Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has been permanently banned from Twitter’s platform after “repeated violations of its coronavirus misinformation policy, which allows four strikes with varying suspensions from the platform, before issuing a permanent ban.” Greene has been suspended from the platform four times in the past, with her latest being permanent.
The tweet that got her banned referenced “extremely high amounts of COVID vaccine deaths.” All mainstream media platforms ranging from CNN to the BBC state that her claim is false. If her claim is false, however, then why is Twitter rushing to silence her? This is an opportunity to have a real discussion regarding the COVID vaccines. In fact, if open discussion were permitted, perhaps more people would be inclined to get vaccinated. The secrecy surrounding the pandemic has caused a lot of distrust in the government, and banning public officials who use their platform to speak out and against the national narrative is not helping the government’s credibility.
According to the BBC, Greene is considered one of Washington, DC’s “most controversial politicians.” Questioning the results of an election, or questioning the Biden Administration on any matter, makes you a controversial figure. Supporting former President Donald J. Trump also makes you a controversial figure, regardless if half the nation supported him during the 2020 election. I was really hoping 2022 would shape up to be the year where we engage in constructive conversations, but Big Tech has illustrated an unwillingness to grow with society.
Greene’s Democratic opponent Holly McCormack applauded Twitter’s decision to silence the sitting Congresswoman and used it to her advantage to leverage donations via Twitter. “Unlike Marjorie Taylor Greene, I still have a Twitter handle,” McCormack tweeted. “I’m going to defeat her this year.”
It becomes a lot easier to defeat someone when their access to the public is cut off by one of the most popular social media platforms to date. Twitter is literally interfering with Democracy by banning people who hold public office. They are effectively using their influence as a Big Tech giant to impact the 2022 midterm elections. If Twitter or Facebook was taking these actions against a popular, socialist candidate, it would be painted as a form of oppression. Instead, it’s celebrated because it’s a conservative voice being silenced.
I may not always agree with Greene on everything she says or does, but I support her right to do so. She doesn’t lose her First Amendment rights as an elected official. While Twitter is not violating her constitutionally protected right to free speech, they are violating the principles of free speech and interfering with the marketplace of ideas. How can anyone trust any narrative surrounding COVID if those who disagree keep disappearing from public view? Our government is not faith-based. As taxpaying citizens, we deserve a right to know what’s going on. We deserve the truth, regardless of how harmful it may be.
Is questioning the national narrative more damaging to society than allowing the marketplace of ideas to work out the conversation naturally? We will not always agree with one another, that’s a part of being human. We all have our own individual experience that shape and make up our belief systems. We shouldn’t be trying to conform our thoughts into one, nationalized ideology. The point of living in the land of the free is having the freedom to pursue what makes us whole. For many, we seek the truth. With censorship, seeking the truth becomes impossible.
Twitter is not a platform that respects freedom, and that has become abundantly clear in the New Year. We should have no expectations that they will respect our individual liberties in the future. Hopefully more users in the future will opt out of Twitter’s services and move to platforms such as gab, Minds, Parler, or GETTR -- where freedom of speech is respected and protected.
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