Even before the era of President Donald Trump, Twitter was a giant in Silicon Valley. But under Trump, the platform has continued to grow. Any search of “Deplorable” or “MAGA” will yield hundreds of profiles bearing images of Trump, bald eagles, and American flags.
Unfortunately for the president and his new staff, not all the members of the government were willing to fall in line with the goals of the administration. The Twitter chaos began in January with rogue National Park accounts. Badlands National Park in South Dakota was the first to be silenced as the government attempted to quash discussions on climate change.
However, it seems only one Twitter account has gotten under the skin of the government. It’s an account that addresses one of the key campaign issues for the new leader: immigration.
Multiple news outlets, including NPR and New York Magazine, have reported on the government’s attempts to find the people behind the “Alt-Immigration” Twitter account. The account boasts over 100,000 followers, and since immigration is one of the cornerstones of Trump’s presidency, it hasn’t had much trouble finding traction.
Buzzfeed News reported that Twitter filed lawsuits against the federal government after the administration requested information that might help unmask the users behind the “Alt-Immigration” account. The lawsuit states:
“The rights of free speech afforded Twitter’s users and Twitter itself under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution include a right to disseminate such anonymous or pseudonymous political speech.”
Unsurprisingly, Twitter has the kind of cash that allows them to hire big name lawyers, and even the ACLU has stepped into the battle. The organization told Buzzfeed:
[T]he right to anonymously speak out against the government is clearly protected by the First Amendment. We are pleased to see Twitter standing up for its users’ rights, and the ACLU will soon be filing documents in court on behalf of this user.”
The user behind the account has unleashed a number of tweets about the lawsuit, and while they are certainly enjoying their newfound fame, they also seem to be trying to “fight the good fight.”
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