Several Facebook fan Pages encouraging rape and violence against women have been taken down. While the removal of the pages are in accordance with the social network's policies, many people are giving credit to a change.org petition that has more than 180,000 online signatures.
Earlier this year, Facebook declined to pull the page "Kicking Sluts in the Vagina" and other similarly graphic, questionable pages.
[More from Mashable: Yelp’s $2 Billion IPO to Hit in Early 2012 [REPORT]]
"It is very important to point out that what one person finds offensive another can find entertaining, just as telling a rude joke won't get you thrown out of your local pub, it won't get you thrown off Facebook," Facebook said in August.
The social network claims to remove pages that violate its Terms of Service, for reasons such as hate speech.
[More from Mashable: Facebook Users Shared Their Songs 1.5 Billion Times in 6 Weeks [STATS]]
A Facebook rep told Mashable Wednesday the company could not comment on why these pages have been removed, including those mentioned by the change.org petition. The social network defends its policy on removing content.
"We find many of these pages to be ignorant, just as we may object to other statements made on Facebook and around the web, but we believe that people have the right to hold such opinions as long as they don’t result in direct harm," Facebook states.
The change.org petition, launched in September by member John Raines, encourages Facebook to remove pages advocating rape and sexual violence. Its efforts spanned social platforms, including a Twitter campaign earlier this month using the hashtag #notfunnyfacebook to rally awareness. Senior change.org organizer Alex DiBranco commented on the petition, saying the hashtag had been used 200 times per hour at peak.
"Facebook could and should do more to stop them from popping up in the first place and to swiftly remove those that do exist. First, Facebook needs to clarify that pages that encourage or condone rape --like the ones mentioned above -- are in violation of their existing standards. Secondly, they need to make a statement that all pages that describe sexual violence in a threatening way will be immediately taken down upon being reported. Finally, Facebook must include specific language in their Terms of Service that make it clear that pages promoting any form of sexual violence will be banned."
The petition does not state how many pages should be removed, but all three aforementioned pages don't appear in Facebook search. Others, such as "How Dare You Call Me a Rapist !!! Jk, Get in the Van," which has more than 262,000 Likes, are still up and running.
Do you think Facebook should step in and remove pages promoting violence? Where should the line be drawn between jokes -- no matter how unfunny -- and serious incitement of hate crime? Let us know your opinions in the comments.
This story originally published on Mashable here.
