Shopify removes Trump-affiliated stores following U.S. Capitol riots

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Canadian tech giant Shopify has moved to ban United States President Donald Trump and his associated brands from its e-commerce platform the day after his supporters breached the U.S. Capitol building in an attempt to block lawmakers from certifying the results of the 2020 election.

A Shopify spokesperson confirmed to Global News on Thursday that the Ottawa-based company, which hosts online stores for more than one million merchants across the globe, has taken down stores for the Trump Organization and any other storefronts associated with the president.

“Shopify does not tolerate actions that incite violence,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

“Based on recent events, we have determined that the actions by President Donald J. Trump violate our Acceptable Use Policy, which prohibits promotion or support of organizations, platforms or people that threaten or condone violence to further a cause. As a result, we have terminated stores affiliated with President Trump.”

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The move comes after a horde of Trump supporters marched on the U.S. Capitol building as lawmakers inside ratified Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election, briefly stopping the count. Four people have now died in connection with the riots.

Shopify is the latest tech giant to join the backlash to Trump’s rhetoric, which many saw as inciting Wednesday’s actions.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerburg announced Thursday that Trump’s account on the social media platform and Instagram will be suspended for at least the next two weeks, ahead of Biden’s inauguration.

Twitter flagged numerous Trump tweets on Wednesday and removed two of them before also temporarily suspending the president’s account for 12 hours.

Trump late Wednesday promised an “orderly transition” following the riots, but maintained his assertions that the election outcome was not legitimate.

More to come.

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