A woman cried after a tragedy at the Yuvarde School in Texas, United States. (Xinhua / William Luther / San Antonio Express-News / ZUMA PRESS
Now it is as predictable as a request for prayer and thought: massacre leaves many dead, and shortly after the slaughter. Wild conspiracy theories and disinformation arrive.
It happened after Sandy Hook, after Parkland, after a shooting at a nightclub in Orlando, and after an attack on Buffalo’s supermarket this month. Within hours of being shot at a school in Yuvarde, Texas on Tuesday, another outbreak began when Internet users shared an unfounded claim about his possible motives with a man identified as a shooter. ..
On Twitter Reddit And other social media platforms quickly revealed unfounded claims. The shooter was an immigrant who lived illegally in the United StatesOr one Transgender person..They were accompanied by a well-known conspiracy theory Suggested that the entire shoot was performed in some way..
Salvador Ramos: School attackers were mistakenly targeted as illegal immigrant and transgender figures on social media.
Racism, discrimination, intolerance
The allegations reflect a wider range of issues regarding racism and intolerance. Transgender peopleAccording to disinformation expert Jaime Longoria, the shooting was due to a minority who had already experienced a high rate of online harassment and hate crimes.
“This is a tactic that serves two purposes. It prevents real conversations about the problem (of gun violence) and gives scapegoats to those who do not want to face reality. Give them someone to take responsibility” Longoria, Principal Investigator of the Disinfo Defense League, a non-profit organization working to combat racist disinformation, said.
Within hours of the crime, a post that falsely claimed that the shooter lived illegally in the country was infected with the virus. Some users have added colorful details to make him “run away from border patrols”.
“He was an illegal alien who wanted to be murdered from El Salvador. This was Biden’s blood and should never have happened.”
Balloons, flowers and messages are affixed to the cross bearing the names of the victims after the shootings at Rob Elementary School in Yuvalde, Texas. (USA) EFE / EPA / TANNEN MAURY
Texas Governor Greg Abbott said at a press conference Tuesday that 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, a man who said the authorities had fired, is a US citizen.
Other social media users used images of innocent netizens to misidentify them as perpetrators and claimed he was transgender. In the 4Chan forum, users can share photos and Describe abusers as transgenderNo proof.
A later deleted tweet showed a picture of a trans woman with a green bottle next to her mouth, looking at the camera and wearing headphones on one ear.
“Breaking news: the shooter’s identity has been revealed,” said a user who used derogatory terminology to state that the perpetrator was a trans woman on the YouTube channel.
None was true.. The image shows a 22 year old trans woman named Sabrina who actually lives in New York. Sabrina, who asked her not to reveal her name to protect her privacy, confirmed to her Associated Press that her photo was hers and what was her alleged YouTube account. She said it was irrelevant.
Sabrina said she had been harassed on social media and received a message accusing her of being the perpetrator of the shooting. She responded to several posts that spread the image asking her to delete her post.
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