FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

August 18, 2023

CONTACT

Nicholas Gugerty | ngugerty@allianceforpeacebuilding.org

Washington, DC, USA — The Alliance for Peacebuilding (AfP), a nonpartisan global peacebuilding network of 190+ members operating in 181 countries working to end violent conflict and build sustainable peace, strongly condemns the legal actions against the Center for Countering Digital Hate by X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. Preventing and reducing violence and conflict and building sustainable peace requires the dissemination of accurate and reliable data. The lawsuit brought by X against the Center for Countering Digital Hate could have a potential chilling effect on research critical to identifying online vitriol and addressing the physical and destabilizing violence it can fuel. The Center for Countering Digital Hate is a civil society organization aiming to stop the spread of online hate and disinformation through research, campaigns, and advocacy. Similar threats of costly legal action could stifle research by organizations and researchers that analyze and address the causes of violent conflict and violence.

Preventing and reducing global violent conflict is one of the most significant challenges of our time. Violence, violent conflict, and fragility are at all-time highs and increasing. Technology, while often contributing positively to society, also provides platforms for disinformation and threats that can incite conflict and violence in the United States and globally. Independent researchers and organizations must be free to provide much-needed data and analysis on these challenges. Rather than seek to repress this work, technology and social media companies should partner with these experts and peacebuilding practitioners to identify and prevent harmful uses of technology and support tools that promote peacebuilding and social cohesion. At a time of global, record-breaking violence, the private sector must support, fund, and learn from evidence-based research, not discourage it. 

The Alliance for Peacebuilding (AfP), named the “number one influencer and change agent” among peacebuilding institutions worldwide, is an award-winning nonprofit and nonpartisan network of 190+ organizations working in 181 countries to prevent and reduce violent conflict and build sustainable peace. AfP cultivates a network to strengthen and advance the peacebuilding field, enabling peacebuilding organizations to achieve greater impact—tackling issues too large for any one organization to address alone.