https://nos.nl/artikel/2611716-meta-blokkeert-opnieuw-tientallen-queer-accounts-op-instagram

Translation:
Tech giant Meta has once again removed dozens of Instagram accounts belonging to queer organizations and individuals, among others. Accounts of the Dutch organizations The Queer Agenda, Club Church, and gay sauna Nieuwezijds have also been taken offline. In December, Meta also blocked dozens of accounts without explanation. Following objections from users, some of them came back online, but those accounts have now been removed again.

The American organization Repro Uncensored, which maps censorship on social media worldwide, documented more than seventy cases in recent weeks, many of which were in the European Union. “These cases demonstrate a broader pattern targeting LGBTI communities, content about women’s and sexual health, artists, cultural spaces, and even music festivals,” the organization writes on Instagram.

Important marketing tool

Samuel King, one of the owners of the Amsterdam nightclub Tillatec, received a notification on Saturday morning that the nightclub’s Instagram account had been deactivated. He says he received no prior warning. It was also unclear which posted message violated the terms of service. According to the notification King received after filing an objection, he would be contacted by Meta after 24 hours. That did not happen. The Instagram account with 40,000 followers, Tillatec’s most important marketing tool, has now been permanently deleted. “The majority of our audience consists of Gen Z and millennials, who use these platforms to stay up to date,” says King.

Queer icon

Jan Hoek, artist and founder of the inclusive art space No Limits! Art Castle in Amsterdam, explains that his eight accounts were blocked after a single post. After he filed an objection, some of his accounts were restored. Other accounts have been permanently deleted. “It seems totally random when that does and doesn’t happen,” says Hoek.

The post in question was a call for an exhibition in which the word “hooker” was used. That word was the culprit, Hoek suspects. He made the post in collaboration with Canadian filmmaker Bruce LaBruce, “a queer icon” with 135,000 followers on Instagram. His account was also deleted after the post. “He has lost his entire follower base,” says Hoek.

Hoek is holding discussions with other affected users about switching to alternatives and next steps. He has already swapped WhatsApp for Signal, but there is no good alternative for Instagram yet, he says. “We don’t just want our account back, but also for something to change structurally; otherwise, we will be stuck in a kind of circle forever.”

Different course after Trump’s return

According to Lotje Beek of the activist group Bits of Freedom, which advocates for the right to privacy and freedom of communication, the action fits the course Meta has taken since President Trump returned to power. “We have seen that for the past year and a half, progressive voices have been more frequently affected by content moderation on Meta,” says Beek. Shortly after Trump’s inauguration, Instagram users on the platform were temporarily unable to search for terms such as ‘Biden’ and ‘Democrats’.

Beek says that the American tech giant often hides behind “technical errors,” but Meta’s actions appear to be in violation of European law. “Meta is not allowed to remove accounts because they belong to queer people; that is discrimination,” says Beek.

Meta is allowed to set its own rules, however, as long as they are in line with the law. For example, child pornography may not be shared on platforms. And if Meta decides to block accounts, this must be well-justified and there must be an opportunity to object.

At the moment, neither of these conditions appears to be guaranteed, according to Beek. “There is a very big case pending here before the European Commission, the regulator of the Digital Services Act (DSA).” An investigation by the European Commission into the terms of use of Instagram and Facebook has been ongoing for two years.

Hate-mongering agenda

The accounts that have been removed again have not escaped the attention of GroenLinks-PvdA MEP Kim Sparrentak either. “This is a direct attack on our democratic freedoms and our online public debate,” she says. “Those tech-ligarchs like Zuckerberg (CEO of Meta, ed.) talk a lot about censorship and freedom of speech, but systematically exclude queers from public debate themselves. This is not a mistake, but a pattern that fits into Trump’s hate-mongering radical right-wing agenda,” says Sparrentak. “The Commission must strike back hard.”

In a response, a spokesperson for Meta stated that it is investigating the accounts brought to the tech company’s attention. The spokesperson also emphasized that Meta encourages anyone whose account may have been blocked in error to appeal.

Other sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/dec/11/meta-shuts-down-global-accounts-linked-to-abortion-advice-and-queer-content