‘Meta owes us an explanation’: No Kings movement questions Instagram account suspension

• Meta temporarily suspended the No Kings movement's Instagram account during Saturday's protests.

• The company blamed an automated action triggered by high-frequency posting and apologised.

• Organisers demanded an explanation, saying the suspension restricted election-related communications.

The organisers of the No Kings movement, which has led nationwide pro-democracy protests in the US, have demanded an explanation from Meta after their Instagram account was temporarily suspended during demonstrations on Saturday.

The account remained inaccessible for several hours as the coalition encouraged voters to cast their ballots early ahead of the US midterm elections. Meta later apologised, attributing the suspension to an automated action triggered when accounts post, share or comment at unusually high frequencies.

“Unfortunately, that automated action was clearly taken in error,” Meta spokesperson Andy Stone wrote on X on Saturday. He said access had been restored and the company sincerely apologised.

However, the No Kings Coalition said the incident raised concerns about its ability to communicate with supporters during an election period.

“We have regained access to our accounts, but Meta still owes us an explanation,” the coalition said in a statement posted on Instagram on Sunday. “Restricting communications about voting in the middle of an election is unacceptable.”

The organisers also questioned Meta's explanation, saying they had published only a handful of posts while livestreaming the demonstrations to thousands of viewers.

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders also criticised the suspension. In a post on X on Sunday, he linked the incident to concerns about media ownership by billionaires.

Protests continue across the US

Despite the temporary disruption, hundreds of planned demonstrations took place across the country on Saturday.

At the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, a few hundred people gathered in caps and coats, dancing to a band's music and holding signs reading “VOTE EARLY” and “HANDS OFF MY VOTE!”

In Atlanta, city councilman Michael Julian Bond urged demonstrators to exercise their voting rights.

“The Constitution gives you one power, right? That is the power to vote. Are you gonna use that power?” he asked the crowd.

The No Kings movement began last summer amid opposition to the Trump administration's policies, including federal layoffs, immigration enforcement and foreign military engagements. Its demonstrations have since addressed a range of issues and have frequently criticised President Donald Trump.

Ahead of this year's midterm elections, the coalition has focused on encouraging early voting, amid concerns over voting rights and fears that Trump could challenge election results.

Organisers also planned to recruit volunteers at Saturday's events to mobilise in response to what they described as potential “election sabotage”, Leah Greenberg, co-executive director of progressive group Indivisible, which helps organise No Kings events, told The Guardian.

The temporary suspension has added to concerns among organisers about their ability to use social media platforms to reach voters during a politically sensitive period. Meta has said the suspension was an error and that access has been restored.