R&B singer Keri Hilson is making headlines after saying Twitter’s decision to ban President Donald Trump from the platform is a “dangerous” threat to freedom of speech.
The “Pretty Girl Rock” songstress posted an Instagram Story on Saturday, Jan. 9 — a day after Twitter announced it had permanently suspended Trump’s account to prevent “further incitement of violence,” following the deadly Capitol Hill insurrection.
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Hilson responded to the ban by sharing a screenshot of Trump’s defunct Twitter account, and said everyone should be concerned about “freedom of speech being taken from us.”
“This may be funny, but it is a little dangerous too,” the singer and actress began. “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 world leaders… our freedom of speech being taken from us. Slowly but surely (censorship). If the leader 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.”
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She was immediately met with backlash across Twitter.
“Does Keri Hilson know whenever the president wants to communicate with the American people he can LITERALLY call a press conference at his house? This is why more people need to read,” wrote Twitter user @MrMarcus260.
Added @catssidi: “Keri Hilson appears out of no where every few months to say something stupid then disappears back into irrelevancy.”
@Joymemo3 tweeted: “Keri Hilson girl, are you not tired of getting dragged.”
While @serenexsiren added: “Free speech matters so much to keri & yet no one uses theirs to say “play that keri hilson song.”
@callmedollar wrote: “Keri Hilson has been doing a lot on the internet lately. Between her saying 5G caused the coronavirus, the trolling pregnancy picture and now believing Trump’s Twitter deactivation goes against freedom of speech… is everything okay at home, sis?”
Hilson later responded to her critics with a new Instagram story, saying she doesn’t support Trump.
“For the record, I don’t give a f*ck about Trump. My Thoughts weren’t as much about him, so I said, ‘Take Trump out of it,’ so don’t come at me like I’m caping for Trump,” she wrote. “I recognize why he was removed. It’s the wider view that’s scary to me.”
