Elon Musk has proven to be a free-speech advocate since acquiring Twitter (subsequently rebranded X) in 2022.
One step in that direction came nearly a year ago when the social media platform repealed its “misgendering” policy, which previously banned certain types of speech aimed at transgender individuals.
Some eagle-eyed users noticed that the policy appeared to have been reinstated in recent days, but Musk responded to the criticism.
According to the Daily Wire:
In response to the first post, Musk said, “Turns out this was due to a court judgment in Brazil, which is being appealed, but should not apply outside of Brazil.”
Brazil’s Supreme Court ruled that homophobic slurs were punishable by prison after it determined homophobia was a crime in 2019, Agence France Presses reported in August.
Pool had shared a link to a report by The Hill about a “quiet update” that appeared to revive a policy X removed last year — after Musk completed a $44 billion takeover of the platform — prohibiting the “targeted misgendering or deadnaming of transgender individuals.”
A page on X’s website that says it was updated in January 2024 contains a section on “Use of Prior Names and Pronouns.” The section claims that X “will reduce the visibility of posts that purposefully use different pronouns to address someone other than what that person uses for themselves, or that use a previous name that someone no longer goes by as part of their transition.”
The explanation played out over the course of several posts involving political commentator Tim Pool.
I will be terminating all ad spend commitments and verified accounts over X reinstating the misgendering policy
— Tim Pool (@Timcast) March 2, 2024
Turns out this was due to a court judgment in Brazil, which is being appealed, but should not apply outside of Brazil
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 2, 2024
Hateful conduct
X is the woke mind virus
I hope this gets resolved https://t.co/ZhBK4FfrKs
— Tim Pool (@Timcast) March 2, 2024
I should always wait because you do always seem to do the right thing or try your best
Massive respect
— Tim Pool (@Timcast) March 2, 2024
X is the only platform where the owner treats you like the customer and tries to engage and make it better
Thanks @elonmusk pic.twitter.com/qxBLZqp2C3
— Tim Pool (@Timcast) March 2, 2024
Here’s how Musk addressed the topic last year, as reported by The Hill:
Musk’s pronouncement that cisgender would now be considered a slur on his platform comes after a series of changes to policies at Twitter that some say make trans people feel less safe on the platform.
In April, Twitter quietly rolled back a policy that banned “targeted misgendering or deadnaming of transgender individuals.” In 2018, Twitter enacted the policy against deadnaming, which refers to the purposeful use of a trans person’s name before they transitioned. Twitter previously categorized this behavior as a form of harassment.
In a tweet on the first day of Pride month, June, Musk said misgendering was “definitely allowed” on Twitter.
A recent report declared social media companies were failing to keep LGBTQ people safe on their platforms, with all five major platforms receiving low or failing grades. The only social media platform to see its rating decline in the past year was Twitter, while YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook all saw their scores increase.
This video offers a little more context:
Join the conversation!
Please share your thoughts about this article below. We value your opinions, and would love to see you add to the discussion!