The Trevor Project latest LGBTQ+ organisation to quit X over spike in ‘hate & vitriol’
The Trevor Project is the latest organisation to announce its departure from Elon Musk’s X. (Getty Images)
Non-profit LGBTQ+ suicide prevention organisation The Trevor Project has announced its official departure from X (formerly Twitter) after witnessing a concerning spike in “hate and vitriol.”
The Trevor Project is the latest of a number of organisations and individuals that have opted to suspend their operations on Elon Musk’s social media platform after the billionaire opted to remove certain policies that prevent hate speech and the spread of false information.
Announcing their departure from the social media platform on Thursday (9 November), the Trevor Project stated that Musk’s reckless removal of certain safeguarding policies made it tough to “create a welcoming space” for LGBTQ+ youth.
The Trevor Project has dedicated the last 25 years to preventing suicides among young LGBTQ+ people by offering 24/7 crisis services, advocating for young LGBTQ+ people’s needs, conducting studies, and curating safe spaces.
Posting to the social media platform formerly known as Twitter for the last time, the Trevor Project team: “made the decision to close its account on X given the increasing hate & vitriol on the platform targeting the LGBTQ+ community – the group we exist to serve.”
The statement continued: “LGBTQ+ young people are regularly victimised at the expense of their mental health and X’s removal of certain moderation functions makes it more difficult for us to create a welcoming space for them on this platform.
“This decision was made with input from dozens of internal and external perspectives; in particular, we questioned whether leaving the platform would allow harmful narratives and rhetoric to prevail with one less voice to challenge them.”
After much deliberation, the team explained that suspending their X account was ultimately “the right thing to do.”
The organisation added that if there were LGBTQ+ young people searching for a safe space to connect, The Trevor Project offers their own social networking platform, “designed specifically for ages 13-24.”
Additionally, the non-profit is still available on other social media sites like Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
The group statement concluded: “No online space is perfect, but having access to sufficient moderation capabilities is essential to maintaining a safer space for our community.”
This move from The Trevor Project follows in the footsteps of other LGBTQ+ organisations who have already parted ways with X.
Transgender charity Mermaids made a similar announcement last month – as did LGBTQ Youth Scotland and The San Francisco LGBT Centre back in May.
GLAAD, the world’s largest LGBTQ+ media advocacy organisation, released its annual Social Media Safety Index and Platform Scorecard in June, which ranks social media platforms based on their efforts to ensure the safety of LGBTQ+ users.
Among all major social media networks, X was listed last, and described by GLAAD as “the most dangerous platform for LGBTQ+ people. It was the only social media platform that saw its score decline from the year prior.
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