A Brazilian non-profit is doing what many dream of when it comes to the racist, sexist, homophobic, and plain vulgar comments posted on social media — publicly exposing commentators by placing offensive tweets or Facebook posts on billboards in their neighborhood.
Criola, a group that works to defend black women’s rights in Brazil, launched its “Virtual Racism, Real Consequences” campaign after the country’s first black weather forecaster on prime-time TV, Maria Julia Coutinho, was bombarded with racist comments on news sites and social media earlier this year.
Commentators told Coutinho to “go [expletive] herself” and poked fun at her African-sounding nickname “Maju,” Business Insider reported. Criola’s campaign aims to shut down those negative comments by re-posting them on a grander scale — using public geo-location data to place the offending Facebook post in the author’s neighborhood. All identifying information, including profile photos and names, is scrubbed before its published on the billboard.
Offensive and slur-laden social media comments, whether on a billboard or not, routinely lead to embarrassment, job loss, and can serve as a public service announcement to think before spouting off online. But experts say that despite the potential for awareness, publicly shaming either online or in real life won’t necessarily yield positive results.
“I think it’s fair to say that it’s a little bit troubling in a few different ways,” said Steve Freeman, legal affairs director and associate director for civil rights for the Anti-Defamation League in New York City, which focuses on combating antisemitism, hate crimes and speech. “From the perspective of the target or victim, how does the victim feel every time they see it?”
Campaigns that bring awareness to problems of online hate speech, harassment and cyberbullying, are necessary, Freeman said, but even well-intended efforts may do more harm than good. “There is something to be said for turning hate and making something positive. I’m not sure this is the best way to go about it,” Freeman said.
Public shaming is an old concept used often as a form of criminal punishment, where courts order offenders to publicly admit and apologize for their crimes. It can also be used as a substitute for harsher penalties, including longer incarceration sentences or fines.
When “people are watching you, and that’s going to affect your behavior more than just paying a fine,” the Brennan Center for Justice’s Jessica Eaglin told the National Journal.
Social media can also have that effect. For example, corporate public relations director Justine Sacco became an overnight sensation in 2013 after tweeting “Going to Africa. Hope I don’t get AIDS. Just kidding. I’m white!” Within hours, she received thousands of messages shaming her for being insensitive and racist. Sacco later said that she was trying to make a joke about her privilege.
In Sacco’s case, the tweet cost her her job, social life, and her dignity. But the ramifications of public shaming don’t necessarily match the desired result — such as a shift in public opinion, according to said Joeseph Ferrari, a St. Vincent (distinguished) psychology professor at DePaul University in Chicago.
“Scientifically we know that publicly posting something leads to action. We use this for public change all the time, such as for dieting or smoking, so individuals are being held accountable,” Ferrari said. But in the case of putting racist comments on a billboard, that “action” is likely going to be negative.
The difference is accountability and control. “When I personally post something or apologize it makes me feel committed to doing something,” Ferrari said. “If you post something about me it doesn’t necessarily affect me the same way.”
Ferrari said commenters who see their anonymized social media post won’t necessarily feel remorseful automatically, but instead might become angry and lash out. “You want that person to post it. If you post it, you’re threatening me,” he said. “Putting the racist comment on the billboard isn’t going to start a conversation its going to incite mob behavior.”
Public shaming in this way also triggers what Ferrari called psychological reactance, when a person may feel restricted in their behavior because their freedom of choice was taken away. That is, someone who might feel apologetic or remorseful about a derogatory Facebook post if approached one-on-one, might become indignant and refuse to back down after being publicly shamed.
Ultimately, rooting out bigotry will take more than awareness. “Social media is a great resource” but “there will always be bigotry,” Ferrari said. “The bigger issue is that we’re not teaching people to be social and discuss issues. Together.”