Facebook refuses to remove Indigenous hate page

7 Aug 2012, 4:30 pm   -   Source: Andy Park, SBS
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SBS believes the Facebook page which racially vilifies Indigenous people is operated by a teenage boy from Western Australia.

SBS believes the Facebook page which racially vilifies Indigenous people is operated by a teenage boy from Western Australia.

Hundreds of people have signed a petition to urge Facebook to dump a racially abusive page posted to the site that targets Indigenous people.

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Hundreds of people have signed a petition to urge Facebook to dump a racially abusive page posted to the site that targets Indigenous people.

The Facebook page SBS reported on yesterday which allows posts with racially abusive "memes" about Indigenous people has remained active overnight, despite protests from other users.

Brisbane resident Jacinta O'Keefe started the change.org petition after a complaint to Facebook failed to result in the removal of the page. 

The social media site responded with the message: "After reviewing your report, we were not able to confirm that the specific page you reported violates Facebook's Statement of Rights and Responsibilities."

The words "(Controversial Humour)" were added last night and the page has now gathered more than 4000 "likes".

The page uses internet jokes or “memes” to racially vilify Indigenous Australians, with text  referencing colonialism and substance abuse placed against photos of Indigenous people without their consent.

SBS believes the site was created and is maintained by a 16-year-old Perth boy.

A post made to the site yesterday by the site’s moderator reads “this page aint racism, its the truth, keep passin the petrol cuzzins”.

Facebook user Mike Gurrieri said he reported it to the social network via the “report” tab.

“I reported the page for hate speech against a race, and I think the page should be taken down immediately,” he said.

Some posters claim they reported the site to the Australian Communications and Media Authority, but a spokesperson said it was not their jurisdiction, despite it being the government agency responsible for regulating the internet.

“It’s a policy area. Our jurisdiction lies in preventing terrorism, online child pornography, national security and educating the public on how to stay safe,” the spokesperson said.

Facebook has been contacted for comment.

Facebook , Andy Park SBS

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Your Comments

It is easy to get a facebook page removed

Mona - from Australia, 9 months ago

Just say a few unkind things about americans and whoosh, gone

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