Like, comment, discriminate: Racist Discourse on Dutch Instagram

Social media is becoming an increasingly toxic space — for people of colour in particular. Most of us agree that we need to put a stop to the normalization of racist content and create a safer, more inclusive online environment for all. But how can we effectively do so?

The Sharing Perspectives Foundation and Build Up believe that part of the answer lies in dialogue. By engaging in open and honest conversations or posting alternative, unifying narratives that provide a visible counterbalance to racist, divisive language, we can foster empathy and understanding while dismantling harmful beliefs and stereotypes. This forms the foundation on which we build The Digital Us: an online training program designed to empower young people to intervene in racist discourse on social media.

The Digital Us brings together people who have experienced racism online with those who have not. It offers young people a safe online space to engage in conversations around topics such as ethnicity, representation and privilege. Together, they learn how to best go about intervening in racist debates. Bystanders become upstanders, and the burden of addressing online racism is no longer solely on the shoulders of its victims.

In order to maximize the impact of our interventions, we not only need to know how to intervene but also where to intervene: where are online racist debates most prevalent?

To answer this question we carried out a social media analysis (here).

Our study focused on Instagram, where racist comments are commonplace. We made an effort to not only include overt racism and forbidden hate speech, but also include implicit expressions covered by free speech. Together with our advisory group — consisting of experts on social media, politics, and racism, either through their profession, study, or life experience — we identified nine themes for which Instagram posts are likely to attract racist comments. The most common theme was crime, followed by discrimination and racism, protest, Islam, and immigration. Most Instagram posts linked to the themes we researched are shared by national news organisations. We then analyzed the comments under these posts to see what forms of racism we find. For that, we grouped keywords commonly associated with racist expression into four so-called “classes”:

1. racist slurs;
2. terms questioning people’s “Dutchness” and whiteness;
3. judgements linked to people’s worthiness for work or asylum,
4. and dog whistles, used to spread racist messages in coded language.

The findings of the analysis unequivocally reaffirmed the relevance and importance of The Digital Us, with nearly 4% of the 309,083 comments in our dataset found to be likely racist.

Comments concerning ‘Dutchness and Whiteness’ were most frequent. They typically questioned individuals’ Dutch identity based on their origin, focusing on criteria that define a “real Dutch” person and arguing against foreign influences on Dutch identity. Those who commented on ‘Worthiness for Work or Asylum’ question the motives of newcomers to the Netherlands as inappropriate and accuse them of freeloading. The most notable ‘Dog Whistles’ related to racism involved comparing black people to monkeys and using coded language like “Fin” to imply criminality by non-White individuals. Our analysis found a significant number of ‘Racist Slurs’, particularly targeting individuals of African descent. What does this all mean for The Digital Us?

• All racism classes need attention. Participants can opt for a specific type of racist expression where they feel they are able to hold conversations best. We now understand the patterns within comment threads and can craft tailored responses. This includes addressing claims that asylum seekers exploit social systems, or participating in debates about a supposedly deteriorating — yet vague — “Dutch identity”.
• For genuine and meaningful engagement, it’s just as important for participants to get involved in topics that are personally significant to them, even if these subjects are less prevalent. For example, someone keen on sports might choose to interact with comments on sports accounts. This analysis can then guide them on the likely themes associated with their chosen area (for instance, crime-related topics for regional news outlets).
• Interventions will reach the largest audience if they focus on addressing comments under posts from national news outlets.
• Engaging in discussions about crime or Islam is relevant, as these topics generate considerable debate.
• Participants could also choose to concentrate their efforts on comments for a specific Instagram account. CESTMOCRO, which posts the most about our themes of interest, could be particularly important for engaging with a large number of commenters.
• Empathy is the most effective strategy for responding to hateful comments. Engaging with the underlying fears expressed in these comments is therefore a promising strategy. This will undoubtedly be challenging. It’s crucial that participants in The Digital Us have access to a supportive environment for debriefing after participating in these discussions.

The social media analysis provides The Digital Us with guidance on where to intervene to help us transform social media into a safe, inclusive space for all. Are you ready to be a catalyst for change? Sign up today to join our movement.