An artist who redesigns President Trump’s “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) hats into recognizable symbols of hate speech says she was banned from Facebook for violating the platform’s standards.
Kate Kretz of Mount Rainier, Md., rips apart the iconic red campaign hat and resews it to look like other symbols, such as a Nazi armband or a Ku Klux Klan hood, WUSA 9 reported.
“The arm band is actually titled, ‘Only the Terrorized Own the Right to Name Symbols of Terror,’ and so if people are afraid of people that are walking around with MAGA hats, because they’re afraid of violence,” Kretz said. “It’s not really up to the wearer to say ‘oh you shouldn’t feel afraid of me.'”{mosads}
The artist said Facebook took down an image of the reimagined Nazi paraphernalia for “violating community standards.”
She appealed the decision and labeled another image with text clarifying that the photo was of a piece of art, but her entire account was later disabled.
Kretz told the outlet that she uses her Facebook page to sell her art and maintain her livelihood as well as keep contacts for art shows.
“I understand doing things for the greater good,” Kretz said. “However, I think artists are a big part of Facebook’s content providers, and they owe us a fair hearing.”
The Hill has reached out to Facebook for comment.
Kretz told KTVU that she buys only knock-off MAGA hats that are the same texture and color so she is not directly funding Trump’s campaign.
“I wanted to make sure I wasn’t putting any money in [Trump’s] pocket,” Kretz said.
The cap has become a polarizing symbol since Trump’s 2016 campaign.
Just this week, a high school in Pennsylvania apologized after the yearbook club blurred out two teenagers’ pro-Trump apparel in a yearbook photo.