Sara Salinas

IndyStar

A Beech Grove Facebook page at the center of a civil rights lawsuit will be taken down at noon Wednesday, according to a post on the page.

"Unfortunately we will be losing a most effective tool for sharing information with the citizens of Beech Grove," the post on the city of Beech Grove page says, citing advice from legal counsel as reason for deactivating the site.

The American Civil Liberties Union in Indiana is suing the city of Beech Grove in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis on behalf of two women who claim their comments on the Facebook page were removed. The allegations spurred questions of free speech and a government body's right to monitor content.

ACLU sues Beech Grove over removing Facebook comments

Both women claim after their comments were removed, they were subsequently blocked from posting on the page entirely.

“While the City of Beech Grove’s decision to shut down its Facebook pages is unfortunate, we hope it is a temporary measure taken toward implementing a policy that ensures fair and equal treatment of its citizens' diverse viewpoints,” said Jan Mensz, ACLU of Indiana staff attorney, in a statement. “Beech Grove is certainly not unique in its endeavor to provide public spaces for comment. Many municipalities use social media sites in ways that respect the rights of citizens to express differing viewpoints, as is their right under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. These were the rights our plaintiffs were seeking in this case, and there is nothing in the lawsuit that forces the city to shut down its social media sites.”

A June 16 post on the page made the site's position on negative commenting clear.

"This Facebook site was created to pass on information to you and to try to keep you informed as to what is occurring in our City," the post says. "We will not entertain negative comments towards anyone, nor will we host arguments between individuals. We do not care who you are, we are trying to inform you. If you decide to make unpleasant comments we will delete you."

Facebook users were quick to mourn the page, commenting that its deactivation was a "major bummer" and "ridiculous." One user commented that she didn't live in Beech Grove, but that she liked knowing about events for her son.

A description of the page says it was "designed to keep the citizens of the City of Beech Grove informed of the events and activities that go on within the city." Since it was created in January, the page has amassed more than 1,300 followers.

The post on the Beech Grove Facebook page encouraged residents to visit BeechGrove.com for the information that used to be posted on the Facebook page.

IndyStar reporter Madeline Buckley contributed to this story.

Call IndyStar reporter Sara Salinas at (317) 444-6157. Follow her on Twitter: @saracsalinas.