01/30/2026
A few days ago, our accounts were finally restored — and I want to say thank you.
But I also want to be honest about what this experience revealed.
On Meta platforms — Facebook and Instagram — an automated system removed a fundraising and awareness page supporting a child with cancer, along with my personal and business accounts. There was no human review. No context. No ability to explain. Just an algorithm deciding, unilaterally, that a family’s support system could disappear.
That is not just a technical issue. It’s an ethical one.
Sofia’s page exists so Janaye Powers, as a mother, could share her daughter’s cancer journey. Janaye shared the photos and words with me so I could post on her behalf — because communicating with everyone while caring for a child with leukemia was often too heavy to manage alone. This page allowed her to keep loved ones informed, to document treatment and recovery, and to feel supported during the hardest moments.
When that page vanished, so did a vital lifeline — not because it was wrong, but because no human was involved at all.
What’s especially troubling is that there is no meaningful human safeguard in place. People’s lives, communities, and medical support systems can be removed instantly, with no review, no accountability, and no urgency — unless you happen to know the right people.
And that’s the part that should concern all of us.
What ultimately fixed this wasn’t the system — it was people.
I am endlessly grateful to everyone who stepped up, shared contacts, and advocated when the platforms wouldn’t. Thank you to my cousin Tim, my boyfriend Patrick, Chris, Madeline, Karina, and especially Blood Cancer United (LLS) — whose Meta representative was able to intervene and resolve this. That human involvement made all the difference.
This experience made one thing painfully clear:
When technology operates without empathy or accountability, people pay the price — especially families already navigating unimaginable hardship.
Thank you to everyone who helped protect a space that means everything to a mother and her child. 🤍
Sofiabstrong forever ❤️
-Cristina
