"Threats of physical violence” and “sexually explicit” comments on the City of Langford’s Facebook has prompted councillors to take action to protect staff.
Originally launched in August 2023 as a platform to quickly share news and information with the public, a city staff report says the social media page has become “an outlet for unkind and inappropriate dialogue amongst members of the community.”
“These comments are not occasional, but unfortunately are becoming the norm,” said Donna Petrie, senior manager of communications and economic development, at the April 7 meeting. “Long strands of unkind and mean-spirited conversations back and forth between members of the public are becoming more common and get out of hand quickly.”
Petrie noted that recently, the comments have 'escalated' to include violent and sexual content.
To create a safe online environment, staff are having to spend “considerable time” monitoring the comments, which can include “late into the evening and all weekend,” said Petrie.
According to the social media policy report, “the public and staff are also reporting mental fatigue as many of the comments are offensive and unkind which can be challenging to read.”
In anticipation of the city voting in favour of disabling comments on the Facebook page, a handful of residents urged councillors to think twice at the April 7 meeting – none spoke in favour of restricting public engagement on the site.
“A municipal Facebook page isn’t just [public relations], it’s a public square,” said Tanya Sunshine, who suggested the council block repeat offenders from commenting.
“Punishing everyone for the behaviour of a few gives trolls exactly what they want – to disrupt and dominate the space,” she added.
With no town hall meetings, other residents said the removal of Facebook comments would provide another barrier to communication with the city.
“Langford residents are already limited in the ways they have to have any sort of substantial feedback with council members,” said Mike Morton.
However, it was noted by councillors and staff that there are multiple avenues for the public to engage with the city, including the Let’s Chat Langford website and public engagement events.
“The safety and security of our staff – a healthy workplace for them – that’s our responsibility as councillors,” said Coun. Lillian Szpak, who proposed the motion to amend the city’s social media policy.
“It’s not to shut down our community, it’s not to limit commentary, it’s to have a respectful workplace for our staff.”
Councillors unanimously voted in favour of adopting the amended social media policy. As of April 8, it says “City of Langford limited who can comment on this post,” below each of the city’s Facebook posts.
