Thread by @yarko

For weeks we have seen the unfair treatment of Ukrainians and content related to the Russian invasion on social media. This needs a change.

THREAD👇

Some social media platforms understand us better and support us. Some understand us worse and ban us. But, in my opinion, all of them still do not understand us enough.

What if we don't explain well? Perhaps our examples are too distant & incomprehensible for Western companies?

Okay, let's explain with unambiguous examples. Everyone knows the history of World War 2; let's use this. The Second World War examples will help explain what Ukrainians are feeling and experiencing now.

What if Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram emerged before World War II? How would they look? What would be their policies? Would the rules be the same for the people of occupied Europe as we see them now for the Ukrainians?

Imagine Winston Churchill's speech "We shall fight on the beaches" in 1940. It would be streamed live from the British Parliament on all platforms.

Imagine this video suddenly becomes unavailable for viewing in the US because it calls for violence, and there seems to be hate speech against the Nazis! "You can't say such things in public, be delicate with your enemies. They simply want to grab your land. What's your problem?"

Or imagine a resident of occupied Brussels. He discovers a passport of a Nazi that came to kill his family. But you can't tweet it because Twitter will block you for spreading Nazi's personal information. Yes, the privacy of a Nazi who invades your country is very important.

Imagine being a fighter in the European Resistance Movement, which publishes how they shoot at the Nazis and win. Oh no, this video system will also remove – you're provoking aggression! "Please, don't share this sad news with people."

Imagine Anne Frank's diary on Instagram. She documents Nazi crimes and what her family feels. The Nazis can't find her. That's why the Nazis launch their bot farm near Munich. The bots report the account, and Instagram is blocking Anne Frank's profile and deleting all posts.

Imagine if Nazi leaders had the opportunity to run their profiles on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media during World War II. What might it look like?

How would the Nazi leadership describe the Holocaust on social media?

And how would the Nazi leadership respond to other events of World War II on social media? For example, what would you say about the Warsaw Uprising?

Imagine those rescued from the Nazi camps in 1945. They want to share their stories with the world. So, they start posting, posting a lot. But their stories are being hidden and deleted because AI decides to. "The images are too awful; people shouldn't spoil their news feeds."

It all sounds like a fantasy, but replace the Nazis with the Russians and Hitler with Putin – and you'll get the news from 2022.

And this news is not fantasy, but stories – mine, my friends, and acquaintances. And similar cases with the social media of thousands of Ukrainians.

Dear social media, you need to meet current obstacles. Neither you nor the Ukrainians wanted the war. Russia wanted one. But only together can we stop Nazism in the 21st century.

Dear social media, help Ukrainians, help the world to know the truth. Stand on the side of freedom and courage.

Update your rules. Remove the access of the Russian government agencies and their propagandists to social media.

Please spread these appeals on various social media so that they can hear us and know what we request.

Support the brave, support Ukraine 🇺🇦