Last week, Facebook removed a photo from the Have a Gay Day Page of two hirsute chins locking lips and banned over 100 users for posting it. They claimed the photo “violates community standards.”
After some time to mull it over, a spokesperson told PinkNews Thursday that the photo was removed in error and has since been restored, while disputing Have a Gay Day’s assertion that users had been banned.
Taking a quick browse of Facebook’s Community Standards, I couldn’t find anything the innocuous photo violates in particular — but then again all it takes is enough homophobic users reporting something as offensive for any action to be taken.
So in that wonderfully democratic spirit, here are some other harmless gay scenarios the powers that be at FBook will likely remove:
“IMMORAL!”
![hot_gay_kiss_thumb[2]](https://queerty-prodweb.s3.amazonaws.com/wp/docs-null/2014/01/hot_gay_kiss_thumb2.jpg)
“DISGUSTING!”
“THAT’S TOO MUCH TONGUE FOR JESUS!”
“I will pray for these guys, God loves the sinner, hates the sin.”
“MY CHILDREN HAVE TO SEE THIS!”
“YOU AFRICAN’T DO THAT ON THE INTERNET!”
“Well I don’t see anything wrong with that. This is just wholesome entertainment. Any topless?”
Tackle
Facebook shouldn’t have banned the photo in the first place. That kiss is very tamed… As as you scroll down to the first pic, That pic is very innocent/tasteful, yet sexy/sensual. And I just love the color contrast…
Cam
The issue isn’t that Facebook has restored THAT photo.
The issue should be why does facebook continually, over and over get caught banning harmless gay images.?
Niall
It’s not really Facebook per se I think, it’s just their stupid alogrithim where if enough people report something, it is automatically banned and isn’t reviewed, just banned by the system, it’s the same with youtube I think where if enough people flag a vid for inappropriate content, the vid gets hidden automatically even though it’s not really inappropriate. So all Facebook has to do is find a way to prevent it.
HanyFathy
Love my job, since I’ve been bringing in $5600… I sit at home, music playing while I work in front of my new iMac that I got now that I’m making it online(Click on menu Home)
http://goo.gl/0nf250
longpastdue
I just want to say that “faoebook,” didn’t really ban the picture. The picture was removed because people reported it offensive, all someone had to do was write in that it wasn’t offensive and then it would be reviewed and reinstated just as it was. The fact is that I think that facebook as a company was not in error here. The way they do it is the best way to get truly offensive images off of facebook quickly and sure there are some false positives but as we have seen they are fairly quickly remedied.
hotshot70
They forced me to remove a pic that was g-rated because some homophobic a**hole didn’t like it. I say we flood FB with these positive kiss pics
2eo
@Niall: @longpastdue:
Actually you’ll find that flagging a picture only removes it from the accounts that flagged it, it is then reviewed by a person, the sad fact is the group of actual people not only deleted the picture later ut suspended accounts.
This is a fully human victimisation of us, and yet another proof that Facebook, ran by republican Zuckerberg is homophobic in its culture.
ibernard
The second photograph: the black and white image of two men kissing outdoors in nothing but jeans? How about crediting the photographer: David Vance of Miami and . It’s getting tiresome when people “complain” about the images, and various online gay-themed columns and/or blogs defend the image and, in this case, the right to publish, and then fail to give credit to the photographer.
Why don’t you ask Mr Vance what it was like having his images frequently removed, and then being banned, from Facebook, and what a negative impact that had around his studio and work. I’m sure he’d enlighten you just a bit more.
Niall
@2eo: Oh are you sure about that? It actually does go through a human review before it gets removed? Hmm, didn’t know that. In that case, FB really needs to get its act together and tell its staff not to interfere with their personal prejudices. Didn’t know Zuckerberg was a Republican either.
2eo
@Niall: Sadly I am sure, as a developer people are always shocked at just how much our big systems are still people driven.
Sadly Facebook have a history of anti gay bias, from Zuckerberg downwards, as a republican who actively supports anti gay republicans he has a lot to gain in big business advertising money and tax breaks.