A Scottish youth charity helping young people in the LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) community has stopped offering its support services on Twitter.
LGBT Youth Scotland said it could not endure further "targeted attacks" against its organisation following the takeover of the site in 2022. It has deleted its account, which had over 33,000 followers, altogether.
Dr Mhairi Crawford, chief executive of the charity, said that the decision to leave Twitter was a "calculated risk" because it had more followers on the site than on any other social media platform. However, she added that the site "does not make it possible" to support young people safely.
She said: "After careful consideration of our mission to support LGBTQ+ young people, we felt our only option was to leave Twitter. Since Twitter’s takeover in 2022 we have become increasingly concerned by a number of statements and decisions that have had a real impact on the LGBTQ+ community.
"Our following on Twitter was the largest across all of our platforms but we have noticed a troubling increase in extreme views and targeted attacks towards members of the LGBTQ+ community, as well as our own charity directly.
"We want to create safe spaces for young people to feel hopeful about the world around them and their own futures and, ultimately, Twitter does not make this possible. We hope our move will give other organisations confidence to leave platforms where negativity is so prevalent.”
Has Twitter become more unpleasant in recent months? Share your views in the comments.
LGBTYS says it will still offer support through its Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and its website. However, it is the latest in a long line of high-profile departures from Twitter.
Research by American thinktank the Centre for Countering Digital Hate found that slurs against LGBTQ+ people rose 119% since the takeover.
The site has also undergone a series of crises after shedding two-thirds of its staff, including content moderators.
Its Twitter Blue 'verified' membership, which gives any paying user a blue checkmark previously reserved for public figures, has been used to impersonate legitimate companies and individuals, and to embellish hate speech. There was controversy when far-right political party Britain First was given a gold 'verified' checkmark, and when accounts belonging to dead celebrities were given the marks despite their accounts no longer being active.
The Record did not receive a response to our request for comment from Twitter.
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