In response to the unprecedented siege on the U.S. Capitol by pro-Trump extremists, social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook banned outgoing President Donald Trump in varying degrees of permanence, for fear that his continued lies regarding the 2020 election—which he lost to President-elect Joe Biden—would incite further violence.
Twitter further banned thousands of accounts propping up the QAnon conspiracy theory, a collective delusion hinging on the belief that the United States government is secretly controlled by a network of satanic cannibal pedophiles.
Parler—a social media outlet that rose to fame among conservatives for its lack of content moderation—was removed from both the Google and Apple app stores, with Amazon suspending its web services.
Conservatives of all stripes have expressed outrage, claiming that private companies refusing service to radical users is a violation of their First Amendment rights.
Far-right commentator Glenn Beck addressed the bans on Fox News host Tucker Carlson's Tuesday night broadcast where he made an ill-advised comparison.
Watch below.
Glenn Beck compares Twitter, Google, Facebook bans to the Holocaust, calling it the "digital ghetto" https://t.co/P2SVAbcACi— Kat Abu (@Kat Abu) 1610500951.0
Beck compared the so-called suppression of conservatives on social media to the persecution of Jews in the Holocaust, saying:
"This is like the Germans with the Jews behind the wall. They would put them in the ghetto. This is the digital ghetto. You can talk all you want, Jews, do whatever you want behind the wall.' That's not meaningful, and that's where we are. That's where millions of Americans will be."
The comparison drew widespread derision.
Reality from an ACTUAL ghetto during the Holocaust: - 25 people living in a 1 bedroom apartment with a loaf of br… https://t.co/uywQJXP61v— StopAntisemitism.org (@StopAntisemitism.org) 1610501934.0
These are probably the #1 and #2 media figures most responsible for the resurgence of white nationalism. Stoking co… https://t.co/mGVKxsD1oF— Matt Duss (@Matt Duss) 1610540109.0
Glenn Beck has in the past compared the Tea Party movement to Dr King and the civil rights movement, said Black Ame… https://t.co/Ff3xZPxkq4— Joy WE VOTED!! WEAR A MASK!! Reid 😷) (@Joy WE VOTED!! WEAR A MASK!! Reid 😷)) 1610504621.0
I know i didn’t just hear what i think i did... unreal https://t.co/9nuzBH1JJP— E r i k 🤝 (@E r i k 🤝) 1610514598.0
Jews in ghettos could get liquidated by Nazis at any moment on a whim. Apple pulled Parler from its app store. Thes… https://t.co/b9Ru6AjGQd— Gary Legum (@Gary Legum) 1610502470.0
Glenn Beck has the right to be upset about Twitter's ban of Donald Trump. But using a Holocaust analogy - especial… https://t.co/aIWGWwDPJa— Joel Rubin (@Joel Rubin) 1610508938.0
Nazi imagery was on display throughout the violent siege of the Capitol that left at least five people dead. One man was spotted wearing a "Camp Auschwitz" shirt glorifying the most infamous Nazi death camp, along with the slogan at the entrance of the camp: "Work will set you free."
Twitter users urged conservative commentators to stop making Holocaust comparisons.
Republicans stop comparing things to the Holocaust challenge https://t.co/U93egE9dWl— Kendall Brown (@Kendall Brown) 1610508381.0
There's a lot going on right now but at some point we need to talk about how people really don't understand world h… https://t.co/34EXyFDUAs— Heather Gus (@Heather Gus) 1610537511.0
evergreen tweet: holocaust comparisons are never kosher. Thanks! https://t.co/VjWcG3YjKA— Alex Miller (@Alex Miller) 1610511844.0
The House is expected to impeach Donald Trump on Wednesday for inciting an insurrection—a move that will make him the first President to be impeached more than once.