Facebook violence curbs thwarted by groups using code words

Membership in Facebook groups focused on violent anti-government uprisings in the US has doubled in recent weeks as the coronavirus pandemic has spread and governments impose restrictions aimed at slowing the contagion. To get their message across, these groups are exploiting loopholes in Facebook anti-violence policies – using satire, code words and other tactics that mask their motives, according to experts who follow fringe groups on social media. — AFP

When US President Donald Trump urged Americans last month to “LIBERATE VIRGINIA” on Twitter, a private Facebook group named “Boogaloo Enthusiasts: CORONAPOCALYPSE” welcomed the tweet.

“Did Trump just call for boogaloo?,” one member wrote, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. “Well, you heard the man! Let’s go bois,” another responded.