Facebook Reverses Policy on Human Trafficking Posts
After defending posts on human rights grounds, Facebook says solicitations of human smuggling will be removed
A smuggler leads migrants from Mexico into Texas / Getty Images Joseph Simonson • December 10, 2022 5:00 am
Facebook is reversing the controversial policy put in place early this year, first reported by the Washington Free Beacon, that allowed for users to solicit human traffickers to smuggle them across the border.
The social media giant, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp, announced Thursday in a policy memo that, going forward, users are forbidden from posting any content that “offers to provide or facilitate human smuggling” or “asks for human smuggling services.” The platform previously held that these types of posts were needed to protect human rights.
The Free Beacon revealed Facebook’s previous policy, which permitted users to solicit human smugglers, in February. At the time, Facebook balked at the suggestion that the policy could lead to abuse of migrants and pushed back on the conflation of human smuggling and human trafficking. Spokesman Drew Pusateri, a former Democratic staffer who is no longer with the company, told the Free Beacon that it was “deeply odd” to suggest that human smuggling leads to human trafficking, as “there are literally differing legal definitions for both things.”
Facebook has changed its tune—its Thursday memo says that human smuggling and trafficking “can be related and exhibit overlap” and that both are “human exploitation.”
“The United Nations defines human smuggling as the procurement or facilitation of illegal entry into a state across international borders,” the memo states. “Without necessity for coercion or force, it may still result in the exploitation of vulnerable individuals who are trying to leave their country of origin, often in pursuit of a better life.”
Facebook faced pressure from left-wing activist groups who said allowing the solicitation of human smuggling on social media platforms was necessary to protect human rights. Although Facebook did not cite any specific organizations, the company said that “NGOs working with migrants” contributed to the decision.
Facebook spokeswoman Jeanne Moran said the platform is “constantly” working to improve policies.
“We don’t allow human exploitation on our platforms, including human smuggling or trafficking, and we remove such content when we find it,” Moran said. “We especially want to support those escaping conflict and oppression with information on how to seek asylum or legal migration while also protecting them from
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