Caste slurs are words used to insult people based on their caste, and the major social media platforms have banned such slurs in their written hate speech policies. However, enforcement of these policies is wanting. Many people become aware of caste for the first time as adults when people direct caste insults at them through social media messages, comments and replies. This document describes caste hate speech, what social media platforms’ policies on hate speech are, the extent to which the platforms enforce their policies, and the legal remedies available to victims. This document does not include any caste slurs, as including the slurs is not necessary to explain caste hate speech.
What counts as caste hate speech?
A report by the Association for Progressive Communications (APC), based on interviews of 12 Dalit, Bahujan and Adivasi scholars and activists, highlights that members of these groups are subjected to caste based hate and harassment, and in addition are ridiculed and insulted for utilizing the constitutionally mandated reservations (APC, “Online caste-hate speech: Pervasive discrimination and humiliation on social media”). The abuse can be overt and direct, or indirect and surreptitious. The report, “Caste-hate speech: Addressing hate speech based on work and descent,” identifies and describes both overt and indirect hatred, and excludes people from discussions, and negatively impacts their psychological well-being (IDSN, 2021; APC). Our guide to casteism defines the term. Our who are the Dalits? guide, describes the group most targeted by caste haters.
Caste slurs and hate speech: what platform rules say
Meta (Facebook, Instagram and Threads). Meta’s Hateful Conduct Policy defines hateful conduct as directly targeting individuals based on protected characteristics, and includes caste along with race, ethnicity, national origin, disability, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, sex, gender identity and serious diseases (Meta Transparency Center, “Hateful Conduct”). The Policy defines slurs as words which inherently create a hostile environment of exclusion and intimidation against individuals based on a protected characteristic, historically, based on discrimination (Meta). According to Meta’s Advertising Policy, advertisements cannot include hateful conduct and cannot utilize slurs (Meta Transparency Center, “Hateful Conduct,” Advertising Standards, January 2025 version).
X (formerly Twitter). X’s Hateful Conduct Policy states individuals cannot target others based on race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age or disability (X Help Center, “Hateful Conduct,” April 2023 version). The Policy also states that individuals cannot dehumanize based on caste, among others, and X will not require individuals to prove their membership of a protected class (X Help Center). Including caste in the Policy began on August 18, 2021 (Manish Kumar, “Caste-based hate speech moderation on Facebook (Meta) and Twitter (X)”).
You Tube and Google. The International Dalit Solidarity Network (IDSN) asserts that Google, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter have included caste in their hate-speech policies, and therefore protect it (IDSN, 2021). I did not review YouTube’s current policy page, so please check it.
When did platforms add caste?
Late. The APC study analyzed the policies and transparency reports of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Clubhouse. The study found that Facebook, Twitter and YouTube added caste as a protected characteristic in the last two to three years, many years after their entry into the Indian and South Asian markets (APC; Columbia Global Freedom of Expression, “Online caste-hate speech”). The researchers state that this shows not enough consideration for the regional contexts of their users (APC). Please check the current policy text, as these are subject to change.
What research reports about enforcement
Equality Labs, a US-based civil rights group, published a report on caste and religious hate speech on Facebook in India (Equality Labs via Manish Kumar). A paper reviewing the report noted that Facebook’s reporting options did not cover caste and that the review found shortcomings in the way reports were classified (Manish Kumar, eScholarship). A digital-rights site summarizing this work states that internal disclosures suggested a low takedown rate, and that Twitter faced similar issues because its reporting options were limited (Social Media Matters, “How Caste Hate Persists on the Internet,” citing Manish Kumar, 2023). These are secondary sources, therefore please see the original sources.
APF researchers suggest that corporations invest a lot more in regional dialects and languages, and work with Dalit, Bahujan and Adivasi activists so that guidelines tackle overt, covert and hyper-local forms of caste hatred (APC).
Why is moderation hard?
Dalits may be referred to with subtle caste slurs or by surnames or community names that do not contain a caste slur. Identifying caste slurs is a challenge and APC’s recommendation on regional languages alludes to this. A person can be caste abused by having a surname associated with a particular caste, and the insult does not involve a caste slur. Written lists do not address this. Our post on surnames and case surnames, and case bias in AI, address this challenge.
Caste slurs and the law
In India, specific laws to address caste-based discrimination are the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and the Prohibition of Employment of Manual Scavenging and their Rehabilitation Act, 2016, as explained in our guide. In the UK, no law addresses caste-based discrimination, as explained in our guide. The IDSN report says that the UK prosecution guidance on racist and religious hate crime identifies caste, when determining if a hate crime has occurred (IDSN, 2021). I did not validate the guidance directly. In the USA, there are no federal laws that address caste-based discrimination, as our legislation tracker shows.
The other side of the debate
Not all agree that platforms should name castes. For instance, the Hindu American Foundation, in our guide to the debate on caste laws, states that caste-related rules singled out Hindus and South Asians. The free-speech concerns about over-removal also apply to a hate-speech rule. I did not locate a platform’s response to these arguments, and thus, these are not addressed in this guide. Our post on caste discrimination in Silicon Valley addresses related issues.
What users can do
Meta and X state that users can report content that violates the rules of each platform (Meta; X). X also states that it will not require users to prove that they are in a protected class (X Help Center). Users who receive threats or repeated abuse should keep a copy of messages and/or posts and consider legal action. Our guide to caste discrimination in the workplace addresses similar concerns. (For impacted communities, documentation of their own experiences has become even more critical. The Ambedkarite Educational Program was created to teach these skills.)
The bottom line
Caste slurs are included in the written hate-speech policy of Meta and X, and of YouTube as well (according to researchers), because caste is a named protected characteristic. The policies were added relatively recently, X in August 2021. Researchers report other deficiencies as well, such as insufficient local-language moderation, and inconsistent removals. The law varies in different jurisdictions, and critics question if caste should be named at all. On-paper policies do not guarantee enforcement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do social media platforms ban caste slurs?
Meta and X name caste as a protected characteristic in their hate-speech policies, and the IDSN reports that YouTube does too. Enforcement is uneven.
When did X add caste to its hateful conduct policy?
On August 18, 2021, according to a paper reviewing the policy.
Can I report caste abuse on Facebook or Instagram?
Yes. Meta’s policy covers attacks based on caste, and users can report content under its rules. Researchers have raised concerns about how reporting options are categorised.
Is caste hate speech illegal?
In India, insults based on caste can be covered by the Atrocities Act. In the UK and US, caste is not named in the main laws. Please see our guides for each country.
Why do platforms struggle to moderate caste abuse?
Researchers point to gaps in regional-language moderation, limited reporting options and caste references, such as surnames, that are hard to recognise from outside.
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SOURCES
- Meta Transparency Center, “Hateful Conduct” (Community Standards)
- Meta Transparency Center, “Hateful Conduct” (Ad Standards, January 2025 version)
- X Help Center, “Hateful Conduct” (April 2023 version)
- APC, “Online caste-hate speech: Pervasive discrimination and humiliation on social media”
- Columbia Global Freedom of Expression, summary of the APC report
- IDSN, “Caste-hate speech: Addressing hate speech based on work and descent,” 2021
- eScholarship, Manish Kumar, “Caste-based hate speech moderation on Facebook (Meta) and Twitter (X),” 2023
- Social Media Matters, “How Caste Hate Persists on the Internet”
- Intellect, “Caste-hate speech and digital media politics” (abstract)
