Eventbrite has removed a number of listings for planned protests, citing violations of stay-at-home orders enforced in multiple states around the country and its own guidelines. Demonstrators have come together in cities around the U.S. calling on local businesses to reopen amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which health experts have advised against for the time being.
The event-hosting platform has now pulled these protests, claiming that they are cause for harm during a global health crisis.
“We ticket millions of events a year and strive to ensure our community has a safe and positive experience using Eventbrite,” the company said in a statement provided to TechCrunch. “Our Community Guidelines have always prohibited events that promote or contain harmful and/or illegal behavior, and events in locations that violate the current government-issued social distancing and shelter in place mandates during this global pandemic are deemed as such. Our community plays an essential role in reporting any concerning listings or content and when we become aware of content on our platform that’s in violation of our Community Guidelines, we investigate and take appropriate action. The COVID-19 global pandemic is a very dynamic situation, and any action we take will vary based on the local guidelines.”
Eventbrite’s removal of protests follows the actions taken by Facebook earlier this week. The social media site was also utilized to organize and promote anti-lockdown protests in states like New Jersey, Nebraska and California, according to Politico. The move drew criticism from demonstrators and even Donald Trump Jr. Nevertheless, Facebook maintained the same criteria of Eventbrite by citing unlawful intent of the events.
“We reached out to state officials to understand the scope of their orders, not about removing specific protests on Facebook,” a spokesperson revealed to Politico. “We remove the posts when gatherings do not follow the health parameters established by the government and are therefore unlawful.”