The far-left American Civil Liberties Union supports Meta’s decision to reinstate former President Donald Trump on Facebook and Instagram.
Meta official Nick Clegg announced that Trump would be unbanned on Wednesday.
“Like any other Facebook or Instagram user, Mr. Trump is subject to our Community Standards. In light of his violations, he now also faces heightened penalties for repeat offenses—penalties which will apply to other public figures whose accounts are reinstated from suspensions related to civil unrest under our updated protocol,” Clegg said.
Clegg added that if the former president slips and violates their rules again, he could be suspended anywhere from one month to two years, depending on the severity.
After the news broke, the ACLU tweeted their support.
“This is the right call. Like it or not, President Trump is one of the country’s leading political figures and the public has a strong interest in hearing his speech,” the ACLU tweeted in response to a report on the unbanning from the New York Times.
This is the right call. Like it or not, President Trump is one of the country’s leading political figures and the public has a strong interest in hearing his speech. https://t.co/PbY8AevFDy
— ACLU (@ACLU) January 26, 2023
ACLU’s executive director Anthony Romero also supported the decision in a statement sent to multiple news outlets, according to a report from the Epoch Times.
“Indeed, some of Trump’s most offensive social media posts ended up being critical evidence in lawsuits filed against him and his administration. And we should know—we filed over 400 legal actions against him. While the government cannot force platforms to carry certain speech, that doesn’t mean the largest platforms should engage in political censorship,” Romero said.
“The biggest social media companies are central actors when it comes to our collective ability to speak—and hear the speech of others—online. They should err on the side of allowing a wide range of political speech, even when it offends,” he continued.
