Gab is down as GoDaddy, PayPal pull service following synagogue shooting
The social network says it's working around the clock to get back online.
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Police stand in front of theTree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh on Saturday.
Gab.ai is out of service Monday after companies including GoDaddy and PayPal cut ties with the social network, spurred by reports that the suspect in the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting had published a number of anti-Semitic posts on the site.
Popular with conservatives and the white nationalist "alt-right," Gab posted a statement on its site from CEO Andrew Torba saying the service "isn't going anywhere."
"Gab has spent the past 48 hours proudly working with the DOJ and FBI to bring justice to an alleged terrorist. Because of the data we provided, they now have plenty of evidence for their case," the statement reads. "In the midst of this Gab has been no-platformed by essential internet infrastructure providers at every level."
The statement, which was also posted to Twitter, says the company will "exercise every possible avenue to keep Gab online and defend free speech and individual liberty for all people."
The shooting left 11 people dead and 6 wounded.
Tech companies have been swept up in recent months in reactions to hateful content posted to social media and in controversies over the sorts of speech they'll tolerate. Earlier this year, GoDaddy yanked the domain of a prominent white nationalist and dropped a neo-Nazi website over incitements to violence. Last month, Twitter banned Infowars and its host, Alex Jones, known for far-right conspiracy theories, and last week suspended 18 accounts tied to Jones and Infowars.
Infowars has also been banned by Paypal, Facebook, YouTube, Spotify and others.
GoDaddy, a domain registry and web-hosting company, confirmed on Monday that it's dropping Gab.
"We have informed Gab.com that they have 24 hours to move the domain to another registrar, as they have violated our terms of service," said GoDaddy's Dan Race in an emailed statement. "In response to complaints received over the weekend, GoDaddy investigated and discovered numerous instances of content on the site that both promotes and encourages violence against people."
On Saturday, PayPal banned Gab and said it had been in the process of canceling the site's account before the mass shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue.
"When a site is explicitly allowing the perpetuation of hate, violence or discriminatory intolerance, we take immediate and decisive action," a PayPal spokesperson said in an email .
CNN reported Saturday that Robert Bowers, the suspect in the mass shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue, had said on Gab that a Jewish group that advocates for refugees was helping transport members of the migrant caravans in Latin America. Bowers reportedly considered the migrants violent "invaders" threatening the US.
Five minutes before the first emergency calls about the synagogue attack, CNN reported, Bowers posted the following message on Gab: "I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I'm going in." Bowers had also posted photos of his gun collection on Gab, CNN said.
In a tweet on Monday, Gab said it was working on transferring to a new host today and tomorrow.
Here is the statement from Gab on Monday in full:
Gab has spent the past 48 hours proudly working with the DOJ and FBI to bring justice to an alleged terrorist. Because of the data we provided, they now have plenty of evidence for their case. In the midst of this Gab has been no-platformed by essential internet infrastructure providers at every level. We are the most censored, smeared, and no-platformed startup in history, which means we are a threat to the media and to the Silicon Valley Oligarchy.
Gab isn't going anywhere.
It doesn't matter what you write. It doesn't matter what the sophist talking heads say on TV. It doesn't matter what verified nobodies say on Twitter. We have plenty of options, resources, and support. We will exercise every possible avenue to keep Gab online and defend free speech and individual liberty for all people.
You have all just made Gab a nationally recognized brand as the home of free speech online at a time when Silicon Valley is stifling political speech they disagree with to interfere in a US election.
The internet is not reality. TV is not reality. 80% of normal everyday people agree with Gab and support free expression and liberty. The online outrage mob and mainstream media spin machine are the minority opinion. People are waking up, so please keep pointing the finger at a social network instead of pointing the finger at the alleged shooter who holds sole responsibility for his actions.
No-platform us all you want. Ban us all you want. Smear us all you want.
You can't stop an idea.
As we transition to a new hosting provider Gab will be inaccessible for a period of time. We are working around the clock to get Gab.com back online. Thank you and remember to speak freely.
Andrew Torba, CEO Gab.com
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