Sit-In! is a digital tool of resistance, inspired by a protest organised by former Facebook content moderators in Nairobi in May 2023.
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We, the workers, had been unjustly laid off by Meta’s subcontractor after mobilizing for fair working conditions. In response, we launched a landmark legal case against Meta - the first of its kind in which a Global South workforce is holding a tech giant accountable in a national court.
This tool amplifies the voices of our largely invisible workforce. As content moderators we sift through harmful material to keep digital platforms running smoothly, often at great personal cost. Sit-In! brings our hidden labour into view, sharing our stories, dreams, and demands to expose the systemic exploitation embedded in Big Tech.
The court case against Meta is ongoing, marking a pivotal moment in the global struggle for justice and accountability in the tech industry.
Sit-In! turns the interface into a platform for protest. Join our movement, install the extension, and help make invisible labour visible - Sit-In!
The Sit-In! tool enables front-end users to make their support visible and stand in solidarity with back-end workers. Here's how to get started...
Installation
The first (and current) version of Sit-In! is compatible only with Firefox. If you're already using it, you're all set to install the tool.
• Download and install Sit-In! directly from its page on Mozilla Add-ons.
• Click “Add to Browser” or “Install”, and follow the prompts.
How to use
Once installed, Sit-In! operates quietly in the background. Whenever you visit Facebook or any other Meta service, the tool automatically activates, blocking the site and overlaying it with statements from former content moderators.
Sit-In! enabled: Facebook is blocked and overlayed with statements from former content moderators.
When hovering over the statement the full quote is displayed ...
Hover over the statement to learn more.
The Sit-In! icon and the counter in the top-right corner replaces Facebook’s standard toolbar. The counter displays the number of users currently participating in the sit-in. Clicking the icon directs you to this project site, where real-time participation is tracked and displayed anonymously.
The counter displays the current number of participants. Click the Sit-In! icon to visit the project's web-site.
Personal Settings
To customise the settings, open the add-on preferences for Sit-In! in your browser. By default, the tool is set to “Full Involvement”, meaning Sit-In! is always active, blocking Facebook and other Meta services around the clock in continuous solidarity with the workers.
"Full Involvement" is enabled by default.
• Select “Scheduled Involvement” in order to customise your participation.
Change how you'd like to participante by selecting "Scheduled Involvement".
Once selected, new scheduling options appear ...
• Tick the days of the week you want Sit-In! to be active.
• For each day, you can define a start and end time.
• Leave times blank if you want full-day participation on those days.
• Click the orange Save button to apply your configuration. Your settings are stored locally in your browser. No data is sent to any server.
In "Scheduled Involvement," you can choose the specific days and times when you want Sit-In! to be active.
Global Sit-In! Days
Global Sit-In! Days are dates of collective protest chosen by the community. On these days, the Sit-In! extension is automatically activated, overriding any personalised settings.
Examples of Global Sit-In! Days:
• Court hearing days and other events in support of the content moderators' ongoing legal struggle.
• March 8th: International Womens' Day / Transfeminist Digital Depletion Strike.
• May 1st: International Workers' Day.
• May 4th: Anniversary of the initial Nairobi sit-in.
Please be aware that these days cannot be disabled.
Sit-In! is a digital tool of resistance, inspired by a courageous protest led by Facebook content moderators in Nairobi in May 2023. The tool offers front-end users a glimpse into the hidden labour behind Facebook’s seamless interface, while also enabling them to show solidarity with the workers who make these platforms possible.
Sit-In! is a browser extension, a small software add-on, that transforms your web browser into a tool for digital protest.
Once installed, the tool blocks Facebook and other Meta services, and replaces them with statements from former content moderators in Nairobi. Hovering over these messages reveals more of their stories: the exploitation they endured, and the resistance they continue to lead.
The extension disables Facebook’s standard toolbar and replaces it with the Sit-In! icon, which displays the number of people currently participating in the protest.
Clicking the icon takes you to this website that anonymously tracks and displays real-time global participation, transforming individual actions into a collective act of solidarity.
Sit-In! takes its name and inspiration from a powerful real-world event: In May 2023, one hundred twenty former content moderators staged a sit-in at the offices of Meta’s subcontractor, Sama, in Nairobi. These workers had been abruptly fired just months earlier, shortly after organizing for better working conditions.
