As Minneapolis continues to stage riot after the brutal murder of a person of color, George Floyd, by the hands of a white police officer, Derek Chauvin, Donald Trump decided to choose sides as well. The President took notice of the unrest in the city. He told his audience that the military is with Governor Tim Walz till the end. But that was not all, he also added “when the looting starts, the shooting starts”. Turns out that it was back in 1967 when Miami’s police chief first used this phrase during a crackdown on slums. People on Twitter, who apparently remember this phrase, reported this Tweet to Twitter after which the social media platform took it down. Now the White House is all but angry.
White House Reacts To Donald Trump’s Tweet Deletion
When Twitter deleted Donald Trump’s tweet, the White House’s official account tweeted the same from its platform. Again, Twitter was there to take it down, who took action swiftly. This led to a barrage of criticism from the office.
This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about glorifying violence. However, @Twitter has determined that it will allow terrorists, dictators, and foreign propagandists to abuse its platform. pic.twitter.com/5Qi0m66Vnh
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 29, 2020
Chairman FCC, Ajit Pai, also joined in on this online protest who also put up Khamenei’s tweets of ‘glorifying violence’. The FCC is all ready to have the task of building new regulations to limit the scope of legal immunity that social media platforms enjoy. As per Twitter, their statement revealed that the Trump and White House’s tweets were glorifying violent events of the past.
“The Tweets violate our policies regarding the glorification of violence based on the historical context of the last line, its connection to violence, and the risk it could inspire similar actions today.”
Because of this, even FCC’s Pai could not hold himself back from tweeting this:
Serious question for @Twitter: Do these tweets from Supreme Leader of Iran @khamenei_ir violate "Twitter Rules about glorifying violence"? pic.twitter.com/oEkCC8UzFV
— Ajit Pai (@AjitPaiFCC) May 29, 2020
With Derek Chauvin charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter, will the George Floyd protest take a turn towards the calm street? Or will we have to continue seeing Donald Trump’s tweet get flagged with ‘glorifying violence’ again?
