Kim Kardashian West and other celebrities will "freeze" Instagram accounts to protest Facebook
Kim Kardashian West may have one of the largest social media followings on the planet — but she said she won't be posting on Instagram on Wednesday. The reality star, who also said she won't be posting on Facebook, is joining many other celebrities who are "freezing" their Instagram accounts for one day to join a nationwide protest against Facebook.
The 24-hour "freeze" is part of a "week of action" on Instagram led by the Stop Hate for Profit coalition, which is "demanding parent company Facebook take action to address racism, hate, and disinformation on its platforms," according to a press release. The coalition is helmed by nine major civil rights and advocacy organizations, including the Anti-Defamation League and the NAACP.
The campaign's goal is to call out the social media giant "for its role in inciting violence, spreading racism and hate, and contributing to electoral disinformation," the release said. In addition to the posting pause, participants have also been asked to share a "series of coordinated messages" to their accounts this week.
"I love that I can connect directly with you through Instagram and Facebook," Kardashian West posted on social media on Tuesday, with a Stop Hate branded graphic. "But I can't sit by and stay silent while these platforms continue to allow the spreading of hate, propaganda and misinformation…"
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on
Leonardo DiCaprio, Katy Perry, Sacha Baron Cohen and others also posted on social media to say they would be participating in the "freeze."
The move comes just weeks after two people were fatally shot and another was wounded during protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, over the police shooting of Jacob Blake. Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, has been charged in the shooting.
Facebook has been criticized for being slow to remove a militia group's page that allegedly called for armed civilians to enter Kenosha amid protests. The social media giant took the page down after the shooting, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said last month it made a mistake in not removing the page earlier.
At the time, Zuckerberg said that Facebook hadn't found any evidence that Rittenhouse was aware of the page.
The coalition launched its online campaign, #StopHateforProfit, in July, with the goal of addressing "the scourge of racism, hate and disinformation on social media." The campaign also spearheaded the call for companies to pause Facebook advertising in July, which led major brands to halt advertising on the platform.