Toronto (April 7, 2020) - Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) is demanding that TikTok implement sweeping changes after the popular social media app has increasingly become a tool for extremists to spread and glorify hatred of Jews.

TikTok, a China-based app downloaded by more than half a billion people globally, is used to share short video clips of up to 15 seconds. The app was created for people to share their talents in singing and dance but over time the app has become a leading platform for Holocaust denial, glorification of violence against Jews and other forms of antisemitism.

One popular video depicts real-life terror attacks committed by Palestinians against Jews with heroic music playing in the background. German neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division has shared disturbing videos portraying SS officers and concentration camp prisoners that call for "random violence" and "accelerationism" of the white supremacist effort. Users such as @1_hate_J3ws and @deathtoj3ws frequently share videos that include Jewish conspiracy theories, denial of the Holocaust and Jewish characters with exaggerated noses like “Sneaky Jew” and “Mega Jew.”

While TikTok has an official policy of banning hateful material, including Holocaust denial, the proliferation of antisemitic hate on the app suggests minimal efforts to enforce these policies.

“As a social media giant that reaches millions of young people every day, you are a source of great power, and that power comes with responsibility,” FSWC wrote in a letter to TikTok. “You are uniquely responsible for ensuring that your technology does not become an opportunity for recruitment and spread of hateful ideologies, and we demand that you take immediate action to enforce your own community standards by removing the antisemitic content that is now widespread across your platform.”

According to sections 318 and 319 of the Canadian Criminal Code, it is illegal to “advocate or promote genocide” as well as to “communicate statements in a public place which incite hatred against an identifiable group,” with maximum penalties ranging from 2-5 years of imprisonment.