• Home
  • News
  • Fortune 500
  • Tech
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Secret Border Patrol Facebook Posts Immediately Test the Social Network’s Day-Old Hate Speech Policies

By
Xavier Harding
Xavier Harding
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Xavier Harding
Xavier Harding
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 1, 2019, 7:18 PM ET
Posts to a secret group for border patrol agents uncovered by ProPublica are already testing day-old Facebook hate speech rules.
Posts to a secret group for border patrol agents uncovered by ProPublica are already testing day-old Facebook hate speech rules.

Less than a day after Facebook revealed new hate speech policies and a civil rights task force on Sunday, the company landed in hot water again on Monday, after ProPublica revealed a secret group of border patrol agents using the social network to share lewd photos and posts about migrants and Latino members of Congress.

In ProPublica’s startling report, the publication exposes the group titled “I’m 10-15,” which consists of 9,500 current and previous border patrol agents sharing inappropriate photos and other content. One comment on a posted photo of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D–N.Y.) and Rep. Veronica Escobar (D–Tex.) shows agents encouraging other agents to throw burritos at the two public officials.

In an especially graphic post, ProPublica reports, a member of the group posted a photoshopped image of a woman resembling Ocasio-Cortez appearing to engage in sex with President Donald Trump. In another, a photo of the drowned Salvadoran migrant Oscar Martinez Ramirez and his daughter, the poster suggests that the image was faked or edited.

In response to ProPublica’s reporting, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Carla Provost said, “These posts are completely inappropriate and contrary to the honor and integrity I see—and expect—from our agents day in and day out. Any employees found to have violated our standards of conduct will be held accountable.”

Facebook told Fortune that it’s working with the federal authorities in their investigation of the group. “Our Community Standards apply across Facebook, including in secret Groups,” a Facebook spokesperson noted.

The secret border patrol Facebook group is a harsh dose of reality up against the rule changes for content announced by Facebook on Sunday. Following a 27-page civil rights audit by civil rights leader Laura Murphy, a former ACLU legislative director, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg laid out changes the social network would enact to reduce discrimination on the platform.

As a part of the plan, Facebook says it is doubling down on banning white nationalist speech. For example, ideas that promote white separatist ideology will be banned, even if the words “white nationalism” or “white separatism” aren’t used in the post.

In addition, Facebook is barring marketers from choosing who can see ads based on race, religion, and sexual orientation, the results of settling a lawsuit with the ACLU in March. Facebook also announced it will remove age, gender, and zip codes from advertisers’ filter options.

A company spokesperson also disclosed that ads running on Facebook-owned Instagram will follow Facebook’s new anti-discrimination guidelines. The company made no mention regarding the ads that will run on their messaging app. WhatsApp’s Status feature is expected to arrive in 2020. In the past, fake news on WhatsApp has sullied the elections of countries like Nigeria, India, and Brazil.

Changes are also in the works at Facebook for issues including voter suppression and acts of violence. According to Facebook, the company will rally its engineering, data science, policy, product, and legal teams to combat voter suppression tactics—a problem the social network has traditionally avoided owning up to. If a group organizes an event in hopes of harming or harassing a group of individuals, for example, their posts will be banned.

While the audit offers a solid guideline for the company, the only authoritative body that has actual say over what Facebook does is Facebook. In a press release, members of Color of Change, a racial justice organization, simultaneously applauded the social network’s efforts, while also calling for governmental oversight.

“This latest update to the civil rights audit reflects a meaningful reversal in Facebook leadership’s commitment to making the platform safe for all users,” said Color of Change’s president Rashad Robinson. The group also noted, however, that, “outside intervention from government regulators will be necessary to ensure civil rights become an operational priority at Facebook.”

But Color of Change isn’t the only organization calling for government regulation of Facebook—so is Facebook.

In his 2018 congressional hearing, Mark Zuckerberg said government policing of Facebook is unavoidable. “I think it is inevitable that there will need to be some regulation,” Zuckerberg said. The CEO was open to the idea of government regulation but was wary of the amount of oversight his site would see. In a Washington Post op-ed from March 2019, Zuckerberg again asked for government regulation of Facebook.

Sunday’s audit of Facebook was the company’s second one overall. May 2018’s audit by Murphy also put the site under a microscope. Facebook released an update last December, revealing that the company made adjustments in regards to misinformation on the service and voter suppression against people of color.

With each passing audit, Facebook makes it clear it is serious about addressing the issues, and that there’s also more work to be done—though typically those revelations don’t spill out in such quick succession. Still, secret groups like the one belonging to border patrol agents shows how hard the social network is to police.

According to the Facebook, the site plans to “continue listening to feedback from the civil rights community and address the important issues they’ve raised” to benefit everyone.

More must-read stories from Fortune:

—Trump’s MAGA rallies cost big bucks—and cities foot the bills

—Black women voters will be central to the 2020 election, experts predict

—Can Trump fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell? What history tells us

—Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s message for democrats after “boy bye” tweet

—What you need to know about the upcoming 2020 primary debatesGet up to speed on your morning commute with Fortune’sCEO Daily newsletter.

About the Author
By Xavier Harding
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, pictured in May 2023, warns of record debt issuance by AI companies during an infrastructure boom.
Big TechTech
Borrowing by AI companies represents a ‘mounting potential threat to the financial system,’ top economist says 
By Nino PaoliDecember 9, 2025
1 hour ago
Man in dark jacket sitting on a chair
AIBrainstorm AI
Amazon’s new Alexa aims to detangle household chaos, like who fed the dog and the name of that restaurant everyone wanted to try
By Amanda GerutDecember 9, 2025
2 hours ago
LawSocial Media
Australia will start banning kids from social media this week—and Malaysia is getting ready to do the same
By Angelica AngDecember 9, 2025
3 hours ago
AIBrainstorm AI
Google Cloud CEO lays out 3-part strategy to meet AI’s energy demands after identifying it as the ‘most problematic thing’
By Jason MaDecember 8, 2025
8 hours ago
AIBrainstorm AI
Cursor developed an internal AI Help Desk that handles 80% of its employees’ support tickets, says the $29 billion startup’s CEO
By Beatrice NolanDecember 8, 2025
9 hours ago
Trump
Big TechSemiconductors
Trump says he’ll allow Nvidia to sell advanced chips to ‘approved customers’ in China
By Josh Boak and The Associated PressDecember 8, 2025
9 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Real Estate
The 'Great Housing Reset' is coming: Income growth will outpace home-price growth in 2026, Redfin forecasts
By Nino PaoliDecember 6, 2025
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Investing
Baby boomers have now 'gobbled up' nearly one-third of America's wealth share, and they're leaving Gen Z and millennials behind
By Sasha RogelbergDecember 8, 2025
15 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Uncategorized
Transforming customer support through intelligent AI operations
By Lauren ChomiukNovember 26, 2025
13 days ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
The most likely solution to the U.S. debt crisis is severe austerity triggered by a fiscal calamity, former White House economic adviser says
By Jason MaDecember 6, 2025
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
AI
Nvidia CEO says data centers take about 3 years to construct in the U.S., while in China 'they can build a hospital in a weekend'
By Nino PaoliDecember 6, 2025
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
‘Godfather of AI’ says Bill Gates and Elon Musk are right about the future of work—but he predicts mass unemployment is on its way
By Preston ForeDecember 4, 2025
5 days ago
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.