Meta blocks Instagram accounts of Trans March organizer

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, suspended the Instagram account of San Francisco Trans March organizer and creative producer Niko Storment over the weekend for “human exploitation.” Storment’s Instagram account focuses on connecting trans and queer artists with job opportunities in the arts and creative world.

Meta defines “human exploitation” as including sex trafficking, the sale of forced labor, forced criminal acts and the recruitment of child soldiers – Storment categorically denies ever having been involved in these things.

Storment is the executive director of Rosen Creative House, a trans-owned creative agency that represents queer and trans people. He told the Daily Dot he has hired trans people through Instagram — “but not for human trafficking” — and said Meta’s suspension of his account was “truly appalling and disgusting.”

“I’m not a human trafficker,” Storment told the Daily Dot. “The only thing I can think of that could be viewed as such is the fact that we hire pretty much exclusively queer and trans people.”

Screenshots provided to the Daily Dot by Storment show that the producer posted casting calls for trans and queer models and performers, one of which included an opportunity for queer Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) models.

“Seeking 6 models who identify with both AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) and LGBTQ+ identities,” Storment wrote in his Instagram story. “Compensation: $50 Visa gift card.”

Another call was for a music video shoot for transgender singer and artist Carter Ray.

“We’re shooting a music video at sunset that focuses on transmasculine people. We’ll be hanging out, celebrating around the campfire and bonding with each other,” said Storment’s casting call. “Bring two looks, one for the day at the beach and one for the nighttime campfire.”

The final product of the video matches the description given by Storment in his casting call.

“This conflation (of sex work) and regulation of transgender work … is, quite frankly, really appalling and disgusting,” Storment told the Daily Dot.

Storment also runs the San Francisco Trans March Instagram account, which was also suspended due to the punishment of his personal account.

The march took place on June 28th and was attended by over 10,000 people. The annual San Francisco Trans March is one of the largest trans events in the world and the Instagram account had over 5,000 followers.

Storment and Trans March’s accounts were suspended the following day. In an email to Storment, Meta said all accounts linked to his personal account were closed.

Storment also said that he believed Meta was engaging in algorithmic content monitoring that was “aimed at silencing queer and trans people.”

In 2021, @Autogyniphiles_Anonymous, a trans-led meme account with 26,000 followers at the time, was censored by Instagram after being mass-reported. And last year, Mashable reported that Instagram had been secretly banning LGBTQ accounts, resulting in their content not appearing in their followers’ feeds.

Storment and his colleagues have previously had to combat the misconception that transsexuals only work in the sex industry.

“The first time I tried to get event insurance, I spent about an hour on the phone with the guy who basically heard what we were doing and denied us insurance because he thought I was basically a pimp,” Storment told the Daily Dot, “based solely on the fact that we work with dancers, trans women and burlesque performers.”

When Storment appealed Meta’s decision, he said the company backed down and again accused his account of using Instagram for human trafficking.

Storment said he spoke to a Meta employee who told him it was “very likely” the suspensions were the result of a “mass report.” Additionally, Storment said his case was escalated to several different Meta customer service representatives.

The Daily Dot could not independently confirm the Meta employee’s report.

Storment also suspected that the suspension of his account was a result of his contribution in support of Palestine at the San Francisco Trans March.

Since Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, Meta has censored pro-Palestinian accounts and voices on its platforms.

@transmarch stated in the post that the liberation of Palestine and the liberation of queers are connected and called for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

“I believe my account was on high alert/flagged because of the Palestine posts on (@TransMarch),” Storment said. “And (Meta) was looking for a reason to delete it completely.”

The Daily Dot was unable to verify the mass reporting claim. Meta did not immediately respond to the Daily Dot’s request for comment.

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