On the 19th of August many on the political left awoke to find that Facebook had permanently deleted their accounts.
This is the latest in a series of moves against the political “extremes” on social media, and has primarily been carried out as a measure against certain American far right conspiracy theories and organisations. However the bans have also targeted people involved in Kurdish solidarity work, Irish republicanism, anti-fascism and socialist activism.
As we have seen in the past with organisations like Britain First, these measures are rarely effective. If anything they drive individuals and organisations further underground and encourage an isolated and far more extreme version of the fascist right. And at the same time, the opportunity is taken to squash the online voices of the workers movement.
0161 unilaterally condemns the online censorship of working class activists, and challenges the effectiveness of trying to suppress the far right online. Fascism will not be defeated via edicts issued by the CEO’s of private companies, but by the unity and action of the working class.