Wikimedia/Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us/FacebookRock throwers, Naruto runners and Kyles rejoice; the Storm Area 51 Facebook group is back up and running after being removed last week.
Mark Zuckerberg won’t be the one to stop this event taking place!
Though it was created as a joke, the Facebook page ‘Storm Area 51, They Can’t Stop All Of Us’ quickly went viral last month, with over three million people showing their interest and sharing their ideas for how they could successfully infiltrate the Air Force facility and ‘see them aliens’.
GettyThe idea was so popular the actual US Air Force got involved and warned against it going ahead, with a spokesperson saying ‘the US Air Force always stands ready to protect America and its assets’.
However, Facebook spoiled the fun last week as they removed the page:
The creator, Matty Roberts, shared a screenshot of the notification he’d received from the site, which explained:
Storm Area 51, They Can’t Stop All Of Us has been taken down by Facebook because content posted to this event went against our Community Standards.
WHAT. THE. FRICK.
Posted by Matty Roberts on Saturday, August 3, 2019
Naturally those who had been using the page to plan the invasion were outraged, though they made clear the removal of the event wasn’t going to stop them heading to Area 51 on September 20.
However, the determined alien hunters will be glad to know as of today (August 6) their event is officially back in business. It’s unclear how the page came to be restored, though the notification informing Matty of its removal did say he could ‘request a review’ if he thought Facebook were wrong to remove it.
Speaking to CNET after the page was taken down, the creator explained how he had attempted to turn the attention away from the invasion of Area 51 by creating an Area 51 festival instead. He created another Facebook page specifically for the festival, which is set to take place in Nevada on September 20, but Facebook removed that too.
Matty said:
I never got any reason behind the [Storm Area 51] event being removed. I created a sister event which amassed about 15,000 people before being taken down for no reason.
I think it’s pretty reckless of Facebook, especially because I’m trying to direct people away from storming the base.
Jackson Barnes/FacebookThe newly restored page has a link to the website which has more information about the festival and there’s even Naruto running-related merchandise for the truly dedicated followers to get their hands on.
The website explains:
We’re meeting in the town of Rachel, NV- the closest town to Area 51! We travelled out into the desert to speak directly with land-owners about creating an event for people to celebrate the unnatural… they’re totally on board!
‘They’ can’t stop us all from meeting out there… lets have fun! Music, camping and arts will occur over the weekend until Sunday – we hope to see you there!
The event has far too much momentum to stop now!
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Emily Brown first began delivering important news stories aged just 13, when she launched her career with a paper round. She graduated with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University, and went on to become a freelance writer and blogger. Emily contributed to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems before becoming a journalist at UNILAD, where she works on breaking news as well as longer form features.