There is only one way for Silicon Valley social media companies, and that is leftism. On August 20, a Facebook employee posted a message on an internal board at the massive company that was sure to rock the boat. The senior Facebook engineer, Brian Amerige, stated that there is a problem with a “political monoculture” that is intolerant of any views that are different from progressivism. He admitted that mobs attack those who do not have the same ideology. At this point, approximately one hundred fellow employees have sided with Amerige.
In recent months, conservatives have come under extreme scrutiny from Facebook. The founder and CEO of the social media giant, Mark Zuckerberg, has been accused of censoring conservative voices and news outlets.
Statistically, there must be conservatives who work in social media – and it was never likely they would stay quiet forever. The recent news of social media platforms using algorithms to suppress and remove any idea that does not support a leftist ideology has brought forth a few employees who would like to see fairness.
Protections?
There is a Constitutional element to this issue. The First Amendment guarantees citizens protection when they speak out against the government, short of threats. However, Facebook is a private company. They can suppress specific speech in the workplace and in this case, Amerige may have made a mistake by posting his message on a company message board.
On the other hand, he may have brought protection to himself when making the post. If Facebook tries to retaliate by creating a harsh work environment, he could have solid legal grounds to bring a workplace discrimination case if he is punished for voicing his political beliefs. At this point, Amerige could be told not to post political messages on the internal message boards any longer.
Right now, there are no reports of left-wing messages on the same board, but one can imagine it exists. If left-wing talk is allowed, this could also play in Amerige’s favor if there is any retaliation.
The left boasts about their diverse workplaces, but they actually mean they accept “anyone who isn’t a conservative, or Republican.”
The Militaristic Left
Since President Trump was elected, the left has moved toward extremism and become militaristic. Leftists use threats and sometimes violence to keep opposition quiet. Amerige believes in an Ayn Rand philosophy of being objective, but the left does not believe in objectivism. They think in leftism, and all others need to shut up and go away.
Facebook is not a podium for all ideas as Zuckerberg claims. Amerige has risked his job, livelihood, and reputation to push back. If the well-known social media giant were in the middle ground, as they claim, Amerige would not have made his post.
Zuckerberg has created an empire that hates the right and has done nothing to enforce fairness in the company culture. The atmosphere has become so severe that employees are starting to speak out against Facebook at their employment peril.
Facebook isn’t the only far left company in Silicon Valley. There are many others where conservatives feel they cannot be themselves due to repercussions. A co-founder of a Californian company said that he wouldn’t mention being conservative for fear that half of his employees would quit.
The left has created a fear of conservatism, and as long as the right doesn’t speak up, leftism will prevail.
