Mark Zuckerberg downplays BLM protest violence in leaked video, says Capitol rioters were treated leniently
Leaked video footage obtained by Project Veritas reportedly shows Mark Zuckerberg -- the founder and CEO of Facebook -- claiming that rioters who created unrest in major cities last summer were treated less leniently than those who stormed the US Capitol on January 6. “I know this is just a very difficult moment for a lot of us here [at Facebook], and especially our Black colleagues,” Zuckerberg told his employees during a conference call. “It was troubling to see how people in this [Capitol] mob were treated compared to the stark contrast we saw during protests earlier this year," he added.
As reported by Breitbart News, the riots over last summer resulted in a death toll of anywhere between a dozen to thirty. Far-left anarchists and Black Lives Matter supporters even set up the “Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ)” in Seattle - a "lawless state within a state." But as the federal government saw fit to deploy more than 20,000 national guardsmen during the hours-long capitol riot, state officials had allowed the CHAZ occupation to last for nearly a month. What's more? A 16-year-old was reportedly murdered by CHAZ’s own, self-proclaimed “security forces.”
Mask-clad Antifa and Black Lives Matter activists "terrorized ordinary American citizens" for nearly half a year, often confronting them in restaurants and at their homes in suburban neighborhoods, Breitbart News reported, adding that the summer riots were arguably the "costliest in U.S. history" after causing an estimated $2 billion in damage to property across the country. The violence has gotten so out of hand that even Portland's liberal mayor, Ted Wheeler, is now seeking federal assistance against anarchist organizations. The Democrat mayor was reportedly assaulted by Antifa in a restaurant shortly after he made the request.
That said, Zuckerberg's comments in the Project Veritas footage suggested that he believes those who perpetrated the January 6 Capitol riots were treated with leniency when compared to violence perpetrated by Antifa and Black Lives Matter activists over the summer, which saw several assaults on elected officials and multiple deaths being reported. Meanwhile, a 20,000-follower page for the violent Rose City Antifa remains active on Facebook, despite the platform's alleged zero-tolerance policy towards violent extremist groups, per Breitbart News. Facebook banned former President Donald Trump from its platform after Democrats blamed him for allegedly "inciting an insurrection" at the U.S. Capitol on January 6. Zuckerberg issued a long statement the following day, saying Trump's posts on his official Facebook and Instagram would be blocked "indefinitely and for at least the next two weeks until the peaceful transition of power is complete."
But after the social media giant blocked Trump, his page garnered hundreds of thousands of likes. According to US analytics company Social Blade statistics, the former president’s page gained 142,170 new likes between January 7 -- when his account was banned “indefinitely” -- and January 13, Newsweek reported. Trump posted last on January 6, after a violent mob stormed the Capitol building and caused a deadly riot that killed five people, including a police officer. The last message on his Facebook wall read, “I am asking for everyone at the U.S. Capitol to remain peaceful. No violence! Remember, WE are the Party of Law & Order – respect the Law and our great men and women in Blue. Thank you!” Social Blade also reported that since the violent protests in Washington, D.C, the number of Facebook accounts "talking about" Trump had increased by hundreds of thousands daily.