Last week, several of our community members notified us of anti-Black and misogynist messages in your Instagram comments. The @loveisland post in question contained people repeatedly referring to @teddy_soares (British-Nigerian) as "Kala" * and @priyagopaldas ( British -Indian) as "Kanjari.” **
The comments remained visible for hours. At which point, several of your community members asked @britasiatv whether this was acceptable. There was no response.
We DM'd your Instagram account and emailed your founder with screenshots of examples (August 11th). Several hours later, some derogatory comments were removed, but there was no formal response or recognition of the event.
This situation isn't an isolated incident. The same account (now deleted) left similar misogynist comments on another Love Island-related post seven weeks earlier.
We understand the difficult task of moderating a community and keeping trolls from leaving racist and misogynist comments. However, as the UK's ONLY TV platform for British Asians, we expect more — and find the radio silence and non-responsiveness extremely disturbing. Especially when your Twitter account appears to support Black culture and anti-racist perspectives.
We all have a role to play in combating anti-Blackness and misogyny within our communities. Especially media platforms with sizable communities. While we could've easily turned a blind eye and said, "it is not our problem," that approach only sends the message that these actions are okay.
We are all accountable. What we want to know:
* As an established pillar in the South Asian community, what are you doing to combat anti-Blackness within your community and broader?
* What training do you provide your staff (e.g., social media moderators, hosts, etc.) to empower them to recognize and deal with anti-Blackness?
* What escalation mechanisms do you have in place to tackle online abuse and bullying?
* How do you handle misogynistic comments aimed at women within your community?
* What is your stance against anti-Blackness within your community?
* What is your stance against misogyny within your community?
We eagerly await your response
