Waka Flocka Flame can’t catch a break — the longtime rapper often finds himself at the center of controversy due to his often outlandish takes on social media. And 2021 is proving to be no different.
On Saturday (January 9), R&B singer Keri Hilson condemned Twitter’s decision to permanently ban Donald Trump from its platform after he was accused of inciting the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol building last week, suggesting his First Amendment rights were being taken away.
“This may be funny,” she wrote. “But it’s a little dangerous too. Take Trump out of it for a moment … a democracy must include freedom of speech. Imagine other leaders or popular figures not being able to voice their opinion if it opposes the majority of the world leaders. Slowly but surely (censorship).
“If the leaders of the ‘free world’ can be removed, imagine that same right of civilians. Imagine believing every time you read ‘false information detected’ and propaganda, deceptive reports and flat out lies being the only thing we see.”
AD LOADING...
Waka Flocka hopped in the comment section and wrote simply, “Someone’s smart” — and that was all it took.
Soon, the 34-year-old artist was the target of Twitter’s wrath with many replying to his comment with various versions of “and it’s not you or Keri Hilson.”
AD LOADING...
As another commenter wrote, “The problem I have with people like Keri Energy Hilson & Waka Bus Stop Flocka is their attempt to create a think piece on the THREAT against the freedom of speech based on the removal of Trump’s Twitter account, lacks actual thought behind it.”
Waka, who received an honorary doctorate in philanthropy and humanitarianism from the Bible Institute of America Theological Seminary last October, failed to remember Twitter’s policies are something everyone must adhere to — whether they’re Talib Kweli or the President of the United States.
Twitter’s Hateful Conduct policy is laid out clearly on its website, stating, “You may not promote violence against or directly attack or threaten other people on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age, disability, or serious disease. We also do not allow accounts whose primary purpose is inciting harm towards others on the basis of these categories.”
Waka Flocka Flame Under Fire For Insinuating Donald Trump Was A Better President Than Barack Obama
And if anyone needs a history lesson, the First Amendment reads as follows: “The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prevents the government from making laws which regulate an establishment of religion, or that would prohibit the free exercise of religion, or abridge the freedom of speech, the freedom of the press, the freedom of assembly, or the right to petition the government for redress of grievances.”
AD LOADING...
Twitter, a privately owned company, made the decision to remove Trump from Twitter on Friday (January 8) for “glorifying violence.” According to Twitter, two tweets in particular raised concerns.
One, in which the president said he will not be attending President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on Jan 20, could “serve as encouragement to those potentially considering violent acts that the Inauguration would be a ‘safe’ target, as he will not be attending.” In the other, Trump referred to people who stormed the U.S. Capitol as “American patriots,” which was interpreted as “support for those committing violent acts at the U.S. Capitol.”
The constitution doesn’t protect a person’s rights to issue threats. Since Twitter’s ban, Trump has been kicked off other social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Reddit and Twitch.
While Hilson attempted to do some damage control and insist she wasn’t “caping for Trump” with her comment, she was still dragged anyway. Check out some of the reactions below.
