Ever wonder if what you do on the internet matters? Internet activism can get a bad reputation, but in one recent example, it’s definitely doing some good. In this case, as first reported by BBC News, PayPal has suspended an account used to raise donation funds for the Ku Klux Klan after activists flagged it. It took about six days, however, before PayPal suspended the account.
The Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan had a donation page that said it was meant to give “a donation blessing for the cause.” Now, the page has a message that notes it’s “currently unable to receive money.”
PayPal told BBC News that, “We do not allow PayPal services to be used to promote hate, violence, or other forms of intolerance that are discriminatory.” Beyond this, though, PayPal says it doesn’t comment on individual accounts. PayPal states on its website that items with “Ku Klux Klan symbols” are prohibited.
In the past, PayPal promised to “evaluate all sites” that could be using its service to raise money for a hate group, including the KKK. For some context, you might remember that after the deadly Charlottesville Unite the Right rally, PayPal said it would stop any sites that tried to raise funds to promote violence and hate. This statement also came after much public outrage.
Still, people have some serious concerns. Namely: Why is the KKK able to raise any money using the service, to begin with? Basically: If activists hadn’t noticed this, then spent countless hours raising awareness, would the “cause” still be taking in donations using PayPal? And why did it take nearly a week of effort to suspend the account?
"I've been tracking hate groups on PayPal for several months now," Nandini Jammi of activism organization Sleeping Giants told BBC News. "I was just Googling for a new example and I kind of knew all I had to do was type in KKK." She went on to tell the organization that white supremacist groups using services like PayPal is “alarmingly common.”
Here is her tweet, including a screenshot, that helped the activism go viral last week:
BBC News verified the above screenshot.
Why were the Loyal White Knights raising money, by the way? According to the white supremacy website, the organization was seeking money to pay for postage for newsletters to organize public rallies and reach supporters.
Another element that activists noticed? The Loyal White Knights seemingly used a Google email address to set up the PayPal account. According to Business Insider, Google is investigating this now.
Of course, in all of this, it’s obvious that hate groups can try various services to get what they want, whether it’s raising money or registering an email address. But there’s no reason to make it easier for hate groups to thrive—and it’s well past time to hold major corporations accountable for their role in white supremacy fostering.