LinkedIn has quietly updated its hate speech policy, removing explicit protections against deadnaming and misgendering of transgender individuals. The policy change was first observed by the Open Terms Archive on July 29.
According to the group, LinkedIn removed deadnaming and misgendering individuals from its examples of prohibited conduct. They added that this was a quiet and the only change made to their hate speech protections policies.
In addition, the update was not communicated publicly through LinkedIn’s Trust & Safety blog. In a previous case, the company had used the blog to explain improvements in enforcement and moderation policies.
A spokesperson told Engadget that the core policy has not changed.
‘Personal attacks or intimidation toward anyone based on their identity, including misgendering, violates our harassment policy and is not allowed on our platform.’
They also added that they regularly update their policies. However, LinkedIn did not offer explanations for the sudden, quiet change.
GLAAD, a nonprofit focused on LGBTQ+ media monitoring, criticized the move. In a statement to Engadget, the group said, ‘LinkedIn’s quiet decision to retract longstanding, best-practice hate speech protections for transgender and nonbinary people is an overt anti-LGBTQ move — and one that should alarm everyone.’
GLAAD also pointed out that LinkedIn joins other platforms like Meta and YouTube in weakening protections. They said the accused companies are trying to appease anti-LGBTQ political forces at the expense of user safety.
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