Los Angeles County Director of Public Health Barbara Ferrer leveraged relationships with Rep. Adam Schiff in an effort to bully Twitter into silencing critics of her universal mask mandate in July 2022.
Schiff’s role, part of Ferrer’s broader campaign to suppress her critics, is described in a remarkable July 26 court filing by attorney Julie Hamill of the Alliance of Los Angeles County Parents. The Alliance is suing the Department of Public Health and others, including Ferrer herself, for First Amendment violations. A trial is set for Oct. 16.
Ferrer’s censorship campaign went beyond Twitter. Hamill’s filing shows Ferrer’s effort included attempts to suppress unfavorable content on Facebook and Instagram, and the elimination of public-comment features on government websites. In at least one instance, her staff even lobbied a newspaper editor to spike unflattering commentary.
Ferrer’s campaign began shortly after her July 7, 2022, announcement that COVID-19 cases were rising so quickly in Los Angeles County that she would re-impose a universal indoor mask mandate, effective July 29, 2022.
