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Has the Mob tried to Silence You? Embrace it as a Badge of Honor!

Elizabeth McCauleyJul 10, 2020, 7:42:38 PM
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Have you ever wondered why some media sources and groups are so quick to shut down and even black list individuals who push forward stories outside of their narratives? Simple - most often, news outlets and organizations are fearful of the truth, facts and information getting out.

If we take a look at recent trends of who has been censored or quieted by larger news outlets and policy groups or who has been painted as an outlier, these individuals are not criminals, they are not pushing forward commonly accepted hate speech or breaking major ethical codes. Simple fact - these individuals are not walking in line with a specific and often flawed narrative and they actually to an extent freak out the powers that be. When facts are presented in lieu of emotions, facts can destroy emotional narratives that are running rampant throughout society.

Let’s look at an easy example related to the abortion debate. Pro life activists for years have put forward scientific evidence, photos, videos, and even now living examples of how early on life outside of the womb can be viable. Just yesterday, I was overwhelmed by the miracle I viewed. For the first time ever, a baby born at 21 weeks (only 21 weeks) was released from the hospital after being in the NICU for 6 months. You can find a link to the story here from LiveActionBorn in December 2019, Jemarius Jachin Harbor Jr., only weighed 13 oz and now is up to 9 lbs and is home with his family. Wouldn’t you think that such a miracle story would be all over the news? A complete record setter, something that seemed impossible. However, with a simple Google Search, there were are a few articles out there about Jemarius, mostly a local paper or pro life website. Why weren’t all of the major news outlets celebrating this complete miracle? Plain and simple - most major news outlets do not espouse the pro life cause and would simply not want this news to get out. Even incredible life saving news? Pathetic, right? Unfortunately, the story of Jemarius is one of many examples of the viability of life at such an early stage that has not been celebrated to the extent it should be.

The sad reality is that organizations like LiveAction have been chastised by traditional social media platforms. Last year, LiveAction posted some ultrasound images on Pinterest and guess what? Those images were blocked and labeled as porn. It is getting to the point of pathetic and even comical, what lengths individuals will take to try to shut down any evidence that contradicts the viewpoints they may espouse. It makes you wonder how many families started to question whether or not they could post a picture of an ultrasound for a baby announcement - of course they won’t though… because these parents are not the ones being targeted. Pro life organizations are, and we need to recognize that.

Here’s another example that is unfortunately news this week. During the Fourth of July weekend, six innocent children were brutally shot and died. A majority of them were African American. This is absolutely tragic, unnecessary, and horrid. While most of us were busy at BBQs, parties and celebrating, six families were mourning and devastated. Sure, there were some simple news articles on this tragic weekend, but where are the golden caskets and where is the community outrage and where are the BLM protesters to speak out on behalf of these innocent children? When discussions are brought up around how and why these children were brutally murdered, the topic is generally shut down or the conversation is shifted to another topic. Perhaps it is too painful to face the facts that shootings (especially with recent reductions in police force in some cities) are on the rise.

Finally, the latest breaking news on an attempt to silence came out late last night. Popular and beloved food brand, Goya, made the news. It turns out that Goya’s CEO, Roberto Unanue, actually does have a mind of his own, has his own political beliefs and chose to exercise his right to free speech to simply state, "We're all truly blessed... to have a leader like President Trump who is a builder." Rage of all rage! Within seconds, the mob (poised and ready to shut down free speech) called to boycott all Goya products. Goya not only is a staple brand among Hispanic homes, but also has done a good deal for charity to help individuals all throughout the United States with a recent initiative to donate two million pounds of food to food banks across the US through the GOYAGIVES initiative.

So my question to you is - who will be boycotted, silenced, shut down, and canceled next? When will individuals wake up to the reality of the toxic trends even being upheld and applauded in our culture? Many did not speak up when it started with the removal of Alex Jones from Twitter. He was not the first and we clearly can see that he is not the last. When do we put our foot down to educate friends and family members who are caught up in the lies, misinformation and outright hatred being tossed around so freely without a consideration of who is and why they might be carrying this out? Why? They are afraid of any facts lessening the effectiveness of their emotional narrative. Who? Unfortunately, they are now a number of political leaders, influencers, organizations and even individuals who are too afraid to face the facts.

What can we do about it? We need to continue to speak up, not be afraid to share the facts (even if they make others feel quite uncomfortable), educate others about Minds.com and how this platform truly fosters open dialogue. Most importantly, do not be fearful of being questioned and challenged as that is, in itself, so important to foster and continue to support free speech. Really, when the mob tries to silence you, cancel and remove your content or change the topic, embrace that as a badge of honor and keep on speaking up!