Former US President Donald Trump will remain banned from Facebook after the social media platform’s independent oversight board upheld a decision to remove him from the platform.
Earlier this year, Facebook – as well as Twitter – suspended Trump’s social media accounts following a number of posts he made in the lead up to the US Capitol insurrection.
At the time, Twitter said the decision was due to the “risk of further incitement of violence”.
Since the initial suspension of the account, Facebook has engaged an independent oversight board – which consists of 20 members – to rule on the decision.
The board, which is comprised of jurists, policy experts, journalists and others, ultimately ruled in favour of the original decision.
“The Board found that, in maintaining an unfounded narrative of electoral fraud and persistent calls to action, Mr Trump created an environment where a serious risk of violence was possible,” the oversight board ruled.
“At the time of Mr Trump’s posts, there was a clear, immediate risk of harm and his words of support for those involved in the riots legitimised their violent actions.
“Given the seriousness of the violations and the ongoing risk of violence, Facebook was justified in suspending Mr Trump’s accounts on January 6 and extending that suspension on January 7.”
Trump fires back
Trump took to his newly created social media platform ‘From The Desk Of Donald J. Trump’ to dispute the decision.
“What Facebook, Twitter, and Google have done is a total disgrace and an embarrassment to our Country. Free Speech has been taken away from the President of the United States because the Radical Left Lunatics are afraid of the truth, but the truth will come out anyway, bigger and stronger than ever before. The People of our Country will not stand for it! These corrupt social media companies must pay a political price, and must never again be allowed to destroy and decimate our Electoral Process,” he wrote.
Whether or not Facebook’s ban on Trump will be permanent remains to be seen.
If Trump does run for the 2024 election, as he is expected to do, Facebook might face pressure to reinstate him.
