The social media giant recently announced it was cracking down on accounts that violated its policies against posting content relating to conspiracy theories and militarised social movements. Between August 2020 and January 12, 2021, Facebook has removed more than 78,000 profiles on both Facebook and Instagram. Former US President Donald Trump was also indefinitely suspended on Facebook and Instagram a day after the Capitol riots that left five dead and resulted in his second impeachment earlier this month.
The new rules have meant Facebook has also disabled the accounts of more than 45 left-wing activists and 15 Facebook pages in Britain.
But this has included the Socialist Workers Party, who “fight against racism, exploitation, oppression and environmental destruction”.
A spokesman told Express.co.uk: “Facebook has given no reason for disabling the accounts, and has not given any genuine way of appealing what has happened.
“The activists involved have expressed concern that it amounts to a silencing of political activists and left-wing views on Facebook.
“Those who have had their accounts disabled have said they are going to challenge the decision, and demand they are reinstated.”
The group also shared their fury over the ban in a blog post for The Socialist Worker, which was sent to Express.co.uk.
They criticised “social media bosses for not being on our side”.
They said: “While it’s understandable to feel cheered that Trump is being denied a platform, it does throw up questions about the precedent it sets.
“Online platforms are now huge players in the publication of news and how people exchange information.
READ MORE: Donald Trump lashes out at ‘assault on free speech’ from social media
“And for activists organising resistance today, the implications of social media bans have to be carefully considered.”
Nick Clegg, Facebook vice president of global affairs and communications, wrote in a blog post that he was also sceptical of the new rules.
He said: “Whether you believe the decision was justified or not, many people are understandably uncomfortable with the idea that tech companies have the power to ban elected leaders.
“Many argue private companies like Facebook shouldn’t be making these big decisions on their own. We agree.”
A Facebook spokesperson said: “We continue to strengthen our enforcement by identifying additional militarised social movements, new terms associated with QAnon and how people attempt to skirt our detection, including focusing more on Facebook profiles used to organise and promote these movements and groups on our platform.
“We’ll continue consulting experts to inform our strategy and will identify and remove content accordingly.
“These groups are constantly working to avoid our enforcement and we’ll continue to study how they evolve in order to keep people safe.”
