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February 23, 2021 (LifeSiteNews) — What happens when the exchange of information is not controlled by the government, but by private companies? And what happens when those private companies sign on to a censorious ideology devoted to silencing its opponents? We are likely about to find out. The Big Five of Big Tech — Amazon, Apple, Google, Facebook, and Microsoft — hold enormous power. They intend to use it for cultural ends.
I had a conversation on my podcast with Rod Dreher on his book Live Not By Lies: A Manual for Christian Dissidents about Big Tech and his view that a Chinese-style social credit system is coming to America some day soon. In the meantime, however, we’re getting a preview of the sort of speech that the information overlords would like to deep-six: anything critical of trans ideology.
The Wall Street Journal’s Abigail Shrier isn’t even opposed to sex change surgeries as such, but when she released a book titled Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters, the rainbow mafia descended in force. Those who interviewed her were told she was an extremist and transphobe, and there was even a hilariously ineffective attempt to cancel Joe Rogan for talking to her. The ACLU wanted the book banned; Amazon banned advertising for it.
Amazon has now gone a step further. Ryan T. Anderson, formerly of the Heritage Foundation and now president of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, was one of the first conservative scholars to publish an in-depth look at the claims of the transgender movement. His 2018 book When Harry Became Sally: Responding to the Transgender Movement is an essential primer on an exploding movement. I bought it on Amazon when it was published. It has now been banned from Amazon.
Anderson only discovered this fact when he was informed by would-be purchasers that they could not buy it despite it not being out of stock — Amazon had even removed the pages for the book.
“Three years after publication, in the very same week that the House of Representatives is going to ram through a radical transgender bill amending the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Amazon erases my book opposing gender ideology from their cyber shelves,” Anderson told The Christian Post. “Make no mistake, both Big Government and Big Tech can undermine human dignity and liberty, human flourishing and the common good.”
According to Anderson, his publisher has asked for an explanation but thus far has not received any response. Amazon has also declined questions from media outlets, but told The Christian Post to review the Amazon guidelines regarding the types of books it sells. Other books have been banned, as well, including several by Christians who formerly lived gay or lesbian lifestyles. This was done, predictably, due to demands by LGBT activists. This is now the modus operandi: Complain to progressive companies; make a fuss; and down the memory hole it goes.
It is true that Amazon is a private company and basically has the right to do whatever it wants. But it is also true that, especially during this pandemic, Amazon has something approaching a monopoly. They are rapidly approaching 50% of the e-commerce market; one out of five books sold is on Amazon’s Kindle. Amazon can go a long way toward ensuring that critical information about gender ideology does not reach an enormous number of people — and they are not subject to the same constitutional restrictions the government ostensibly is.
Trans activists know this, and thus they’re gunning for the weak links. Successfully, too. And if they have their way, this will be just the start.
