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jerrymiemila · 6 months

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3 Things to Know About Hate Speech against LGBTQ+ Members on Facebook Comments

How well do you recognize hate speech you see on social media, particularly on Facebook? Many people, including you, have many and perhaps varying considerations on what constitutes a hate speech. In fact, even scholars don’t agree on one certain definition.

In a given definition by Facebook, hate speech is a direct attack on individuals based on their protected characteristics, such as race and ethnicity, among others. And these attacks can either be targeted or generalized.

Speaking of protected characteristics, gender identity and sexual orientation are some of the protected characteristics of some individuals that are mocked and attacked not just offline but also online, most especially on Facebook.

In this article, we will delve into the nature of hate speech toward LGBTQ+ members on Facebook comments and learn three things about it: hate speech categories, discursive strategies, and hate speech classification and intensity levels.

Hate Speech Categories Associated in Comments against LGBTQ+ Members on Facebook

Facebook as a platform for expression, discussions and even debates on topics are inevitable. And sometimes, if not controlled, may turn offensive and abusive. In a topic that concerns LGBTQ+ members, how do Facebook users contextualize their arguments? Let us look at the most to least used hate speech categories against LGBTQ+ members on Facebook comments:

Religion

This category is often manifested in the comments as a means to support an argument. Facebook users integrate religious contexts in their hate comments against LGBTQ+ members as illustrated in the sample comment below:

“Homosexuality is an Abomination to God. The 1611 King James Bible is very clear about this. It is a Sin there is no way around it. Jesus came to call people to Repent for their sins.”

Sexual Orientation

Another way that some Facebook users use to attack LGBTQ+ members is through targeting their sexual orientation. Unlike the category of religion, this category refers to the subject of hate as illustrated in the sample comment below:

“God never said to love Gay people. God said homosexuality is an abomination. You can’t change God’s words. Homosexuality disgusting and yes satanic.”

Class

In this category, LGBTQ+ members are separated and differentiated. Facebook users focus on creating an in-group and out-group framework as illustrated in the sample comment below wherein LGBTQ+ members and their lifestyles are classified as not normal:

“They are not normal. The bible calls their lifestyles abominations. Until the 20th century their lifestyle was considered by psychologists abnormal. The Bible considers it sin yet today.”

Gender

Just like sexual orientation, this is another category that Facebook users tend to usually target when they’re expressing their hate comments against LGBTQ+ members. They focus on gender identity or gender-related characteristics of LGBTQ+ members as illustrated in the sample comment below:

“Guess why all governments are promoting being gay.. cuz when you’re gay, you’re soft and stupid which means controlling you very easily just like a sheep. Real men are tough and hard to control..”

Disability

A category that Facebook users use as a support for their hateful agenda. In this context, they tend to label LGBTQ+ members as individuals with disabilities as shown in the sample comment below:

“You go girl!!! Those posters offend me. Tear them down Patriot!!! Only sick minds do This stuff!!! Animals have better sense than You people that don’t know what you are. Man and woman go together, sickies.”

Archaic

In this category, Facebook users tend to integrate terms with historical relevance to their hateful comments in order to prove an argument as illustrated in the sample comment below:

“Same sex relationship contradicted faithful belief and against nature in a logic way. It is a kind of barbaric and inferiority choice to be equally or under animal’s way of life.”

Ethnicity

It is the least used category, but Facebook users still use this to create a premise of ethnic discrimination. Contextually, when using it, commenters regard LGBTQ+ practices as a part of other culture where LGBTQ+ is practiced as represented in the sample comment below:

“LGBTQ+ abuses fundamental human rights. This inhumane behavior can’t be found in the animal kingdom how much more we humans created in the image of God. LGBTQ+ has no place in Africa for that matter Ghana. It’s a crime to be LGBTQ+ advocate or practician in Ghana. Ghana will never be safe for you guys so move to Europe where you can enjoy your so called rights.”

Discursive Strategies Employed in Hate Speech against LGBTQ+ Members on Facebook Comments

Ever wonder why some comments get much as attention as the other despite having the same argument? It’s discursive strategies’ doing! Coming off strong and powerful in an argument is not purely coincidental. In fact, it’s a language strategy that individuals intentionally or unintentionally employ in their language use. To better understand the concept, let’s look at the most to least employed discursive strategies that Facebook users use in their comments against LGBTQ+ members:

Argumentation

Argumentation is not a foreign word. Most people know the definition behind this word, and for that reason, this becomes the most used strategy that Facebook users employ in their comments against LGBTQ+ members by arguing and proving a point as shown in the sample comment below:

“I don’t support pride, because it’s a tool of Satan to confuse and destroy! A total lie and God will judge it thankfully in his good timing! So hold your seats pride boys and girls because your day is drawing closer than you think!”

Perspectivation

Another strategy that Facebook users often employ in order to assert credibility and influence. They use their own opinion or the perspective of others to support their claim or even expression of hate towards LGBTQ+ members as illustrated in the sample comment below:

“It is still wrong in the eyes of God, you are not to merry another man and 2 women shall not merry, what part of the Bible do you creatons not understand? all you do is confuse the children and push your sick beliefs of society because you want your warped lifestyle to be accepted and thinking nothing of the bible or the children you are afflicting in the process.”

