Donald Trump’s campaign team weathered criticism for its use of Nazi signage. (Facebook/Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Facebook removed Thursday (June 18) adverts placed by the Donald Trump reelection campaign that included a symbol once used by the Nazis to designate prisoners in concentration camps.
After tallying more than 950,000 and 500,000 impressions on Trump’s and Mike Pence’s pages respectively, Facebook deactivated both, The Washington Post reported.
The adverts featured an upside-down red triangle which, to the eyes of the 74-year-old, was a spiked salvo against a liberal elite he sees as effete snobs. His campaign team used the symbol which, they believed was used by Antifa.
But for those able to use a basic online search engine such as, say, Google, the symbol actually has ties to Nazi Germany. The red triangle was used to denote members of anti-fascist groups, such as communists or Freemasons.
While the upside-pink triangle was etched onto queer prisoners and has since been reclaimed by activists, turning a symbol of death and persecution into one of defiance.
Around 80 adverts bearing Nazi concentration camp insignia used in Trump reelection campaign.
Around 80 ads, first posted Wednesday, scattered across Trump’s, Pence’s and the official “Team Trump” Facebook pages.
The post’s caption dubbed those involved in the “far-left” Black Lives Matter movement “dangerous mobs” that are “causing absolute mayhem”.
Trump’s campaign team sought to tamper detraction by, well, pointing out that there is an inverted red triangle emoji.
Tim Murtaugh, a spokesman for the Trump campaign, said, “The red triangle is an Antifa symbol.”
He then referred to alleged iPhone cases and water bottles branded with the sign.
“We would note that Facebook still has an inverted red triangle emoji in use, which looks exactly the same, so it’s curious that they would target only this ad,” Murtaugh added.
Initially, according to corresponded seen by the outlet, Facebook did not state the symbol broke company guidelines. Policy executives stressed that the triangle, being that it is a common emoji, doesn’t count as a symbol for a hate organisation.
But divisons winnowed through the company and, eventually, with an additional push from by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the company did revoke the adverts.