NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson told Cheddar he is "not surprised" a recent meeting between Facebook and civil rights organizations did not end as hoped.
The social media giant reached out as major advertisers pulled marketing campaigns, unhappy with the company's decision to allow hateful content and misinformation to live on the platform.
"Unfortunately we’re not surprised. After two years of discussion with Facebook, we’ve heard statements of value, we’ve heard statements of concern, and how we all agree. What we have not seen is action," Johnson stated.
The recent ad boycott began in the weeks after the police killing of George Floyd. As massive demonstrations took place across the county, Trump posted a message on Twitter and Facebook, warning, in part, "when the looting starts, the shooting starts." Twitter opted to issue a warning about the post, while Facebook decided to let it remain unaltered. Zuckerberg explained in a post that the company's "position is that we should enable as much expression as possible unless it will cause imminent risk of specific harms or dangers spelled out in clear policies."
"For Mark Zuckerberg or anyone else to suggest that hate speech is ok as long as it’s partisan, that’s asinine thinking," Johnson said.
Refusal to curb the spread of hate speech and misinformation on Facebook, Johnson said, threatens American governance.
"If we demean the civility of our discourse to say that if someone says something racialized, it’s ok, it’s partisan, that’s no way to run this democracy," he noted.
Senate Democrats promised Tuesday to pursue stronger ethics rules for the Supreme Court in the wake of reports that Justice Clarence Thomas participated in luxury vacations and a real estate deal with a top GOP donor. Republicans made clear they strongly oppose the effort.
The Biden administration will send 1,500 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border amid an expected migrant surge following the end of coronavirus pandemic-era restrictions.
Major Changes to Drug Policies for Federal Job Applicants
The board of supervisors picked by Ron DeSantis voted to countersue Disney after the company filed a lawsuit against the Florida governor, alleging political retaliation.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is recommending the U.S. rethink its decades-old policy of insuring only as much as $250,000 in bank deposits.
A Missouri judge has blocked a unique rule that would restrict access to gender-affirming health care to children and adults.
Attorneys for Montana state Rep. Zooey Zephyr are asking a court to allow for her return to the House floor.
Members of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District on Monday voted unanimously to sue Disney in state court in the Orlando area.
The annual White House Correspondents' dinner was held on Saturday, and this year's dinner was hosted by The Daily Show's Roy Wood Jr. President Joe Biden gave a speech and didn't hold back, poking fun at Fox News and his own approval ratings.
Appearing on CNN's "State of the Union," Sen. Bernie Sanders on Sunday said President Joe Biden is headed for a "landslide" victory in 2024, as long as Democrats remain "stronger on working-class issues."
