After a Supreme Court ruling that removed constitutional protections, Instagram and Facebook have started removing abortion pills posts.
These social media posts were allegedly intended to assist women in states that had preexisting laws against abortion and then suddenly went into effect Friday. This was when Roe v. Wade was overturned by the high court. Its 1973 decision declaring abortion legal in America made it a constitutional right.
Social media platforms exploded with status updates and memes explaining how women can legally get abortion pills by mail. Some even offered to send the prescriptions to women who live in states that ban this procedure.
Facebook and Instagram removed some of these posts almost immediately as millions in the U.S. searched for answers about abortion access. According to Zignal Labs’ analysis, general mentions of abortion pills spiked on Friday morning, along with posts that mentioned specific versions like misoprostol and mifepristone.
Zignal had accumulated more than 250,000 mentions by Sunday.
The AP received a Friday screenshot of an Instagram post by a woman offering to send or purchase abortion pills via the mail. This was just minutes after the court ruled in favor of an abortion.
“DM me if abortion pills are something you’d like to order, but I prefer they be sent to your address,” reads the Instagram post.
It was taken down by Instagram in a matter of minutes. Vice Media reported Monday that Meta (the parent of Instagram and Facebook) was taking down abortion pill posts.
An AP reporter tried to determine how the company would respond on Monday to a similar Facebook post. He wrote: “If I send you your address, then I will mail you abortive pills.”
Within one minute, the post was deleted.
Facebook immediately placed the account on a “warning” status due to the post. Facebook claimed that it was violating its standards regarding “guns, dogs, and other regulated goods.”
The post was not altered when an AP reporter posted the exact same post, but substituted the words “abortion pills” for “a gun”. Another post offering to mail “weed”, with the exact same message, was also posted and not considered a violation.
Federal law makes marijuana illegal and prohibits its shipment by mail.
After a consultation with a prescriber who has undergone training and certification, you can legally obtain abortion pills by mail.
A Meta spokesperson sent an email pointing out company policies prohibiting the sale of certain items. These include guns, drugs, and pharmaceuticals. The apparent discrepancies in the company’s enforcement of this policy were not explained by Meta.
Andy Stone, Meta spokesperson, confirmed Monday in a tweet that the company won’t allow anyone to sell or gift pharmaceuticals through its platform. However, it will allow content sharing information about how to access pills. Stone admitted that there were some issues with the company’s enforcement of this policy across its platforms (including Instagram and Facebook).
It is forbidden to discuss the purchase, sale, trade, gift, request, or donation of pharmaceuticals. It is permissible to discuss the accessibility and affordability of prescription medication. We have identified some cases of wrong enforcement and are working to correct them.
Stone tweeted, “We’ve found some instances of incorrect enforcement”
Attorney General Merrick Garland stated Friday that the states shouldn’t ban mifepristone. This medication is used to induce abortions.
Garland stated in a Friday statement that states may not ban mifepristone because they disagree with the FDA expert judgment about its safety or efficacy.
Some Republicans tried to prevent their residents from getting abortion pills by mail. In fact, some states such as West Virginia and Tennessee have banned providers from prescribing the medication via telemedicine consultation.
