| Dear Katy, The Federalist Society gave accused rapist Brett Kavanaugh a one-minute standing ovation just weeks after Dr. Christine Blasey Ford's gut-wrenching testimony. Now, the right-wing legal organization is working overtime to rehabilitate Kavanaugh's reputation, and it has a powerful ally: Facebook.1 Facebook was a gold circle sponsor of the Federalist Society's recent black-tie convention where Kavanaugh was the keynote speaker. Facing waves of investigations and fines for data breaches and potential fraud, Facebook apparently decided it could curry favor with right-wing, pro-corporate Republicans by helping to rehabilitate Kavanaugh.2 This isn't the first time Facebook sided with Kavanaugh. The company faced internal and external blowback after one of its executives sat behind the disgraced judge at his confirmation hearing.3 But with Facebook reeling from scandals, it's more urgent than ever to stand with survivors and make it clear that continuing to support Kavanaugh is unacceptable. Tell Facebook: Stop funding the Federalist Society. Click here to sign the petition. Facebook's years-long support for the far-right Federalist Society would be atrocious even if Kavanaugh wasn't involved. The shadowy, immensely powerful legal organization is a driving force behind the right-wing takeover of the federal judiciary. A majority of Supreme Court justices are now tightly connected to the Federalist Society, and its president took a leave of absence to advise Trump on Supreme Court picks. The mob of ultra-conservative judges attacking health care and women's equality and giving free rein to massive corporations have their roots in the Federalist Society.4 At the Federalist Society's recent annual gathering, attendees faced protestors from the Center for Popular Democracy, Demand Justice and UltraViolet. They showed video of Dr. Blasey Ford's testimony on a billboard truck in front of the event, confronted convention participants with the truth of Kavanaugh's deplorable behavior and called out Facebook by name.5,6 Facebook's support for the Federalist Society and Brett Kavanaugh's rehabilitation provides more fuel for attacks on women's health care and is an insult to survivors of sexual assault. But it's one of many of Facebook's offenses against our values – Facebook now allows outright lies in political ads. It is facing investigations from 47 state attorneys general and regulators in multiple nations. It lied to advertisers about video metrics, lied to Congress in testimony and lied about the Cambridge Analytica scandal. It created a safe haven for white nationalism, right-wing hatred, racism, misogyny, ethnic supremacism and fake news that fosters violence worldwide.7 We have to push back everywhere, including exposing its complicity with right-wing institutions and demanding it stop. Tell Facebook: Stop funding the Federalist Society. Click the link below to sign the petition: https://act.credoaction.com/sign/facebook-kavanaugh-federalist?t=9&akid=35139%2E12967895%2EQGgf64 Thank you for speaking out, Nicole Regalado, Campaign Director
CREDO Action from Working Assets Add your name: References: - Judd Legum, "Facebook fetes Kavanaugh," Popular Information, Nov. 14, 2019.
- Edward Helmore, "Outcry after Facebook sponsors gala featuring Brett Kavanaugh," The Guardian, Nov. 14, 2019.
- Ibid.
- Legum, "Facebook fetes Kavanaugh."
- Julia Conley, "Ad campaign condemns Facebook's sponsorship of Federalist Society dinner honoring Brett Kavanaugh," Salon, Nov. 17, 2019.
- Demand Justice, "Kavanaugh: 31 Lies and Counting," Medium, Oct. 1, 2018.
- Cecilia Kang, Mike Isaac and Nathaniel Popper, "Facebook's Zuckerberg, Accused of Lying, Withstands a Washington 'Beating,'" The New York Times, Oct. 23, 2019.
photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images |
No comments:
Post a Comment