In a startling event last month, prominent California parents’ rights advocates, including Sonja Shaw, the President of Chino Valley Unified School District, became the target of severe online defamation.
Meta’s platforms, Facebook and Instagram, inexplicably linked searches of Shaw’s name and her advocacy work with grave warnings about “child abuse” without any factual basis.
This association was revealed through screenshots shared by Shaw’s attorney, showing that anyone searching for Shaw or related terms encountered a notification blocking the search and suggesting a connection to illegal activities involving minors.
Facebook Meta (Credits: IndiaToday)
The alarming notice warned searchers about the legal and personal consequences of being involved in child se*xual abuse, urging them to report inappropriate content. This misrepresentation remained until Nick Wilson, a State Assembly candidate similarly maligned, reached out to Meta, which then removed the misleading warning.
In response to this unprecedented situation, Liberty Justice Center’s Senior Counsel M.E. Buck Dougherty III, representing Shaw, penned a letter to Meta’s Chief Legal Officer demanding explanations for this baseless association with child se*xual abuse.
Dougherty sought clarification on whether any governmental body played a role in this incident and demanded a written promise from Meta to prevent such false allegations against Shaw. Despite reaching out, neither Shaw’s legal team nor The Federalist received any response from Meta regarding this situation.
This unjust accusation against Shaw sparked widespread backlash on social media, exposing her to numerous hateful messages and threats. Shaw recounted days filled with thousands of abusive comments, alongside receiving two menacing letters sent to both her home and office.
Pro-Parent School Board President (Credits: The Federalist)
These letters, falsely attributed to Texas State Sen. Mayes Middleton, a conservative parental rights advocate, prompted immediate action from local law enforcement to ensure Shaw and her family’s safety.
Despite the fear and the essential personal toll this ordeal has taken, Shaw remains undeterred in her commitment to protecting the rights and well-being of children within the Chino Valley Unified School District. This unwavering stance comes amid an escalating campaign of intimidation that seems to be fueled, in part, by the misinformation spread by Meta.
Shaw emphasizes the importance of standing up for the innocence and safety of children against those who wish to exert control over and harm them, highlighting the gravity of the stakes involved in this fight for parental rights and child protection.
