Source: Andrew Lichtenstein / Getty
Looks like Facebook is finally getting with the program and letting hate groups know that its platform is no place for racist rhetoric and behavior. The company took a bold step and is banning accounts associated with the far-right extremist group the Proud Boys.
The group founded by Vice founder Gavin McInnes is no longer welcomed on either Facebook and Instagram the social media giant confirmed to TechCrunch. The decision came down when The Proud Boys were linked to a violent incident that took place in New York earlier in the month. Five members connected to the group were arrested after attacking protesters.
That incident was enough for Facebook to now consider the Proud Boys a hate group making the decision to boot the group from its platforms an easy one. The group describes its members as “Western Chauvenists,” heavily relies on social media to get its message out and they were already banned from Twitter. This latest decision pretty much stymies the Proud Boys large electric dog whistle.
Per Facebook:
“Our team continues to study trends in organized hate and hate speech and works with partners to better understand hate organizations as they evolve,” Facebook said in a statement. “We ban these organizations and individuals from our platforms and also remove all praise and support when we become aware of it. We will continue to review content, Pages, and people that violate our policies, take action against hate speech and hate organizations to help keep our community safe.”
We just hope Facebook continues to keep this energy going cause they have a lot to work to do with cleaning up the social media network.
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Photo: Andrew Lichtenstein / Getty