Predication

This strategy is often used by Facebook users to assert or claim a negative idea or belief against LGBTQ+ members. They try to structure their language with conviction and authority as illustrated in the sample comment below:

“False teaching This is Not Written in God’s Holy book. Homosexuality is an Abomination of GOD. GOD CREATED MALE AND FEMALE, For procreation. THIS POPE IS A HERETIC. an Anti-Christ spirit, beware Do not be deceived, the word of God warns us about False messiah, men of the cloth.”

Referential or Nomination

This another strategy is concerned on the “us” vs. “them” framework. Facebook users who use this strategy often structure their language wherein they refer or label LGBTQ+ members as bad qualities or negative characteristics themselves as shown in the sample comment below:

“The alien creatures are surfacing again. The society would be a far better place without the gays. God may you protect this generation from this evil.”

Intensification

In this strategy, the force lies on the typography or language structure and punctuation. Facebook users often come in their hateful comments against LGBTQ+ members in full capitalization or in their structure with exclamation point to evoke an intense emotion as described in the sample comment below:

“A man can never be a woman! Give that child a woman figure to call a mom. Nonsense! Get these sadomites out of town!”

Classifications and Intensity Levels of Hate Speech against LGBTQ+ Members on Facebook Comments

Many people do not recognize that at some point of their lives, they have been already targeted with hate speech, especially on Facebook. The reason is that they sometimes confuse hate speech with free speech, though they are not at fault. As mentioned in the introduction, hate speech has varying definitions, and even degree, depending on who sees it. To better grasp the nature of hate speech, let’s delve into the classifications and intensity of hate speech against LGBTQ+ members below:

Early Warning

Language use in this classification centers on the use of registers that disagree or registers that represent negative actions and negative characteristics. Let’s take a look at the nature of hate speech against LGBTQ+ members on Facebook comments as represented by each level below:

Disagreement

From the word itself, this second most observed level of hate against LGBTQ+ members on Facebook comments mostly include terms that disagree on a certain idea or belief related to LGBTQ+ as illustrated in the sample comment below:

“Ridiculous! I’m so tired of all this “there’s more than 2 genders”, “I go by these pronouns” and everything on those posters being shoved down these children’s throats! And FYI, THERE ARE ONLY 2 GENDER.”

Negative Actions

This least observed level of hate represents negative actions in language use, such as advocating for extreme discrimination or social exclusion towards LGBTQ+ members on Facebook comments as shown in the sample comment below:

“Wrong they are destroying the AMERICAN family. GOD loves the sinner but hates the sin. You live a life of sin you will be held accountable. The BIBLE is clear about homosexuality and men wearing womens cloths. It is a abomination in GODs eyes. LGBTQ should be declared a terrorist group.”

Negative Character

The most common and most observed level of hate. Facebook users often contextualize their language use in the way that it negatively describes or characterizes LGBTQ+ members just like in the sample comment below:

“So fucken stupid non binary! Who comes up with these labels!”

Dehumanization and Demonization

When heated discussion arises, sometimes, language use may not only include negative characterization. Sometimes, it may go beyond that line when terms that are unassociated anymore to humans are used as descriptions or labels as shown in the level below:

Demonizing and Dehumanizing

Unlike the first three levels, this third most observed level of hate against LGBTQ+ members on Facebook comments does not anymore belong to the early warning classification. In fact, this level is a precursor to a more violent type of hate speech as the language use is extremely negative as illustrated in the sample comment below:

“People think GOD need them..shit..GOD don’t need Humans Nor your worship, He gave you instructions to live by or face his Judgement life after death..Now LBGTQ is Not Human Rightsq, Is Not something GOD created, its Disease, its man Made, its Sating, dispecable, inhuman, Ridiculous And No I have empathy or Respect for such people And a Nation will Fall down if they allow Same sex..The Law Need to punish such people like Alot of Countries do.”

Incitement to Violence and Death

In this classification, language use already incites violence and even death. Facebook users in this classification are observed to use “death” or “extermination” in their comments against LGBTQ+ members as shown in each level below:

Violence

When hate speech reaches this threshold, language use no longer holds just an idea. Facebook users who are observed to display this fourth most observed level of hate towards LGBTQ+ members might really have a tendency of actually doing violence just like in the illustration below:

“now the quran on the other hand says the only proper death for homosexuals is to be pushed off a cliff.”

Death

In this fifth most observed level of hate, Facebook users in their comments are already inciting death against LGBTQ+ members. Their language use may only revolve around the aim of killing as illustrated in the sample comment below:

“Extermination extermination to LGBT is the solution.”

Now that we’ve learned the three things about hate speech against LGBTQ+ members on Facebook comments, we’ll realize that often Facebook users shape and frame their comments in the way that reflects their own’s or other’s idea to assert influence and power.

Reference:

Mila, J. (2023). Hate speech against LGBTQ+ members on Facebook comments [Unpublished undergraduate thesis]. Central Mindanao University–Philippines.

#lgbtq+#pride #hate speech #discrimination #hate speech categories #discursive strategies #hate speech sample #facebook #facebook comments #2020 #2021 #2022 #2023 #hate speech classifications #hate speech intensity levels

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