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'Vengeance does not imply peaceful protest': Twitter takes down 'Trans Day of Vengeance' tweets after Nashville school shooting

Several of the tweets Twitter removed came from users trying to use banner for linking the upcoming protests to recent school shooting in Nashville

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA: Twitter claims to have taken down thousands of tweets that featured a banner for 'Trans Day of Vengeance' rally in support of transgender rights in Washington, DC, on Saturday, March 25. Several of the tweets Twitter removed came from users who shared a picture of the banner in an effort to link the upcoming protests to the recent school shooting in Nashville.

Following the massacre in Nashville, some activists and commentators have latched on the shooter's gender identity to trash transgender people and their supporters. They started labeling transgender people as violent and "evil", and even implied that trans people seek to use violence. Affected Twitter users included Georgia Republican and US Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene. The shooting is still being looked into and police have not yet provided any evidence that the shooter's gender or gender identity had any impact on the shooting as of Wednesday, March 29.

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What is the trans day of vengeance?

Trans activists have emphasized that the 'trans day of vengeance' is not a call to violence but rather a meme that has existed in the trans community for years. A transgender activist group claimed that the plans for the Washington, DC rally were made before transgender woman Audrey Hale attacked the Covenant School in Nashville.

The Trans Radical Activist Network (TRAN), a transgender activist group, has been preparing a 'Trans Day of Vengeance' rally outside the US Supreme Court on Saturday, April 1. In a statement posted on the TRAN website, the protest's organizers stated, "This protest is about unity, not inciting violence. TRAN does not encourage violence and it is not welcome at this event."

TRAN denied there was any connection between the Vengeance rally and the "horrific" shooting that killed three 9-year-old students and three adults. They stated, "Vengeance means fighting back with vehemence. We are fighting against false narratives, criminalization and eradication of our existence."

The statement continued, "It is also a call to our allies to stand up and fight with us to bring down the forces that try to divide and subjugate us all." TRAN is opposing a variety of legislation being implemented in several states that forbid gender reassignment treatments for children.

Why did Twitter remove the banners for the rally?

Twitter's head of Trust and Safety, Ella Irwin, tweeted on Wednesday, March 29 that the company has automatically deleted more than 5,000 tweets and retweets of a banner endorsing the rally. Irwin wrote, "We do not support tweets that incite violence irrespective of who posts them. 'Vengeance' does not imply peaceful protest. Organizing or support for peaceful protests is ok."

Twitter claimed that in order to rapidly and widely remove the tweets, automated methods were used, without taking the context of the tweets into account. As a result, tweets that supported the protests as well as those that were critical of them were deleted.

'Context is everything in content moderation'

Evan Greer, the director of the nonprofit advocacy group Fight for the Future, stated that Twitter's actions are "the latest example of Big Tech companies employing double standards in content moderation," according to US News.

Greer stated, "They are slow to moderate content targeting trans people, but quick to silence us when we speak out or push back. 'Trans Day of Vengeance' is not a specific day or a call for violence. It's a meme that's been around for years, a way of expressing anger and frustration about oppression and violence the trans community faces daily."

"Context is everything in content moderation, which is why content policies should be based in human rights and applied evenly, not changed rapidly based on public pressure or news cycles," Greer concluded.

'Kinda gives a whole new meaning to April fools'

Many people have reacted to 'Trans Day of Vengeance' rally being held on Saturday, April 1 on Twitter with one person writing, "I hope there will be mental health professionals out there to help them recover." Another person wrote, "Kinda gives a whole new meaning to April fools."

A third person wrote, "Right after a trans commits mass murder and executes 9 year old children. Classy. Maybe instead they should have a peace vigil for the victims." This other person wrote, "Probably should have decided to change the date or delay the protest considering recent events." One person wrote, "This is gonna end poorly."

This article contains remarks made on the internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.