Last Updated on May 29, 2020
Enrique Tarrio, the chairman of the Proud Boys, has created new social media accounts in order to “stress test” President Trump’s new executive order.
On Thursday, President Trump signed an executive order that would strip the “liability shield” that Big Tech companies have under Section 230 of the Communications and Decency Act if they engage in “censoring or any political conduct.”
Currently, Big Tech companies receive protections as neutral public platforms, yet continue to make decisions that are tantamount to editorliaising their content, such as censoring, removing or shadowbanning anyone for political reasons. “In those moments, Twitter ceases to be a neutral, public platform, and they become an editor with a view point,” President Trump argued.
Following the announcement of this executive order, Enrique Tarrio, the current chairman of the Proud Boys, has created new Facebook and Twitter accounts in order to “stress test” how effective the executive order is going to be.
Tarrio and the Proud Boys were first censored by Big Tech in 2018; their Twtiter accounts were taken down in August of that year, as the Proud Boys were accused of being a “hate group,” then in September, Facebook removed Tarrio and the Proud Boys for being “dangerous individuals.”
Tarrio, a former congressional candidate, spoke exclusively to National File about his new accounts and the fight against Big Tech. “I think it’s important that President Trump’s supporters see what Facebook and Twitter are really going to do,” Tarrio said:
Twitter already censored the president three times since he signed the order, so they have no respect for the office, the president, or the American people. But now we need to see if they’ll also ban every day American citizens with opinions. I never did anything to get banned in the first place but be myself. They decided they didn’t like my opinions, which they’re entitled to not like, but they felt entitled to silence me and thousands of other conservatives. If Jack Dorsey and Mark Zuckerberg ban my personal accounts, it proves that they are publishers and not platforms. After this executive order, I am willing to be patient zero to see how far these tech giants are willing to go when it comes to violating our First Amendment right to free speech. Big tech and big banks have already violated my free speech rights, but beyond my free speech rights, they’ve hindered my ability to engage in commerce, which also violates the executive order. So I want to put their status as a publisher to the test.
We will update you on this story if Tarrio’s accounts are removed.
