#SaveTheChildren Part 2: Don't Be Mislead, Be Informed Instead

#SaveTheChildren Part 2 Photo 093020 Romero.jpg

It would seem that #SaveTheChildren would be a welcome hashtag that everyone across the globe should use on the daily. However, the #SaveTheChildren hashtag itself has been associated with a variety of conspiracy theories, pedophilia sex rings as well as potentially triggering images of children being sexually exploited and/or abused.

On August 5, 2020 Facebook temporarily blocked the use of the hashtag for approximately 24 hours which in return prompted immediate outrage from the Q contingent on social media. At that time, social media users speculated that the temporary disabling of the hashtag was due to the images that were being linked with #SaveTheChildren and that it violated Facebook’s community standards, which have strict guidelines for any content related to minors that include “imagery that depicts non-sexual child abuse regardless of sharing intent.”

On August 5, 2020 Facebook temporarily blocked the use of the hashtag for approximately 24 hours which in return prompted immediate outrage from the Q contingent on social media. At that time, social media users speculated that the temporary disabling of the hashtag was due to the images that were being linked with #SaveTheChildren and that it violated Facebook’s community standards, which have strict guidelines for any content related to minors that include “imagery that depicts non-sexual child abuse regardless of sharing intent.”

The temporary censorship of #SaveTheChildren on Facebook then created an upward trend of over 240,000 tweets within 24 hours on Twitter. According to Darren Linvill, an associate professor at Clemson University who studies disinformation, says, “social media has become so glutted with posts espousing a secret link between human trafficking and conspiracy-theorist favorites (such as Hillary Clinton and Chrissy Teigen), that Save the Children, an actual organization devoted to providing humanitarian aid for children, was forced to issue a statement on Twitter distancing itself from the movement.”

Brian Friedberg, a senior researcher for the Technology and Social Change Project at the Shorenstein Center Harvard Kennedy School says “#SaveTheChildren and its close cousin, #SaveOurChildren have long been used by conspiracy theorists of all stripes.” In fact, #SaveTheChildren recently relished on a conspiracy theory where a hospital in New York’s Central Park that was initially set up for Covid-19 patients was actually a front for tunnels full of trafficked children. This “theory” didn’t start to gain attention on social media until late July when Hollywood rallied during the United Nation’s World Trafficking Awareness Day on July 31st.

Additionally, the hashtag #SaveTheChildren was used on Child Lives Matter promotional fliers for their rally, a conspiracy-theory-promoting “independent news shows.” While most promoted the rally with genuine intentions of spreading awareness of child trafficking, others clearly had more ominous motives, with several marchers carrying signs promoting “Pizzagate” and/or “anti-vaccine” slogans.

Alexander Reid Ross, a doctoral fellow for the Centre for the Analysis of the Radical Right in London says, “#SaveTheChildren can be seen as a pivot or rebranding of sorts for far-right conspiracy theorists, many of whom are savvy enough to be aware of the fact that much of their potential audience will shy away from talk of baby-eating, youth adrenochrome harvesting, or child sex-slavery rings run by the star of Forrest Gump. They want to create their public image as reflective of how they see themselves to an extent,” he says. “They do have that sense of pride and embattlement that they’re struggling for the Western world — that’s their public narrative, and that’s how they want to appeal to people. The arrests of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell have only served to bolster and lend credence to their perception of the world as run by a shadowy cabal of sex-crazed puppet masters.”

So should you decide to participate in a #SaveTheChildren rally or march, know exactly who you are rallying and/or standing up for. The horrific agenda of human trafficking is always lurking in plain sight. That’s how they get away with it. That’s how they’ve always gotten away with it. Be educated and educate others.

If you are or believe you have identified someone in a trafficking situation, you can take action. Call 911 immediately to notify local law enforcement. You may also call the human trafficking hotlines in Canada and the United States by dialling the numbers below. Both hotlines are open 24/7/365 days of the year and provide services in over 200 languages.