Short story … it provided more time for abusers to use me and more of them around. During the weeks leading up to Christmas day as presents were placed under the tree which I knew better than go near the hell spawn would mess with their presents to figure out what they were, then when it was discovered I was of coursed blamed and punished for it in front of everyone.
But the worst was Christmas day, and despite what I knew had happened in the past and would happen that day I would get excited thinking of the gifts. After the nighttime / early morning rapes / giving oral to both males and females, I would be told where to sit. One of the hell spawns would pass the gifts out, one at a time. When it was my turn I would carefully unwrap the present even though I was being told to speed up, then give the required thanks to the person it was from, then place it on the floor next to me.
After all the gifts had been unwrapped while the adults gathered their gifts to stash in their room, the hell spawn gathered around me where I still sat. They took what they wanted of what I was “given”, most of which would have been bought knowing they would be the ones to get it. I was left with the clothing, socks, shirts, a pair of pants or two. One Christmas I got a coloring book that they let me keep but they took the crayons. I would take my gifts to my hallway mat until I was nearly 8 and got a bed of my own in the male hell spawns room as we moved and there was no longer a hallway for me to be made sleep in. I knew better than to complain or make a fuss, it was just the way things were, my place there, my life. To cry or complain would get me a public punishment and then a private worse punishment for ruining their Christmas. The private one would be very humiliatingly to insure it stuck with me. I learned not to complain, just shut down.
Anyway you asked if I have gotten any help. No. Two of my doctors want me to get a therapist, along with a neurologist, and several other specialists for different symptoms I have. I do not have the income for all the doctors, tests, and scans these doctors claim I need. Maybe this year. I get through Christmastime by withdrawing and shutting down, kept sane only by my husband and my best friend, and the little internet communications I feel well enough to doing. Mostly during this time I watch videos, movies, not really seeing the screen, not even remembering what I watched, just existing for one more minute, one more hour, one more day.
Grand for me this year I got a true real Christmas gift. One with no costs of my body for exchange as in my childhood if I wanted something. When at my youngest even food came with me providing sexual favors.
Yes this year I got a Christmas gift with no strings attached. Yes Ron gives me those but this one was special. My brother Randy gave me money to spend on me, not on the house, not on others, but just on me. I have been working for years with a broken keyboard which the backlighting has given out, and my mouse now takes many clicks to make work. Even Ron was frustrated by it during the times we sat together paying bills and wanted me to replace them.
So remembering the spirit this gift was given, I used it to buy the following things. It will make my life so much better. I got them in white. Thank you my grand brother. Hugs
This is a video from the Letterhack. I like the host’s clam informative delivery. I don’t know how anyone who watches Play Time feel about Cenk and Anna, but I do know how I feel. When this situation first erupted and Anna went ballistic on something that was only used on select medical forms and when criticized about it Cenk acted like a teen boy defending his hot girlfriend and went way over board defending her against anyone even vaguely critical and making threats claiming things that were said that never were. But here is the thing that because they refused to accept any criticism of that they claimed, they were supported by republicans and championed the cause republicans would use to win. From there Cenk and Anna branched into bashing Biden while claiming that crime was soaring echoing the right wing media talking point about crime and homelessness. Cenk then went so far as to attack trans supporters and advocates while trying to cozy up to republicans like tRump. I left TYT when Cenk said that the only way to win nation elections was to drop support for the T in LGBTQ+. He was so adamant in that, just throw them under the bus and when we win we can go back and get them. Yet the years that Cenk was pushing this all the republicans trying to run on trans hate lost. They lost by huge margins. But Cenk and Anna never admitted they were wrong using the time to go further right on other republican issues like housing the unhoused and finding ways to deal with crime. They ignored the real reasons for these problems adopting a hard right republican view of the issues. Anyone who disagreed with them was attacked vigorously.
