Yahoo Finance Rapper Wiley 'fully suspended' from Twitter over anti-Semitism
Rapper Wiley has been “fully suspended” from Twitter following a 48-hour protest by users.
The 41-year-old grime artist – real name Richard Cowie Jr – has already had his Facebook and Instagram accounts removed following his barrage of anti-Semitic comments.
Twitter has now suspended his account @WileyCEO for violation of the social media platform’s rules.
A Twitter spokesperson said: “Upon further investigation, our teams have permanently suspended the account in question for repeated violations of our Hateful Conduct Policy.
“Let us be clear: hateful conduct has absolutely no place on our service and we strongly condemn antisemitism.
“We are sorry we did not move faster and are continuing to assess the situation internally. We deeply respect the concerns shared by the Jewish community and online safety advocates, and we will continue to work closely with government, NGOs, civil society partners and our industry peers to tackle antisemitism on Twitter.”
The action comes after Twitter users – including many well-known personalities – staged a 48-hour boycott of the platform, beginning on Monday 27 July, in protest against their handling of Wiley’s offensive behaviour.
The grime artist shocked followers and the wider Twitter audience when he posted a flurry of anti-Semitic tweets over the space of several hours on 24 July.
Read more: Twitter users stage 48-hour walkout over its handling of Wiley's anti-Semitic tweets
Though some of Wiley’s tweets were removed and he was eventually given a seven-day ban from the site, many people were unhappy with how long administrators took to act and the leniency of the ban.
Twitter rules on Hateful Conduct state: “You may not promote violence against, threaten, or harass other people on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age, disability, or serious disease.”
As a consequence of breaching the rules, users are asked to remove offensive tweets themselves and put into a period of temporary suspension. Refusal to comply “may eventually result in permanent account suspension”.
It appears that Twitter has finally suspended the account of Richard Cowie, or Wiley. But social media companies have not been strong or fast enough about tackling racism, misogyny or homophobia. Full statement by @BoDPres: #NoSafeSpaceForJewHate pic.twitter.com/qmOOdZI4Mp
— Board of Deputies of British Jews (@BoardofDeputies) July 29, 2020
The protest against Twitter’s temporary ban on Wiley’s account prompted the #NoSafeSpaceForJewHate campaign, which saw users leaving the platform for 48 hours.
Read more: Grime star Wiley admits he's 'responsible' for Dizzee Rascal's stabbing
Former EastEnders actress Tracey-Ann Oberman shared details of the campaign and urged others to join.
Please join us .@Twitter has allowed @WileyCEO 48 hours of pure race hate. His tweets are still up. @jack has to stick by their remit of anti racism. Silence is complicity. Please walk out with us . No to all race hate . No to platforming any race hate #nosafespaceforjewhate pic.twitter.com/gKFDedjzmM
— Tracy-Ann Oberman (@TracyAnnO) July 25, 2020
Wiley’s Facebook and Instagram accounts were removed on Tuesday.
A Facebook spokesperson said: “There is no place for hate speech on Facebook and Instagram, and we don't want it on our platforms. After initially placing Wiley's accounts in a seven-day block, we have now removed both his Facebook and Instagram accounts for repeated violations of our policies.”
