Granted, the conversation raises interesting questions about free speech in the digital realm. Last month, a federal court ruled that President Trump cannot block Twitter users from his official @realdonaldtrump account, on the grounds that it is unconstitutional and discriminatory.

“The First Amendment does not permit a public official who utilises a social media account for all manner of official purposes to exclude persons from an otherwise‐open online dialogue because they expressed views with which the official disagrees,” the US Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit said in the ruling.

However, while blocking social media users may be deemed discriminatory on paper, in reality, the practice is not so clear cut. As the Knight First Amendment Institute actually acknowledges in their letter, women and minorities are subject to disproportionate levels of abuse and harassment on social media, and cannot effectively engage with the national conversation when they are continually attacked, irrespective of their status as a public figure.

If everyone is to have the right to express their views and be free from abuse, then we must reorient our viewpoint, as Ocasio-Cortez so eloquently points out. Instead of inflammatory news headlines decrying the congresswoman’s efforts to shield herself from relentless abuse, social media companies must recognise their responsibility to protect their users, and create adequate protections to help build a freer digital world.

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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has no choice but to block trolls on Twitter – and here’s why