Statement by the Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples
“Hate speech is a crime, not commentary”.
UN Expert Condemns post targeting of Indigenous Peoples
10 JULY 2025
As United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, I express my strong condemnation and deep indignation against a post on X (previously Twitter) acclaiming genocidal acts and inciting violence against Indigenous Peoples. On 6 July 2025, Ann Coulter, a well-known USA media commentator, is reported to have posted on her X account “We didn’t kill enough Indians”.
Although the post has since been deleted, its content constitutes a clear act of hate speech and incitement to violence against Indigenous men, women and children. Such acts are internationally reprehensible and constitute crimes under most domestic legislations.
Indigenous Peoples’ histories are marked by violence. In certain countries and contexts, this has amounted to act of genocide and mass killing against Indigenous Peoples that many Governments and institutions have formally acknowledged and apologized for. Hate speech is an enabler of such practices by dehumanizing Indigenous Peoples and inciting to discrimination and violence.
This was not a sarcastic remark or a joke to be dismissed. It reflects a disturbing rise in anti-Indigenous sentiment, particularly on social media platforms, that I have observed in numerous countries since assuming my mandate in January 2025.
The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2007, to provide remedy for the historic injustices suffered by Indigenous peoples. It affirms that:
…all doctrines, policies and practices based on or advocating superiority of peoples or individuals on the basis of national origin or racial, religious, ethnic or cultural differences are racist, scientifically false, legally invalid, morally condemnable and socially unjust.
More specifically the Declaration states that:
1. Indigenous individuals have the rights to life, physical and mental integrity, liberty and security of person.
2. Indigenous peoples have the collective right to live in freedom, peace and security as distinct peoples and shall not be subjected to any act of genocide or any other act of violence, including forcibly removing children of the group to another group.
3. States shall provide effective mechanisms for prevention of, and redress for: Any form of propaganda designed to promote or incite racial or ethnic discrimination directed against them.
In this context, I share the concerns of Indigenous Peoples’ organizations worldwide, and I call on the international community to join me in condemning this reported abhorrent statement and the broader tendency of hate speech, incitement to violence, and discrimination against Indigenous Peoples that this post reflects.
I specifically call on States to act on their duties under the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and other relevant international instruments to:
- Provide effective mechanisms for prevention of, and redress for any form of propaganda designed to promote or incite racial or ethnic discrimination directed against Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP, article 8.2)
- Take effective measures to combat prejudice and eliminate discrimination and to promote tolerance, understanding and good relations among Indigenous Peoples and all other segments of society (UNDRIP, article 15.2)
The dignity, rights, and safety of Indigenous Peoples must be upheld without exception. Words matter, and so does accountability.
ENDS
The expert: Albert K. Barume, Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Special Rapporteurs/Independent Experts/Working Groups are independent human rights experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. Together, these experts are referred to as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. While the UN Human Rights office acts as the secretariat for Special Procedures, the experts serve in their individual capacity and are independent from any government or organization, including OHCHR and the UN. Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the UN or OHCHR.
Country-specific observations and recommendations by the UN human rights mechanisms, including the special procedures, the treaty bodies and the Universal Periodic Review, can be found on the Universal Human Rights Index https://uhri.ohchr.org/en/
For more information and media requests, please contact hrc-sr-indigenous@un.org
