Muslim Advocates Urges Twitter to Act on Trump"s Conspiracy Tweets

WASHINGTON, DC — President Trump has repeatedly tweeted a baseless conspiracy theory that accuses MSNBC host Joe Scarborough of murder. Despite pleas from the widow of the deceased, Twitter has refused to take down the tweets. Previously, the president has used his Twitter account to broadcast anti-Muslim conspiracies, videos and images. Muslim Advocates has repeatedly asked Twitter to address these harmful tweets but the company has not done enough. The following is a statement issued today from Madihha Ahussain, Muslim Advocates' special counsel for anti-Muslim bigotry:

“Once again, Twitter remains on the sidelines as President Trump uses their platform to broadcast false conspiracy theories that encourage division and direct hate towards individuals. We’ve seen this happen before when the president last year tweeted a deceptively edited video that tried to link Rep. Ilhan Omar with the 9/11 attacks. Though Rep. Omar received death threats in response, Twitter did not take decisive action and the tweet remains online today. Additionally, the president has used his Twitter account to post anti-Muslim images and amplify the false, anti-Muslim conspiracy theory that mosques may be spared from stay-at-home orders.

Time after time, President Trump has used Twitter to broadcast hate and misinformation. And time after time, Twitter has done little to curb the misinformation that has dangerous consequences for everyone. Now we have run out of time. Online hate and misinformation lead to real world threats and violence. Twitter has the power to stamp out false, hateful content, regardless of who is spreading it, and it is long past time for the company to use it.”