Antifa’s Call to Violence Gets Free Rein on Twitter While Trump is Censored

Posted on by Paul Chesser
PHOTO: Mark Ramsay (CC)

Twitter has twice muted the voice of prolifically tweeting President Donald Trump with a “fact-check” and another shielded post where he allegedly “glorified” violence against the thuggish rioters in Minneapolis (which he didn’t).

But groups and individuals who identify with Antifa, the anarchists who agitate for violence and destruction — most recently following the excessive police force death of George Floyd in Minneapolis — have been allowed to spread their destructive messages on Twitter.

Sure, the platform suspended the account of one such group, but dozens — if not hundreds — more spout their disruptive anarchist garbage on the site, provoking followers to violent resistance against authorities.

Twitter’s rules explicitly state:

You may not threaten violence against an individual or a group of people. We also prohibit the glorification of violence. Learn more about our violent threat and glorification of violence policies…You may not threaten or promote terrorism or violent extremism.

Also:

You may not threaten or promote terrorism or violent extremism. There is no place on Twitter for terrorist organizations or violent extremist groups and individuals who affiliate with and promote their illicit activities. The violence that these groups engage in and/or promote jeopardizes the physical safety and well-being of those targeted. Our assessments in this context are informed by national and international terrorism designations. We also assess organizations under our violent extremist group criteria.

Violent extremist groups are those that meet all of the below criteria:

identify through their stated purpose, publications, or actions as an extremist group;

have engaged in, or currently engage in, violence and/or the promotion of violence as a means to further their cause; and

target civilians in their acts and/or promotion of violence.

We examine a group’s activities both on and off Twitter to determine whether they engage in and/or promote violence against civilians to advance a political, religious and/or social cause.

Yet Antifa’s thugs have been allowed to promote violence and organize those efforts on Twitter, almost unhindered. Examples follow:

(Note the flames emojis in the tweets above).

This one threatens a “bloodbath:”

More:

This is just a small sampling of the incitement to riot, destroy, and destabilize civil society, by thuggish elements associated with — and supportive of — Antifa. If Twitter thinks Donald Trump needs censorship but these threatening criminals do not, then its protections from litigation under the law, established under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, should be invalidated. The President’s executive action last week was an important first step, but Congress must act.