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Facebook has removed the 22,000-member Defend East County group from its site, the group’s founder and administrator, Justin Haskins, announced in a post to a separate Facebook group Saturday morning.

A San Diego Union-Tribune investigation of the group’s activity in August revealed that members frequently talked about inflicting violence on Black Lives Matter protesters, shared memes and videos celebrating right-wing violence against protesters and discussed the baseless QAnon conspiracy theory.

John Sepulvado, a racial justice activist who lives in East County, told the Union-Tribune that the action by Facebook is the result of a coordinated campaign among several East County activists.

“We were concerned about electioneering by Defend East County and threats against women and minorities and wanted to do something safely,” Sepulvado said.

Read the full story on LATimes.com.