Meta has accepted thousands of dollars from Australian groups promoting anti-LGBTQ+ messages on Facebook, despite the social media company having a float in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras to show its support for the community.
Meta staff and Instagram influencers are preparing to march on Sydney’s Oxford Street on Saturday under the theme of “Connect with Pride, by Instagram, Powered by Meta” as one of more than 200 floats in the parade.
But a Guardian Australia analysis of recent ads on Facebook through the company’s ad transparency page reveals Meta is profiting from groups promoting anti-trans and anti-gay messaging, including one ad claiming a drag queen event was “an attempt to sexualise innocent toddlers”.
The analysis found the Australian Christian Lobby spent between $1,500 and $2,000 promoting an ad targeting Launceston Library for a recent drag queen storytime event earlier this month.
“This is an attempt to sexualise innocent toddlers and encourage gender dysphoria. It must be stopped!” read the advertisement, which reached up to 50,000 people.
Wendy Francis, spokesperson for the Australian Christian Lobby, said “drag Queen entertainment is highly sexualised” and the group does not believe it is “appropriate for children”.
In response, the drag queen who hosted the event, Pussay Poppins, said it was “disappointing to hear that Meta has a float in the pride parade while allowing misinformation and hate to be advertised from their platform”.
“Unfortunately this is a common occurrence with large corporations showing superficial support to communities during pride season rather than actually changing practice or supporting that community as an ally company should be.”
Meta’s advertising standards prohibit discriminatory or inflammatory content and misinformation.
The Guardian’s analysis found that other groups have run anti-trans ads. The right-wing lobby group Advance Australia has run several ads targeting trans women in sport, using images of trans athletes including swimmer Lia Thomas and handball player Hannah Mouncey alongside text saying “the left wants you to believe this is a woman”.
Advance Australia spent over $2,000 promoting the six posts on Facebook, with up to 180,000 impressions on the ads.
Family First Australia has also run advertisements in the past few months saying Australian gender clinics are pushing young girls “who are deeply troubled” to have “both breasts cut off to feel better”.
Gender-affirming top surgery is generally only available in Australia to people over 16 years old, and patients need a history of gender incongruence and letters of support from a mental health professional to access it.
A Meta spokesperson said the Australian ads were currently under review.
“At Meta, we want to make sure our platforms are a safe and inclusive space for the LGBTQIA+ community, and work hard to find the balance between allowing people freedom of voice, while ensuring we minimise harm,” the spokesperson said. “We’re reviewing these ads and will take appropriate action if they breach our policies.”
Meta has partnered with the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras since 2016, and in 2021 provided funding for grants to LGBTQ+ businesses affected by Covid lockdowns. The company said it has generated nearly $700,000 in revenue for those businesses.
Albert Kruger, CEO of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, was contacted for comment.
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras has previously defended the involvement of corporations in the parade. Kruger said last week that corporate floats make up just 14% of the total floats and they were chosen carefully by the organisation.
“We choose partners who reflect the values held closely by the LGBTQIA+ community,” he said.
“Mardi Gras partners have been loud advocates for the community, and their support has been pivotal in bringing about lasting social change, such as in their support for the Same Sex Marriage Post Survey just a couple of years ago.”