So here is a video and I am not sure at what point in the saga this was videoed at. All I know is Cenk, Anna, and most of TYT has lost the mantel of “Home of the Progressives” and taken on a more smarmy look. Look this is an important video on supporting the trans community and not on attacking Cenk. But we can not let anyone on the left claim to be the home of the progressive left and then give the haters room to attack trans people. Trans rights, trans people, are far more important today than maybe they ever had been. But if you know your history, congratulation you survived the educational purges, then you know that the Stonewall riots where the LGBTQ+ rose to defend themselves and their rights wouldn’t have happened without the valiant drag queens and trans people who used their high heels as weapons to defend the rights of all the LGBTQ+. We need to keep that in mind knowing we still and will always need them and their courage. Hugs
Cenk Uygur continues to use anti-activist rhetoric when discussing Trans-Rights in dehumanizing ways while neglecting to include facts in his wild opinions about gender affirming care for minors.
The responses were taken from the organization’s 2024 U.S. National Survey on the Mental Health of LGBTQ+ Young People which made the following open-ended request to respondents (who were between the ages of 13 and 24): “We would love for you to share a message of advice or encouragement to other young people in the LGBTQ community.”
“I walk around my city, and I see businesses that have gay pride flags and pride flags in their windows,” one gay man said.
One respondent wrote, “Finding a sense of community helps so much, whether it’s online or in person. Just find a place where you can ask questions and read about other people’s experiences.”
Another stressed the importance of envisioning a better future and doing what one can to cultivate community support now.
“Find your group and work towards where you wanna be in life and you’ll make it there,” one wrote, as other offered encouraging words like, “Keep pushing,” “Keep going for another day,” “Just keep going, please,” and “Please keep strong.”
Another urged resilience and perseverance. “Be yourself always,” they wrote. “You may lose connections along the way but trust, there’s someone out there who will love you.” Another respondent agreed, writing, “Just look for the people who love you no matter what.”
Others urged self-compassion and patience as young people figure out their identities. One such message said, “Don’t rush finding your identity. Take your time to explore, and don’t be afraid to take up labels if they feel right at the time.”
Some respondents suggested repeating self-affirmations like the following:
I love you.
I believe in you.
You got this.
You are so strong and you are deserving of love always.
“Wake up everyday, and tell yourself you love yourself — until, one day, you believe it,” one young person wrote.
Other respondents acknowledged the adversity faced by young LGBTQ+ people, whether in politics or unaccepting homes.
“[It’s] very easy to think that the entire world [despises] you for who you are when your home environment conveys that,” one wrote. “You might not feel safe and happy now,” another wrote, “but hopefully, there will come a day when you find your home.”
“Don’t let the people around you tell you that you can’t love who you want and feel what you want to feel,” one respondent wrote.
Another added, “I know things look down right now and it’s hard to see past the hate that’s being spread but it always helps to remember that most people don’t hate us and that there are tons of us out there that are willing to help.”
“We’ve always been here. And we always will be,” another wrote. “They cannot erase us.”
Other respondents advised doing things to lessen negativity.
“Ignore the Idiots and cut people off if [you] have too [sic]. Life is too short to care what people think about you and they don’t even have to live your life and experience the things you do.”
In the same vein, another respondent replied, “Don’t let the people around you tell you that you can’t love who you want and feel what you want to feel.”
“Peer support is associated with lower levels of emotional and behavioral distress among LGBTQ+ young people,” the Trevor Project wrote. “However, not all LGBTQ+ young people have consistent access to peer support, especially LGBTQ+ young people who hold multiple marginalized identities.”
As such “hearing words of encouragement and advice from fellow LGBTQ+ young people has never been more needed,” the group added.
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I know I posted a link to the story via email as I was reading on my phone at the time. But here I am reposting the story in full as it is a grand reason while the camp is being closed. I am so happy for the reason. Hugs.
Willow River, Minn., camp One Heartland is for sale after serving kids there for nearly three decades.
By Jana Hollingsworth
The Minnesota Star Tribune
December 27, 2024 at 7:00AM
Campers paddle on a Willow River lake at One Heartland, a camp for kids affected by HIV/AIDS. (Submitted by One Heartland)
The ashes of 12-year-old Chris Edwards are buried on the grounds of a Pine County camp, where his mother insisted his memorial service be held after his HIV-related death in 1999.
It’s one of the reasons former campers are saddened by the news that One Heartland in Willow River, Minn., about 40 minutes southwest of Duluth, is for sale. The 80-acre site is home to a camp that has served kids living with or affected by HIV/AIDS for more than 30 years. But the number of babies contracting the virus through their mothers has declined to the point where such a camp no longer needs to exist.
