We are beginning our initiative and the question has been raised regarding potential liability for possible trigger statements on our social media. Has anyone addressed this and/or does anyone use a disclaimer of some type on social media postings. If so, would you please share.
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Hi,
This is a great thing to be thinking about! I think it really depends on what kind of content you are posting/sharing. I try to practice putting TW/CW (trigger warning/content warning) for topics that have to deal with anything that could be related to trauma: racism, homophobia, transphobia, suicide, police brutality, rape, sexual assault. It can also be good practice to censor the words a bit like r*pe, s*ic*de. Here's an article that describes a more extensive list and practices: https://medium.com/@UntoNuggan...s-guide-e9fc90c6ba0a
Something else to be mindful of is that regardless of our intentions, our impact can be harmful. If you forget to put a TW/CW at the beginning of something and someone asks for it, do it. Apologize, take ownership, fix it. People understand when we engage on social media that we might encounter things that trigger a trauma response. I dislike the idea of trying to absolve liability with a statement because that seems dismissive of a person's valid response. A lawyer might tell you something else (not one; this isn't legal advice lol) but if you are trying to minimize the harm you do and exploring this already, you're going in the right direction!
Melissa, thanks for sharing your thoughts. This is very helpful. The article was helpful as well and provides some additional things to think about. I will be interested to see if anyone else has any thoughts.
Keith
