First Your Guns; Then Your Words: NY Law Targets Free Speech

“You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.” New York’s governor certainly took former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s words to heart. 

New York’s governor, Kathy Hochul, signed a gun-control package into law just weeks after two horrific shootings in Buffalo, New York and Uvalde (Texas). Kathy Hochul signed legislation governing gun control that mandates social media platforms to respond to hateful behavior.

“In the State of New York, we’re now requiring social media networks to monitor and report hateful conduct on their platforms,” Hochul said during a press conference Monday. The new amendments require platforms to draft a so-called hate speech policy provide a way for users to report alleged hate speech and give users an explanation for how the platform is responding to the alleged hate speech after it’s reported. 

The new law requires platforms to “provide and maintain a clear and easily accessible mechanism for individual users to report incidents of hateful conduct.”The “mechanism” must also “provide a direct response to any individual reporting hateful conduct informing them of how the matter is being handled.” 

The law, like Facebook and Twitter gives a broad, subjective definition for hate speech.

 “[T]he use of a social media network to vilify, humiliate, or incite violence against a group or a class of persons on the basis of race, color, religion, ethnicity, national origin, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.” 

Like Biden’s Disinformation Governance Board, the social media law is an attempt to regulate online speech. The law claims that it should not be “construed” as a violation of First Amendment free-speech protections. However, neither the law’s text nor the governor explained how the measure will deter censorship and protect Americans’ free speech as defined in the Constitution. 

Big Tech censors consistently oppose opinions which are not in line with the leftist narrative. Here are a few examples of Big Tech wielding the label of “hate speech” to silence people that foil the left’s narrative:

• LinkedIn is said to have suspended an alleged veteran who was opposed to student loan debt cancellation. Gretchen Smith was an Air Force veteran who founded the organization. Code of Vets, said, “I am not responsible for your student debt.“ She explained that she grew up poor but she “made it happen.” LinkedIn labeled her comments “hate speech.” 

• Facebook labeled Sen. Marsha Blackburn’s (R-TN) post “hate speech.” Facebook removed a post by Blackburn in May for alleged “hate speech” when she said, “Biological men have no place in women’s sports.”
   
• Twitter has locked four accounts belonging to users who called Rachel Levine “a man”. The Babylon Bee, Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton each refused to call transgender-identifying Assistant Health Secretary Rachel Levine a woman after USA Today named Levine one of its “Women of the Year.” Twitter locked The Babylon Bee’s and Kirk’s accounts and gave Paxton a warning label for so-called “hateful conduct,” according to screenshots. 

New York law goes into effect after 180 days. 

Conservatives under attack Contact your state representatives and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on “hate speech” and equal footing for conservatives. If you’ve been censored, contact us at the CensorTrack Use the contact formHelp us to hold Big Tech responsible.