By Simon Sansome
In an astonishing recorded call from Facebook, listen below.
Ability Access is the UK’s largest disability page with over 12,000 followers and often goes viral. This week is no exception, with reaching an audience of over 5 million people and 1.5 million interactions.
Earlier this week, Ability Access, was blocked from inviting people to like the page after getting over 3000 new likes.
Scheduling a call with Facebook Marketing Team to resolve this issue, we asked why we had been blocked and their reply is shocking and possibly discriminatory.
In a recorded conversation the operator who is a marketing expert at Facebook said: “You will have to understand that some people see disability as disturbing, you will have to think about it like that”.
The operator then went on to say “I have never come across a page that promotes disability”.
Simon – “So, to promote my page, I need to go through customer service again, because I have been banned from promoting my page on disability”.
Operator “Yes, yes”.
Ability Access was set up in 2016 to get people talking about disability in the UK. It is a well-known platform in the UK in the disabled community and used by multiple organisation to promote disability charities, community events and is seen as a social hub in the disabled community.
As a disabled journalist I could not believe what was happening, when I say in the conversation, I had to leave the room I reached for my zoom (a recording device used by journalists) and was waiting for it to load up.
What happed in this conversation was just shocking and quite sad, for the disabled community as millions of people with disabilities use Facebook as their main communication tool and to have an employee to say “You will have to understand that some people see disability as disturbing, you will have to think about it like that” and to find out we have been blocked from inviting people to the page takes away a person’s freedom of speech.
Ability Access will be contacting Facebook for a comment on this story and will update readers on the reply.
So myself and millions like me aren’t welcome at Facebook. Ok then maybe its time we all closed our accounts and see how quickly things change when advertisers shun FB as a platform to promote their goods.
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That’s appalling.very narrow minded.the world is made up of all types of people, disabled people too.and has an abled body person,but hearing impaired.I find it absolutely humbling for me.to see people who over come there own adversities. The human spirit is so admirable.anyone could end up disabled at any time.an accident or illness. More cover of disabled on Facebook or tv.highlights the struggles we all have to get what is right and should be the norm.
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That’s discrimination and you should Sue them
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Disgusting of Facebook don’t we get enough has it is
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