Women of color running for Congress in 2024 have been disproportionately attacked on X, with offensive and hate speech aimed at them at significantly higher rates compared to other candidates, according to a new report from the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) and the University of Pittsburgh.
An analysis of over 800,000 posts between May 20 and August 23, 2024, revealed that Black and Asian women candidates were the primary targets, with more than 20 percent of posts directed at them containing offensive language.
Black Women Face Higher Rates of Hate Speech
The research examined tweets mentioning any of the 1,031 candidates running for Congress with accounts on X. Offensive speech, defined as language that demeans, threatens, insults, or ridicules, was found to be disproportionately directed at women of color. Hate speech, which specifically targets a person’s identity — such as race, gender, sexual orientation, or religion — was especially prevalent in tweets directed at Black women.
- Approximately 4 percent of tweets about Black women candidates contained hate speech, compared to less than 1 percent for all candidates overall.
- More than 20 percent of posts targeting Black and Asian women included offensive language, underscoring the disproportionate focus on women of color.
This aligns with X’s recent transparency report under Elon Musk’s leadership, which noted that less than 1 percent of total posts on the platform violated its rules.
CDT Calls for Stronger Platform Measures
The CDT report highlighted the concern that, while hate speech typically violates platform policies, offensive speech often does not, yet the scale of such attacks can still pose a serious obstacle. The report urged platforms like X to implement clearer policies prohibiting attacks based on race and gender, along with improved transparency and reporting tools.
The report further recommended regular risk assessments focusing on race and gender and privacy-preserving access to platform data for independent researchers. The failure to address these issues, the report argues, continues to create barriers for women of color in political participation, affecting efforts to build a more inclusive democracy.
Featured Image courtesy of Nathan Stirk/Getty Images
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