Statement by Ariana Rowlands, President of College Republicans at UC Irvine, on the Suspension of Breitbart Editor Milo Yiannopoulos
Yesterday, Twitter chose to permanently suspend the account of Breitbart editor Milo Yiannopoulos, following complaints of harassment by actor Leslie Jones. Twitter, as a private company, did have the right to suspend Yiannopoulos based on his speech: he did, of course, agree to the service’s terms and conditions while signing up. However, I believe that the suspension was not because of any service violation, but rather an opening shot in a war against speech they disagree with.
It is incumbent upon us, as users of Twitter and advocates of free speech, to be mindful that while all speech should be allowed, not all speech is necessarily appropriate. I do not believe that blatant attacks on a person based on their race, gender, or religion, for instance, are necessary or constructive towards meaningful debate. We should be careful that what we say advances our position and ideology, not just attacks for the sake of attacking. We are in a war of culture which we can win only by convincing others to join our cause. We only make ourselves out to be the villain when we attack and degrade.
I agree with claims that many of Yiannopoulos’s followers did cross a line in their attacks on Jones for her race and appearance. They were needlessly hateful. Conservatism is a movement that stands against those who wish to make these sort of illogical and mindless attacks. We cannot allow ourselves to employ the same tactics while accusing the Left of a double standard.
Yes, I believe that attacking ideologies that are dangerous, hateful, and murderous is necessary to prevent their spread. Calling out the lies and hypocrisy of Black Lives Matter, ISIS, and other hateful organizations is how we hold them accountable and prevent them from controlling the narrative. Ignoring “political correctness” and telling people the cold, hard truth is absolutely necessary. We should remember that our war is not with people: it is with their beliefs.
I believe Twitter should reverse course and allow Yiannopoulos to return to Twitter. He did nothing wrong himself, as he did not take part in the attacks that truly were inappropriate. I believe this act was one of pure spite and vengeance: not a true effort at protecting against “harassment.”
This suspension risks setting a dangerous precedent: if a notable figure on Twitter can be suspended for what his followers say, must we all be responsible for every word our followers say? Why should Yiannopoulos be suspended, when ISIS openly recruits jihadists and murderers without reprisal? Why must we fear for our own existence on Twitter, when others can call for and celebrate the death of police officers across this nation? Justice has been brought to no one. If anything, suspending Yiannopoulos has only increased negative commentary about Jones and her recent movie: it has done nothing to actually combat harassment and hatred.
We must ensure that we, as proponents of free speech, uphold principles of honor, dignity, and respect, especially when we engage with those we disagree with. But we cannot capitulate to and ignore the actions of a service that cannot enforce its own policies equally across its user base.
Twitter’s actions demonstrate they believe themselves to be a monopoly, or at least a gatekeeper, of speech online. I am calling for Twitter to reinstate Yiannopoulos, and enforce its terms of service properly and equally when they should be. If its CEO, Jack Dorsey, cannot enforce his own standards, we can always take our business somewhere else.
