Since joining Facebook in 2008, I’ve cherished the digital community it has fostered in my life. It’s been an invaluable tool for staying connected with family, friends, former students, colleagues, and various communities I’ve been a part of throughout my journey.
Facebook has become essential for keeping up with the well-being of my loved ones. I share in their joys and achievements, and offer support during losses and challenges. As a creative individual, I use it to share my writing, music, and events, fostering meaningful community engagement. As a retired professor of Theatre and Creative Writing, Facebook allows me to stay in touch with decades of students and colleagues, now parents and grandparents themselves.
However, this digital age presents new challenges, especially without readily available tech support. For instance, my limited activity on Instagram stems from my struggle to fully understand its functionalities. Recently, I received a notification about a temporary suspension of my Facebook account due to copyright infringement linked to my Instagram activity – a truly bewildering situation.
What could have triggered this? In my unfamiliarity with Instagram posting, did I inadvertently misuse suggested songs from Meta when sharing content featuring storytellers? I recall Facebook providing a list of songs as background music options, but perhaps I needed explicit permission beforehand. Ideally, I would have preferred using my original music, recordings from my band days in Austin, Texas, but navigating that process proved too complex.
Adding to the complexity is my Parkinson’s diagnosis, which affects my hand dexterity, making digital tasks like typing and uploading significantly slower and more challenging. The limited timeframe to respond to the suspension notice and file an appeal induced panic. Could someone have compromised my image and profile, posting content that led to the infringement? The unfamiliar Instagram account “number” further fueled my confusion. If it was indeed my account, I had no record of that specific username.
My mind raced, conjuring various scenarios, some of which I might have inadvertently conveyed in my appeal to Meta, potentially adding to the confusion. The core issue is simple: I sincerely request Facebook to reinstate my account. I utilize one page under my name and another for “The Living Room Storytime for Grownups,” a monthly public event I host.
Losing access to these pages would be deeply impactful. For sixteen years, Facebook has been the digital repository of my life’s timeline – a diary, a scrapbook, a virtual neighborhood for sharing milestones. It’s my digital platform for expressing gratitude and staying connected with friends worldwide.
Please, I urge Facebook, help me maintain this lifeline and allow me to continue benefiting from the service Meta provides to so many. Thank you for considering my plea and for the customer service that can help users like me navigate these digital complexities.
