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As the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz is celebrated, the question of leaving a platform where anti-Semitism flourishes arises.
AUSCHWITZ – Can we have the mission of transmitting the memory of the Shoah and remain on a social network whose boss made a gesture akin to a Nazi salute? This is, against all odds, the choice that the Auschwitz-Birkenau National Museum made, as this Monday, January 27 marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the death camp by the Red Army.
Paweł Sawicki, deputy spokesperson for the museum, assures that the question of leaving X, where anti-Semitic and Holocaust denial remarks flourish, was discussed. “ If we had to leave all the places where there is anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial, we should simply leave the internet “, he explains.
Elon Musk, a regular in anti-Semitic codes
However, there would be good reasons to do so, as Musk himself has regularly been accused of anti-Semitism, and of promoting it via “his” Twitter. In 2023, the Museum also criticized him for not fighting sufficiently against anti-Semitic publications on X and criticized his proposal to remove the “block” option on the platform.
In November of the same year, the Tesla owner outright approved a tweet claiming that Jews would incite hatred of white people. The controversy that followed would ultimately push him to go to the Auschwitz camp in early 2024. A highly publicized trip after which he declared having been “ naive » on the issue of anti-Semitism and its extent.
But not sure that this late awareness has really changed the situation. The episode did not in fact prevent Musk from continuing to borrow white supremacist codes from the internet, such as the “Pepe The Frog” meme (which has become a marker for the ultra-right on the web) dressed in armor Roman which was until very recently his X profile photo. Just a few days ago, he performed live on television a gesture akin to a Nazi salute for some, and a very awkward movement for others.
Give weapons to fight negationism
Despite all these signals, there is no question for the Auschwitz-Birkenau National Museum of leaving X for the moment. As Paweł Sawicki explains, it is above all a question of not abandoning their community which is committed to transmitting the memory of the Holocaust.
« All these committed people would be left all alone », explains the spokesperson. Leaving X would then amount to creating a silence on the platform, a void which, according to him, “ risks being filled with disinformation and negationism ».
-If for Paweł it is out of the question to discuss with the deniers, it is nevertheless important to give those who are exposed to their theses something to defend themselves intellectually. Hence an attitude that goes on the offensive: “ We will soon be releasing resources that will help combat the manipulative strategies of Holocaust deniers », he announces.
Leaving X, a step already taken for some
Many accounts, faced with the flow of racism and anti-Semitism which often characterizes the social network, have nevertheless decided to leave it in 2024. This is the case, including, of organizations aiming to fight against online hatred : the American organization Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) announced, on November 14, to give up before this “cauldron of hatred and disinformation”.
Certain accounts linked to the memory of the Shoah have also recently taken the plunge. In December 2024, the British Association for Jewish Refugees launched the initiative « Not One More Word » (not another word). The organization, along with 38 other organizations and people whose mission is to transmit the history of the Holocaust, have left Elon Musk’s platform. Among them, the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp memorial.
In its press release, the association denounced growing misinformation and distortion of facts on the social network, since its purchase by the richest man on the planet. She also deplored the disappearance of moderation measures, when at the same time remaining on the network contributes to X’s profits.
Although he does not support this withdrawal, Paweł Sawicki does not rule out their position evolving. The museum already has accounts on alternative networks to X such as Mastodon and Bluesky, thus giving them exit doors. As for what could push them to permanently leave X, Paweł does not prefer “ can’t even imagine it ».
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