Meta Faces Allegations of LGBTQ+ Censorship

By: Paul Goldberg, Senior Editor | JRL CHARTS – LGBT Politics

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — (December 11, 2025) — A growing coalition of digital rights advocates and reproductive health organizations is sounding the alarm after Meta — the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Threads — allegedly removed, restricted, or shadow-banned dozens of LGBTQ+ groups and abortion-rights providers around the world.

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According to The Guardian, which broke the story, the crackdown began in October and appears to intensify enforcement patterns dating back to the Trump administration, particularly around reproductive health and queer content.

Dozens of Groups Across Multiple Continents Impacted

The Guardian’s investigation found that more than 50 LGBTQ+, reproductive rights, and abortion access organizations have seen their accounts disabled, limited, or shadow-banned across Meta’s platforms in recent months.

These affected groups span:

U.K. and Europe
Asia
Latin America
The Middle East

Advocates argue the scale represents a dramatic escalation of long-standing concerns over Meta’s content moderation practices — especially for marginalized communities.

Shadow-Banning and “Algorithmic Silencing” Raise Red Flags

The Guardian previously reported on Meta’s shadow-banning of abortion-pill access resources in 2024.¹ That pattern, critics say, has now expanded to LGBTQ+ and queer-focused accounts.

In October, Paige Collings of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) told the Bay Area Reporter that LGBTQ+ censorship on Instagram has surged:

“Within this last year, especially since the new US presidency, we have seen a definite increase in accounts being taken down — not only in the US, but worldwide as a ripple effect.”

This aligns with global reporting collected by Repro Uncensored, which has documented over 200 takedowns or restrictions in 2025, compared to just 81 in 2024.

Repro Uncensored’s executive director, Martha Dimitratou, told The Guardian:

“This has been, at least to my knowledge, one of the biggest waves of censorship we are seeing.”

Meta Responds — and Denies Targeting LGBTQ+ or Repro Health Groups

In a statement to the press, Meta rejected accusations that it is deliberately suppressing LGBTQ+ or abortion-related content:

“Every organization and individual on our platforms is subject to the same set of rules… Any claims of enforcement based on group affiliation or advocacy are baseless.”

The company also insisted its policies surrounding abortion-related content have not changed.

However, advocates argue that Meta’s policies are vague, inconsistently applied, and rarely accompanied by clear explanations.

Groups Say Meta Gives No Real Reason for Takedowns

Women Help Women, a Netherlands-based nonprofit, said their Facebook page was suddenly removed in November for allegedly violating “Community Standards on prescription drugs.”

Executive Director Kinga Jelinska told The Guardian:

“They just removed it. That’s it. We don’t even know which post it was about.”

Others recount similar experiences: automated enforcement, no transparency, slow appeals, and no way to determine what triggered the ban.

Digital rights researcher Carolina Are noted that Meta often reinstates accounts only after public scrutiny — a pattern that complicates claims of neutrality.

Internal Warning: “Expect the Bans to Continue”

One nonprofit shared a personal message they received from a Meta employee advising them to:

Expect further bans
Build a mailing list
Reduce reliance on Meta platforms altogether

This suggestion, critics argue, is proof that Meta knows its enforcement tools disproportionately harm vulnerable communities.

FOOTNOTE

¹ The Guardian, December 2024 — investigation on Meta’s shadow-banning of abortion-pill access accounts.

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