Facebook censored a post by Stanford University’s College Republicans that featured an article from conservative commentator Wayne Dupree’s website defending Kyle Rittenhouse, the pro-police activist who shot three far-left assailants last week in Kenosha, WI, on the grounds that the link constituted “nudity or sexual activity”.
The title of the article on WayneDupree.com was “New Photo Reveals ‘Protester’ Who 17-Year-Old Kyle Rittenhouse Shot, Was Pointing a Gun at Him”. There was no mention or imagery of any nudity or sexual activity in either the Stanford College Republicans’ Facebook post, or the linked article.
The Stanford College Republicans subsequently issued a statement lamenting the decision on Facebook.
“On Wednesday night, we posted commentary on the Kyle Rittenhouse case, highlighting evidence that indicates strongly that Rittenhouse acted in self-defense,” the group wrote.
“On Thursday afternoon, Facebook notified us that they had deleted our post, arguing (absurdly) that our post had violated Facebook’s Community Standards on ‘nudity and sexual activity’.”
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The Stanford College Republicans described this as censorship of their political views.
“We understand that Facebook is likely under intense pressure from the left to censor any content that contradicts the left’s politicized and fact-free narrative of what took place Tuesday night in Kenosha,” they added.
Posted by Stanford College Republicans on Friday, August 28, 2020
The Stanford College Republicans’ statement continued:
As managers of a page with over 5,500 followers, we fully embrace our responsibility to adhere to Facebook’s rules, and we strive to honor these rules at all times. However, if our content violates Facebook’s rules, we would appreciate it if Facebook would be transparent with us about how the content constitutes a violation. If simply undercutting the left’s narrative about Rittenhouse falls under the category of “hate speech,” why doesn’t Facebook just say so, instead of absurdly claiming that our content is pornographic? When we attempted to request a review, we were told that Facebook is no longer accepting reviews due to COVID-19.
We would appreciate clarification from Facebook on these matters so that we can avoid violating any of Facebook’s standards, and ensure that this page remains on Facebook as a growing source of conservative commentary for years to come. If you, our followers, agree that this censorship has been wrongly put into place, please share our post and help us encourage Facebook to enforce Community Standards more consistently and fairly.
Kyle Rittenhouse, a pro-police ‘Blue Lives Matter’ activist, was attacked last week by three violent criminals affiliated with the Antifa domestic terrorist network. He defended himself with his firearm, resulting in the criminals being shot. Two subsequently died of their injuries.