Recruited largely from impoverished communities across Africa, the moderators were tasked with reviewing and removing some of the most disturbing content on Facebook - including graphic violence, hate speech, and abuse. They worked long hours for low wages, with little to no mental health support. When they began organizing for fairer treatment, they were collectively dismissed. Despite a Kenyan court issuing a preliminary ruling in their favor, including provisions for compensation and healthcare, Meta and its subcontractor failed to comply. In response, the workers returned to the company’s premises in a bold act of resistance: a sit-in.
The footage in the background of this site reveals how the sit-in disrupted business as usual: The workers gathered as a flash-mob outside Meta’s subcontractor in Nairobi, singing and waving court orders. Bystanders looked on, and major media outlets, KTN, Citizen TV, Voice of Africa, even the BBC, covered the protest. The action pierced corporate silence, exposing the hidden toll of content moderation and amplifying the workers’ voices.
Yet much of the focus stayed on the subcontractor, leaving Meta/Facebook largely untouched.
Now two and a half years later, as of autumn 2025, the situation remains dire. Most of the former moderators are unemployed, impoverished, and traumatised. Meta, meanwhile, has evaded accountability by claiming it cannot be held liable in Kenyan courts and has since shifted its operations to another African country.
Nevertheless, in late 2024, a Kenyan court ruled that the case could proceed, and that Meta can indeed be held accountable in Kenya. The workers' fight, therefore, continues.
Inspired by the content moderators’ initial protest, the artistic software tool Sit-In! explores how digital interventions can challenge the structural barriers that allow Big Tech to avoid responsibility. It amplifies the voices of data workers and bridges the gap between back-end labour and front-end users. By disrupting the illusion of seamless browsing, Sit-In! compels users to confront the hidden human cost of content moderation, the very labour that keeps their feeds clean.
By engaging with Sit-In!, you join this movement. You take part in the struggle for justice and accountability, helping to make visible the workers who have been invisible for too long.
You can join Sit-In! simply by installing the Firefox browser extension from its official page on Mozilla Add-ons. Once installed and enabled, the extension automatically connects you to the protest.
No, you don’t need to create an account to use Sit-In!. The tool is designed to prioritise anonymity and accessibility:
• Just install the extension and you’re part of the Sit-In!
• No sign-up or login is required.
• It doesn’t collect personal data.
• Participation is tracked anonymously to show how many people are currently taking part.
Yes, Sit-In! is compatible with Firefox for Android (though unfortunately not with iphone/iOS). To get started, download the Firefox browser from the Play Store on your Android device, if you haven’t already.
• Once Firefox is installed, open it.
• Tap the three dots (⋮) in the bottom-right or top-right corner.
• Go to Add-ons > Browse all Firefox Add-ons.
• Search for and install the Sit-In! extension or download it from this website.
• Activate the Extension - and you are all set.
Yes, the extension activates automatically during collective Global Sit-In! Days. Outside of these times, you can customise when Meta’s services are blocked, based on your personal preferences.
No, Sit-In! cannot be used offline. It’s specifically designed to function in real time, activating when you access Facebook or other Meta services online.
Sit-In! does not collect any personal data: no names, emails, locations, or browsing histories. When the extension is active, it sends a simple, anonymous signal to the project’s server to indicate participation. This signal includes a randomly generated session ID (not tied to you or your device) and a timestamp. This allows the counter to display how many users are actively participating at any given time without compromising your privacy.
For general questions, feedback, media inquiries, or support, send an email to: hello [ @ ] sit-in [ dot ] info
This project stands in solidarity with digital workers everywhere - those who remain unseen, unheard, and undervalued - and strives to make their invisibility visible.
We also recognise the vital efforts of legal advocates, journalists, and activists who have brought global attention to the hidden realities of back-end digital labour. In particular, we thank the African Content Moderators Union, Nzili and Sumbi Advocates, Foxglove, Siasa Place, and Techworker Community Africa.
Sit-In! is a project by Felix Muruka, Irene Tuyishimire, Koffi Iranyibutse, Mercy Mwende, Nathan Nkunzimana, and Linda Hilfling Ritasdatter aka lnd4.
All code is published under GNU GPL ver 3, Sit-In! Modification, 2025.
