Facebook removes anti-lockdown event/protest pages from platform
On Monday, Facebook started to remove anti-lockdown event pages from its platform. However, the platform is only removing event pages from certain states, such as Nebraska, California and Michigan, where large-scale protests have already begun to capture the attention of the nation.
Daily Caller News Foundation reported that Facebook is banning the anti-lockdown events from these states because they “violate their respective state’s laws.” The platform is waiting for authorization to remove anti-lockdown events from residents of other states, including Pennsylvania.
“Unless government prohibits the event during this time, we allow it to be organized on Facebook,” said a spokesperson for Facebook. “For this same reason, events that defy government’s guidance on social distancing aren’t allowed on Facebook.”
In an interview on Monday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg classified such events as “harmful misinformation.”
Facebook’s decision comes as no surprise, as some states are fining, and even arresting citizens who violate strict stay-at-home orders.
In North Carolina, a protestor was arrested, and in California, visitors were fined for driving to buy drinks at a 7/11.
The questions remains: will arrests and fines increase as the number of protests begin to increase, or will governors begin to ease up on their restrictions? Time will tell.
