Sign now to demand Instagram stop censoring Palestinian voices

Over the last couple of weeks, Israeli military and police repeatedly stormed one of the holiest sites for Muslims during the sacred month of Ramadan—simply because the people inside were Palestinian.

During these raids on Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, Israeli police attacked worshippers, journalists, and paramedics with rubber bullets, stun grenades, tear gas, and beatings, injuring hundreds of Palestinians.

After posting on Instagram about these violent invasions, Palestinian supermodel Bella Hadid faced censorship.

She reported that Instagram blocked her from being able to post stories, blocked her from accessing messages, and “shadow banned” her posts (restricting viewers).

Thousands of Palestinians and allies have been censored by Instagram and other social media platforms after posting in support of Palestinian human rights and calling attention to Israeli violence against Palestinians.

Instagram has deleted accounts, removed posts, interrupted livestreams, hid hashtags, and otherwise silenced Palestinian voices. This will likely keep happening, especially since Facebook, which owns Instagram, has a member on its Oversight Board who used to censor Palestinians’ posts while working for the Israeli government.

Social media is one of the main ways that people on the ground can share their experiences of the Israeli government’s violent occupation, so it’s crucial to keep this communication channel open.

But elected officials in the U.S. and Israeli government, as well as unregulated tech companies, find free speech threatening since it’s a central part of movements for change and liberation. Instagram should allow us to hold governments accountable—not shield governments from accountability.

We must call out this dangerous precedent and join together in the struggle for human rights for all people.

Please sign the petition to Instagram now: Stop silencing Palestinian voices. Stop censoring posts!