note: the following column was first published in 2020.

Diane Dimond

There is an astonishing trend afoot, and if something isn't done to stop it in its ugly tracks, your right to freely express an opinion is in jeopardy.

Former President Donald Trump may be one of the most reviled people in the United States, but the moves to silence him in the public square -- and others who have espoused similar ideologies -- have created a chilling reality.

Social media platforms Facebook and Instagram announced plans to permanently remove all Trump accounts. Not just until he leaves office but forever.

In what universe is it OK to eternally bar an American citizen from exercising his or her fundamental right to free speech at a place where millions gather to exchange ideas? And how unbalanced was Twitter's expulsion policy when it allowed Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to post all sorts of violent and hate filled posts about the U.S., Israel and other perceived enemies on its platform? The ayatollah is OK, but the president of the United States is not?

Am I the only one who wants to read what our chief executive is thinking, no matter what the message might be? Better to know what the powerful are up to than to ignore them. Everyone should be alarmed about being cut off from the most powerful person on the planet.

In addition to social media forever muzzling the president, prominent tech companies controlling app distribution -- Google and Apple -- dropped the Parler app from their offerings. Parler is described as "the conservative alternative to Twitter" and was a logical choice for Trump's next social media home.

In what seemed to be a coordinated effort, Amazon quickly piled on and informed Parler that its home on the internet would be annihilated. That prompted a lawsuit from Parler.

The stated reason for removing Parler's fast-growing app? Parler doesn't do enough fast enough to delete questionable posts that promote violence and crime. Reportedly, some users partially planned the U.S. Capitol siege via Parler.

Interesting that similar steps weren't taken against Twitter, Facebook or Instagram when those platforms were used to coordinate last year's left-wing demonstrations, which frequently turned violent. Why the censorship double standard?

Interesting, too, that a Simon & Schuster book deal was abruptly canceled with Republican Sen. Josh Hawley after he objected to some of the 2020 election results. The book's title? "The Tyranny of Big Tech." See the pattern here? Trump, Parler, Hawley. Forced silencing of conservative (only) opinion. Shockingly obvious.

Many of the 74 million Trump voters believe these banishment moves were carried out to curry favor with the incoming Democratic administration. Maybe, but this really isn't about politics. It is about a form of censorship, fair treatment for all ideologies and everyone's constitutionally protected right to freely express their opinions.

An exception: If someone is online inciting hate speech or plotting violence, that is a crime and a job for law enforcement, which has been maddeningly slow to root out internet-based clues before mayhem occurs.

Even progressive Democratic U.S. Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have called for breaking up large tech companies. And the liberal-leaning American Civil Liberties Union has issued warnings about Big Tech becoming an unwanted Big Brother. "It should concern everyone when companies like Facebook and Twitter wield the unchecked power to remove people from platforms that have become indispensable for the speech of billions," an ACLU lawyer wrote.

In other words, if some geeky bro in Silicon Valley can decide to permanently kick Donald Trump to the digital curb, you could be next.

Last week, I wrote to support social media's temporary ban of Trump's accounts. In the wake of the deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol, it seemed to me to be a necessary step -- like placing a belligerent child in the corner for a timeout. But forever denying an American citizen the freedom to express their opinion -- whether it's an opinion the majority shares or not -- is anathema to everything we stand for in this country.

The argument that, "Well, these are private companies, so they can do what they want" just doesn't cut it. Big Tech has, collectively, become a monster monopoly of public discourse. And worse yet, our Congress has given them that power and has allowed them to misuse it.

As Harry Truman once said, "Once a government is committed to silencing the voice of opposition, it has only one way to go, and that is down the path of repressive measures, until it becomes a source of terror to all its citizens creating a country where everyone lives in fear."

Amen to that.

To find out more about Diane Dimond, visit her website at www.dianedimond.com. Her latest book, "Thinking Outside the Crime and Justice Box," is available on Amazon.com.