New ABA Abroad Article: Social Media Companies Need to Respond to Threats Against Human Rights Defenders

Social media platforms are often a critical component to the work of human rights defenders. Human rights defenders' can use their accounts as powerful tools in their pursuit to communicate, organize, and fight for justice; however, they also present enormous risk to those who wield them in the face of authoritarianism. Ginna Anderson, senior counsel of the American Bar Association Center for Human Rights (ABA CHR), argues that this risk can only be curtailed by the companies who manage and profit from social media platforms. Without the engagement of these companies, online harassment, exposure to violence, and state-sponsored surveillance will continue to jeopardize the lives of human rights defenders around the world. Read Anderson's full article here.