“It’s a heartbreaker,” said Chris’ brother, Dylan Edwards, who attended the camp with Chris for years.
“But the purpose of the camp was for sick kids,” he said, and if there are so few that a camp isn’t feasible, “it’s hard to feel bad about that.”
In the United States, the perinatal HIV transmission rate, or the rate of a mother passing the virus on to a child through pregnancy, birth or breastfeeding, is now less than 1% thanks to antiretroviral medications, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The World Health Organization says that globally, new HIV infections among children up to age 14 have declined by 38% since 2015 and AIDS-related deaths have fallen by 43%.
As a Wisconsin college student, founder Neil Willenson read about a 5-year-old boy in the Milwaukee area living with HIV who faced isolationism and discrimination at his school. Willenson reached out to the family and got to know them, learning the virus’s deep effects on each member.
He founded One Heartland in 1993 when he was 22, intending it to be a short project. Now 53, he often marvels at how quickly his college-age dreams of working in Hollywood as an actor and producer diverged to running a nonprofit.
“The impact was so transformative the first summer in 1993 that during the week the children were already saying ‘When can we come back?’ ” Willenson said.
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They rented camps around the country the first few summers. Because knowledge of the virus was still minimal at the time, at least one camp didn’t want kids with HIV swimming in its pool, said Edwards, who attended the camp its first year. One Heartland was forced to go elsewhere the next year.
Willenson bought the Willow River property from an Optimist Club in 1997. Former Minnesota Twins player and manager Paul Molitor donated money for the purchase and was a spokesman for the camp for several years.
“We wanted to create a safe haven where children affected by the disease, perhaps for the first time in their young lives, could speak openly about it and be in an environment of unconditional love and acceptance,” said Willenson, who is the president of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Milwaukee, as well as a public speaker and founder of other camps. He stepped away from One Heartland leadership in 2010.
With referrals from the National Institutes of Health, children were flown to Minnesota from around the country at no cost to their families; expenses were paid by donors.
Nile Sandeen was the boy who inspired the camp. Now 38, he is a married pastor and doctoral student living in South Carolina. His mother, a nurse who died from the virus in 2010, had tried to provide AIDS education to parents and others concerned about Sandeen attending school. He recalled one student backing off and throwing his hands in the air when he got near him, and one friendship a boy kept a secret from fearful parents.
Sandeen attended camp for several years and traveled the country with the nonprofit, speaking at schools. One Heartland was an outsized presence in his life, giving him a place to “let go and be a kid” and be among others feeling the same isolation, sorrow and pain, he said. It fostered a community created among kids living “radically different” lives than most.
“It was a level of camaraderie and commiseration that is hard to put into words,” Sandeen said.
Chris Edwards was Sandeen’s first close camp friend, and Sandeen reeled from his death, recognizing his own mortality at age 13. Campers and staff members united during those dark periods, a support system Sandeen continues to feel.
The camp “is still part of the tide pushing you forward in life,” he said. “And so many people had that.”
The Edwards brothers are from the Atlanta area and had never had a northwoods experience, Edwards said. The volunteers and medical staff there helped quell some of the cynicism campers had from living with HIV or AIDS, he said, and when kids wanted to talk about death, they led those conversations with grace. The Edwardses lost their father to the virus when they were small children. Their mother died from it when Dylan was 20.
During the first several years of One Heartland’s existence, death was common. Now, many of the thousands who swam and hiked and made crafts at the camp have married and had children, Willenson said. He noted a documentary is being filmed about the camp, which eventually broadened its reach to serve different campers, including those with diabetes and LGBTQ youth. It was largely serving the latter group last summer. The nonprofit hopes to sell the camp to another group that will serve kids.
That there’s no longer a need for the camp’s original purpose “is the greatest story that I ever could have imagined,” Willenson said. “It’s something I never could have predicted.”
![Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) was upended by Detroit Lions safety Ifeatu Melifonwu (6) in the second quarter after picking up a first down Sunday December ,24,2023 in, Minneapolis , Minn. ] JERRY HOLT • jerry.holt@startribune.com](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/L76S4N2SALMCVYNGJGFNOQ6PDI.jpg?&w=80&ar=1:1&fit=crop)
Scottie's Playtime 