You might’ve seen the news last weekend, team:
Thousands of supporters of Brazil’s former President, Jair Bolsonaro, stormed Brazil’s Congress, Supreme Court, and Presidential Palace in a violent assault on democracy — following a similar playbook to the January 6th attack on the Capitol two years ago.
These attacks are the violent culmination of years of right-wing propaganda, conspiracy theories, and harmful election-related disinformation advanced by right-wing leaders — often going unchecked on social media platforms.
While former Presidents like Bolsonaro and Trump peddle lies to maintain power, their propaganda and disinformation are aided and abetted by major social media companies that are more interested in extracting data for profit than addressing systemic problems with their platforms.
At United We Dream, we know the rapid spread of harmful anti-immigrant disinformation and right-wing propaganda on social media platforms impacts members of our community. That’s why we have made the fight against online disinformation a core part of our work to protect our communities from racialized hate and right-wing extremism.
However, it’s clear that the consequences of disinformation are still far-reaching and pose a threat to safety and democracy everywhere.
Will you help us hold social media companies accountable for the dangerous radicalization occurring on their platforms by supporting our work to root out disinformation?
If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately:
As right-wing attacks continue to undermine democracy and disenfranchise people around the world, social media companies like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube have continuously failed to protect users from harmful disinformation and stop dangerous right-wing actors from radicalizing supporters globally.
Right now, Facebook is even considering following Twitter’s lead and reinstating former President Trump on their platform as a voice of hatred, right-wing extremism, and conspiracy theories.
The recent attack on the Brazilian government is a sobering reminder of the consequences of endless lies, harmful propaganda, and disinformation.
We all have a role to play in promoting truth and rooting out lies — from anti-democratic propaganda in Brazil, to xenophobic disinformation targeting immigrants in the U.S.
Social media companies must ensure they play their part, too — which is why our organization is leading the charge to hold them accountable for failing to take disinformation seriously.
Our work is just getting started. Will you make a donation to support United We Dream Action’s efforts to stop the spread of harmful disinformation?
If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately:
Thank you for standing with us,
José, United We Dream Action
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