Press Release: Jared Taylor and American Renaissance Banned from Twitter
AR Staff, American Renaissance, December 18, 2017
Media Contact:
Henry Wolff
Phone: 703-716-0900
Email wolff@nc-f.org
December 18, 2017 – This morning, the Twitter accounts of American Renaissance and its editor, Jared Taylor, were both banned. At the time of the banning, the organization’s account (@AmRenaissance) was verified and had 32,800 followers. Jared Taylor’s account (@jartaylor) had 41,000 followers as of this morning; Twitter removed his verification last month.
In a blog posted today, Twitter said it has begun enforcing new rules against “hateful and abusive content.” American Renaissance and Jared Taylor violate none of those rules. Anyone familiar with our work recognizes that we present our dissident political views with civility. We have never even hinted at anything that could be seen as condoning violence or illegality, nor do we associate with those who do. We’ve taken special care to abide by Twitter’s terms of service–old and new.
In July, Twitter’s public policy manager, Lauren Culbertson, claimed, “Free expression is part of our company DNA. We are the platform that lets users see what’s happening and to see all sides.” These bans prove the contrary.
As FCC chairman Ajit Pai has said, “[W]hen it comes to an open Internet, Twitter is part of the problem. The company has a viewpoint and uses that viewpoint to discriminate.”
This year, American Renaissance or Jared Taylor were mentioned in over 100 major news stories. Taylor was interviewed by the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Atlantic, National Public Radio, Newsweek, CNN, and many other outlets.
Jared Taylor is president of the New Century Foundation, the non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization that manages American Renaissance (www.AmRen.com).
Taylor will be available throughout the day for comment.
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Update: We have filed appeals for each ban. Here is Twitter’s reply:
Hello,
Your account has been suspended and will not be restored because it was found to be violating Twitter’s Terms of Service, specifically the Twitter Rules against being affiliated with a violent extremist group.
We consider violent extremist groups to be organizations that –– whether by their own statements or activity both on and off the platform –– use or promote violence against civilians to further their causes.
You can learn more about our policy against violent extremist groups here: https://help.twitter.com/rules-and-policies/violent-groups.
Thanks,
