LifeSite September 4, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) – Facebook has removed yet another LifeSiteNews post on “hate speech” grounds, this time suggesting it’s beyond the pale to argue that children should not be given puberty blockers.
On August 1, LifeSite published an article by Radiance Foundation founder Ryan Bomberger criticizing TV personality Mario Lopez for apologizing to pro-LGBT activists who were outraged that he said children were too young to decide whether they should “transition” to another gender.
“As parents, something should stir inside of us to see this for what it is — brokenness,” Bomberger argued. “While mainstream media celebrated a 11-year-old boy in drag being sexualized in a gay bar, who would be celebrating the same if it were a dad hustling his 11-year-old daughter in a ‘gentlemen’s club?’”
This week, Facebook notified LifeSite that it had removed a LifeSite post linking the article because it “violated Community Standards,” specifically the platform’s definition of hate speech as any “direct attack on people based on what we call protected characteristics” including “gender identity.”
“We define attack as violent or dehumanizing speech, statements of inferiority, or calls for exclusion or segregation,” Facebook declared. In fact, Bomberger’s piece does not assert that the gender-confused are unequal, inhuman, or should be shunned from society. It merely argues that it’s unhealthy to reinforce gender confusion in children, and warns that the broader “gender fluidity” push will “erase” society’s understanding of “actual womanhood.”
LifeSiteNews sought another review, only to receive another notification later on Tuesday that the post was still removed and the review case was marked “closed,” with no option to see further details on the matter.
The incident is not the first time Facebook has suppressed LifeSiteNews content, or pro-family content generally. Other individuals and organizations to see ads rejected or posts suppressed include Save the Storks, the Susan B. Anthony List, the American Pregnancy Association, Choice For Two, Elizabeth “Activist Mommy” Johnston, theologian Dr. Robert A.J. Gagnon, ex-gay speaker Joseph Sciambra, and recent pro-life films about Kermit Gosnell and Roe v. Wade. Facebook also opted to block foreign pro-life ads in Ireland’s 2018 abortion referendum, despite Irish law not requiring such a ban, nor did Irish officials request one.
Most recently, Facebook came under fire for labeling Live Action stories as “false news” based on the word of two abortionists affiliated with far-left advocacy groups.
In addition, multiple analyses have found that Facebook’s algorithm changes instituted at the beginning of 2018 disproportionately impacted conservative politicians and websites. Earlier this year, an insider revealed that Facebook “deboosts” traffic to several mainstream conservative sites.