Far-right activist Laura Loomer handcuffed herself to Twitter’s New York City headquarters in protest of her ban for two hours Thursday before asking police to cut her free.
Loomer, a far-right Twitter troll who claimed that the Parkland school shooting was staged and that Democrats have “aligned themselves with Sharia law,” was banned a week ago after she accused Minnesota Rep.-elect Ilhan Omar of being “anti-Jewish” and pro-Sharia law.
On Thursday, she handcuffed herself to the front doors of the Twitter building in Chelsea while wearing a yellow star of David, which many Jews were forced to wear during the Holocaust.
She shouted that Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey banned her for being a "Jewish conservative journalist” and claimed Dorsey and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg were trying to “silence the voices of millions of conservatives.”
Twitter did not press charges or ask that Loomer be removed. They issued a statement saying, "We have notified the relevant authorities who are responding. The account holder was suspended for violating our policies. We apply the Twitter Rules impartially and not based on ideology."
Police were seen asking her to uncuff herself because she was causing a fire hazard by blocking the entrance. She refused.
NBC News reported that roughly two hours after her protest began, “police, at Loomer's request, used a bolt cutter to cut through her handcuffs.”
She was not arrested. She did not get her Twitter account back.
Far-right Twitter users praise Loomer:
“Laura Loomer called me just after being released and I told her she scored a home run against the narrow-minded creeps who tried to strike her out. How great that she is trending #1 on a platform where she doesn’t even have an account,” wrote Dinesh D’Souza, a far-right troll who received a pardon from President Trump for illegal campaign contributions.
“Laura Loomer gets the point of activism. If you don't do something crazy, no one will pay attention to you. She's banned on Twitter but trending globally, making everyone aware of their blatant double standard against conservatives. We need more right-wing activism like this,” wrote Kaitlin Bennett, whose claim to fame is parading around the Kent State University campus with an assault-style rifle.
Liberals mock Loomer:
“‘I am being SILENCED!’ she shouted from a bullhorn as a dozen news cameras looked on,” writer Jess Dweck quipped.
“Laura Loomer is the Jacob Wohl of Tomi Lahrens,” wrote comedian Tony Posnanski.
“I’ve stood in the cold longer for Pearl Jam tickets,” another Twitter user wrote.
