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发帖数: 29846 | 1 Anti-Gun Groups Fail to Remove Second Amendment Content from Facebook
Posted on March 7, 2014
In recent months, anti-gun groups such as Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG)
, the Brady Campaign and others have been putting increasing pressure on
Facebook (and its associated platform, Instagram) to prohibit any online
content that references the private sale of firearms.
The demands to Facebook were based on the false premise that guns were being
sold illegally through these forums simply because users posted information
about a firearm they wished to sell.
As we have often noted, the idea that the Internet is a vast, unregulated
marketplace for guns is a myth. Gun sales advertised on the Internet are
subject to the same laws that apply to any other gun sales, including
restrictions on shipping and interstate sales, background checks for dealer
sales, and penalties for persons transferring guns to others they know or
have reason to believe are prohibited from having them.
Brady and MAIG, however, are eager to stop gun sales anywhere and any way
they can, so they pretend that violent criminals are buying guns off the
Internet as if they were buying socks or books. What they don't like to
admit is that guns are lawful, constitutionally-protected products, and
being able to discuss and depict them online is a matter of free speech.
In response to the pressure from the antigun groups, Facebook released a new
policy statement concerning the "private sale of regulated items."
Facebook's amended policy consists of these four measures:
Any time we receive a report on Facebook about a post promoting the private
sale of a commonly regulated item, we will send a message to that person
reminding him or her to comply with relevant laws and regulations. We will
also limit access to that post to people over the age of 18.
We will require Pages that are primarily used by people to promote the
private sale of commonly regulated goods or services to include language
that clearly reminds people of the importance of understanding and complying
with relevant laws and regulations, and limit access to people over the age
of 18 or older if required by applicable law.
We will provide special in-app education on Instagram for those who search
for sales or promotions of firearms.
We will not permit people to post offers to sell regulated items that
indicate a willingness to evade or help others evade the law.
This measured response, which takes into account the speech rights of law-
abiding gun owners, is a welcome alternative to the extreme actions taken by
other large Internet entities such as Craigslist and Google.
Gun owners should be aware that there are already some false media reports
about this new policy, with some claiming that Facebook banned offering
firearms for sale on its pages. This is incorrect. In fact, the Brady
Campaign issued this statement, criticizing Facebook's new policy. That
itself should indicate to gun owners that Facebook is taking a more measured
approach than other online platforms.
By taking both the First and Second Amendment rights of it users into
account with its new policy, Facebook has shown respect not only for our
constitutional freedoms but also for its millions of users. Brady's stance
is grounded in an obvious mistrust of (if not outright disdain for) the
millions of ordinary people who populate the online universe. Fortunately,
Facebook sees its users differently.
For gun owners, it is vital that any offer to sell or trade a firearm,
regardless of the medium used, carefully follows all applicable laws.
Thanks to this approach, NRA members and our supporters will continue to
have a platform to exercise their First Amendment rights in support of their
Second Amendment freedoms. |
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