Staff Reports
Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, has banned a post from Americans for Legal Immigration PAC for claiming that noncitizens are registering and voting in U.S. elections on a wide scale. X labeled the post as “hate speech” and said it violated the platform’s terms by attacking a “protected group.”
Elon Musk’s X bans post about illegal immigrant voting, calls it hate speechhttps://t.co/q0rpenytC6 pic.twitter.com/90I7vpUtxU
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) April 22, 2024
The PAC, also known as ALIPAC, used its advertising account to bring attention to the issue of noncitizen voting. The offending message from ALIPAC stated, “Non-citizens & illegal migrants are registering & voting in our elections on a wide scale!” This message was posted over an image of a truth-meter rating of “TRUE.”
After inquiring about the ban, the PAC was given a confusing response from X, stating that the ad contained “political content” that was not allowed in certain countries. When ALIPAC pushed for further explanation, X doubled down on its hate speech label and ended the conversation with the PAC.
William Gheen, the founder of ALIPAC, believes that X objected to the post because it shared the truth about noncitizen voters. He expressed his shock at the platform’s decision, suggesting that there is a party line that suppresses any information that goes against the official narrative regarding noncitizen voting.
ALIPAC spent $30 on ads to promote the post, which received about 43,000 views before being disabled by X. When Mr. Gheen questioned X about the disabled ad, he was informed that it violated the platform’s Hateful Content policy, including advocacy against a protected group and degrading references to events negatively affecting a protected group.
This incident has brought noncitizen voting into the spotlight, particularly as former President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson have made it a focal point. They have emphasized the importance of restricting noncitizen voting in U.S. elections, connecting it to broader concerns about election integrity and immigration issues.
While some news organizations argue that noncitizen voting is rare and already illegal, others maintain that it is a genuine issue that election officials struggle to monitor effectively. The pushback against addressing noncitizen voting from certain quarters has prompted criticism from Republican lawmakers and organizations such as Americans for Legal Immigration PAC.
The controversy surrounding the banned post on X reflects broader debates over noncitizen voting, with differing perspectives on the prevalence and impact of this issue in U.S. elections.
