Snapchat Removes Juneteenth Filter Following Backlash
As the world celebrates Juneteenth and the end of slavery, social media app Snapchat has found itself apologizing once again and removing a Juneteenth filter that many have deemed as “tone deaf” and offensive.
The controversial filter allowed users to “smile and break the chains,” with the pan African flag in the back. According to the company the filter had not gone through final review protocols and was removed by 11AM ET after receiving backlash on social media.
“@Snapchat who on your diversity team cleared that #Juneteenth filter of breaking the chains? It’s offensive and it’s a no,” Twitter user @_Ayoo_Ki wrote Friday.
After the onslaught of criticism the giant was quick to remove the filter and issue an apology.
“We deeply apologize to the members of the Snapchat community who found this Lens offensive. A diverse group of Snap team members were involved in developing the concept, but a version of the Lens that went live for Snapchatters this morning had not been approved through our review process. We are investigating why this mistake occurred so that we can avoid it in the future,” a Snap spokesperson told CNBC in a statement.
This SnapChat #Juneteenth filter is…um…interesting.
Smile to break the chains? Okay then. pic.twitter.com/Wyob3kT3ew
— Mark S. Luckie (@marksluckie) June 19, 2020