‘As a company, Twitter is failing to respect women’s rights online’.
This is according to the March 2018 research project by Amnesty International on violence and abuse against women online.
This report explores the causes and nature of abuse against women on Twitter and includes interviews and case studies from victims of online abuse.
Amnesty argues that Twitter has a specific responsibility to respect and avoid causing abuses of all human rights including the rights to non-discrimination and freedom of expression and opinion.
The research project finds:
- The violence and abuse many women experience on Twitter has a detrimental effect on their right to express themselves equally, freely and without fear
- Instead of strengthening women’s voices, the violence and abuse many women experience on the platform leads women to self-censor what they post, limit their interactions, and even drives women off Twitter completely
- Twitter can be a powerful tool for women to make connections and express themselves. But for many women, Twitter is a platform where violence and abuse against them flourishes, often with little accountability.