For Apple IOS users, there is no reasonable alternative to the Apple App store. By removing the Parler app from their store, Apple has effectively silenced Parler with respect to all Apple IOS app users who have not already downloaded the app. Note, too, that Apple can summarily disable the app for existing users if they so choose; watch for that action in the coming days:
Amazon’s actions are just as egregious, effectively giving Parler only days to find a new service provider – something that I’m sure Amazon executives know is a virtual impossibility. In my opinion the action was timed specifically to silence Parler users as the inauguration of the Biden/Harris platform approaches. Think about what Amazon has done: this is the real-world equivalent of having your storefront landlord lock you out of your shop with only a few days notice simply because they don’t like what you say. Worse, it effectively silences the opposition to the incoming administration – one of the very acts that the 1st Amendment was meant to protect.
Coupled with Google’s removal of the Parler app from their Play store, these actions appear to be a coordinated attack on speech with which these companies do not agree. But it is much worse than that; it could also be seen as an attack on free speech by the government.
Pretending that the incoming administration and their political party could have nothing to do with these actions by Apple, Amazon and Google is naive. Google is currently the subject of an antitrust lawsuit by the government – a lawsuit that could be negated by the new administration. Apple and Amazon have also been the subject of antitrust investigations, and may face additional investigations in the future. Appeasing the incoming administration by silencing their opposition may be a strategic move by these companies to stave off damaging regulatory or antitrust actions. I’ve warned in the past how the threat of government action against social media and Internet companies could be used by political entities to sidestep 1st amendment protections and censor speech. And before you say that it’s OK because Trump and his followers are fascists, let’s take a look back in history at those who implemented similar censorship measures and why.
The excuse provided by those seeking to censor their opposition is that their actions prevent the potential for tyranny. However, this assertion is absurd. Tyranny does not come from speech; it comes from the oppression of speech. Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Saddam Hussein, Kim Il-sung – all these “leaders” came to and retained power through the ruthless oppression of their opposition. The effective silencing of the opposition for the incoming administration by the companies noted above – and by proxy the incoming administration itself – are the true threat to our democracy. We must not allow this oppression to continue; we must take a stand against those who seek to negate the 1st Amendment of the constitution, no matter how you feel about the speech they seek to oppress.
The government or incoming administration may be able to do these companies harm if they do not do as demanded, but we have power, too. We can boycott the companies seeking to silence a significant share of our population. We can stop using their products; we can stop using their services; we can stop patronizing their advertisers. We can shut them down; we can bankrupt them.What good then is protection from government regulatory and antitrust actions when you have no business to protect?
Regardless of your feelings for the opposition, we must take a stand. We must let these companies know that we cherish our freedom of speech and will not relinquish it without a fight; that we will not accept them silencing their foes, now or in the future; that we will not stand idly by for the tyranny that must follow when an opposition voice is silenced.
Boycott these companies to let them know you do not accept their judgement over your own. Buy no new Apple products and make no purchases from the Apple app store; do not use Google search services, purchase products from their advertisers, or use the Google Play store. Order nothing from Amazon, and do not patronize sellers who use Amazon’s storefront services. Do without for now if you have to, buy direct to bypass Amazon if you must, and find an alternative source for Google products and services. Start a new hashtag: #BoycottOppressionNow.
Send the message loud and clear:
Do not limit what we can hear; we can decide on our own when to listen.