Tommy Robinson Has Been Banned From Facebook And Instagram

Former English Defence League leader Tommy Robinson has had his official Facebook page and Instagram profile removed.

According to Facebook this is because Robinson - real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon - has posted 'in ways that violate our policies around organised hate'.

The far-right founder of the EDL had his permanent ban imposed for repeatedly breaking policies on hate speech including posting material that uses 'dehumanising language' and 'calls for violence targeted at Muslims'.

In the blog post, Facebook said: "One of the biggest questions we face is around what we allow on Facebook - and we spend a lot of time trying to get this right. This is hard and critically important.

"We want Facebook to be a place where you can express yourself freely and share openly with friends and family. At the same time, when people come to Facebook we always want them to feel welcome and safe.

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"This is something we take incredibly seriously. So when ideas and opinions cross the line and amount to hate speech that may create an environment of intimidation and exclusion for certain groups in society - in some cases with potentially dangerous offline implications - we take action.

"Our public Community Standards state this sort of speech is not acceptable on Facebook - and when we become aware of it, we remove it as quickly as we can.

"Our rules also make clear that individuals and organizations that are engaged in "organized hate" are not allowed on the platform, and that praise or support for these figures and groups is also banned. This is true regardless of the ideology they espouse.

"Tommy Robinson's Facebook Page has repeatedly broken these standards, posting material that uses dehumanizing language and calls for violence targeted at Muslims.

"He has also behaved in ways that violate our policies around organized hate. As a result, in accordance with our policies, we have removed Tommy Robinson's official Facebook Page and Instagram profile.

"This is not a decision we take lightly, but individuals and organizations that attack others on the basis of who they are have no place on Facebook or Instagram."

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According to the Guardian, the ban comes a month after Facebook issued a final written warning against him.

Robinson has already been banned from Twitter so this decision to remove him from Facebook and Instagram will leave him reliant on YouTube.

Topics: News, tommy robinson

Rebecca Shepherd

I'm Becky - a journalist at LADbible. I graduated with a First Class BA in Journalism before going on to cover criminal court cases, medical tribunals and breaking news for the national media - which inevitably and eventually became as glum as it sounds. Can often be found rocking a bag for life - which I made a 'thing' way before Rihanna. You can contact me at [email protected]

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