JD Vance delivered a historic full speech at the Munich Security Conference, where he strongly criticized European leaders for their approach to free speech. He specifically targeted the United Kingdom, calling out its restrictive policies and emphasizing the importance of protecting freedom of expression.
Archiv: freedom of speech / expression / language / bans
Vance eviscerates ‚Soviet‘-style European censorship in address to Munich Security Conference
„What I worry about is the threat from within the retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values, values shared with the United States of America.“
Vance called out former European Commissioner Thierry Breton, who said in January that if the right wing German AfD party were to win elections in Germany, the results could go the way of Romania.
„These cavalier statements are shocking to American ears,“ said Vance.
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights: STATE/ENTITY – United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
04 Dec 2024
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
JAL
GBR 15/2024
– terrorism
– freedom of opinion and expression
– freedom of peaceful assembly and of association
– privacy
Information received concerning the potentially inappropriate use of provisions of the Terrorism Act 2000, the Terrorism Act 2006, and the Anti-Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019. These provisions appear to have been employed to investigate, detain, collect data, and prosecute political activists and journalists, raising concerns about potential infringements of their fundamental
rights.
Alleged victims: 6
(…)
According to the information received:
Powers under counter-terrorism legislation have been used on multiple occasions to examine, detain, and arrest journalists and activists, particularly at the UK border. It is alleged that journalists and activists who are critical of Western foreign policy in the context of the conflict in the Middle East and the Russia-Ukraine war are especially affected by the reported misuse of these powers. In particular, schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000, and schedule 3 of the Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019, have been used to examine and obtain data from journalists and activists, including Johanna Ross (Ganyukova), John Laughland, Kit Klarenberg, Craig Murray and Richard Medhurst in circumstances where they appear to have no credible connection to “terrorist” or “hostile” activity. Furthermore, section 12 of the Terrorism Act 2000 has been used to charge journalists and activists, including Richard Barnard and Richard Medhurst, for allegedly expressing support for a “proscribed organisation” in the course of activism and media reporting.
Without having knowledge of the material that may have substantiated the investigations or charges, we raise concern about an alleged pattern of overuse, or other misuse, of counter-terrorism legislation to target legitimate freedom of expression and opinion, including public interest media reporting, and related freedoms of peaceful assembly and association, and political
dissent or activism.
(…)
Ben Saul
Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism
Irene Khan
Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
Gina Romero
Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association
Ana Brian Nougrères
Special Rapporteur on the right to privacy
United Nations Censures UK Over Abuse of Terrorism Act Against Journalists and Activists
(February 6, 2025)
Four UN Special Rapporteurs have written jointly to the UK government demanding explanation of its inappropriate persecution of journalists and political activists under the Terrorism Act. They state that those persecuted:
appear to have no credible connection to “terrorist” or “hostile” activity
The cases taken up by the United Nations are those of Johanna Ross (Ganyukova), John Laughland, Kit Klarenberg, Craig Murray (yes, me), Richard Barnard and Richard Medhurst.
RESTORING FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND ENDING FEDERAL CENSORSHIP
Section 1. Purpose. The First Amendment to the United States Constitution, an amendment essential to the success of our Republic, enshrines the right of the American people to speak freely in the public square without Government interference. Over the last 4 years, the previous administration trampled free speech rights by censoring Americans’ speech on online platforms, often by exerting substantial coercive pressure on third parties, such as social media companies, to moderate, deplatform, or otherwise suppress speech that the Federal Government did not approve. Under the guise of combatting “misinformation,” “disinformation,” and “malinformation,” the Federal Government infringed on the constitutionally protected speech rights of American citizens across the United States in a manner that advanced the Government’s preferred narrative about significant matters of public debate. Government censorship of speech is intolerable in a free society.
Sec. 2. Policy. It is the policy of the United States to: (a) secure the right of the American people to engage in constitutionally protected speech;
(b) ensure that no Federal Government officer, employee, or agent engages in or facilitates any conduct that would unconstitutionally abridge the free speech of any American citizen;
(c) ensure that no taxpayer resources are used to engage in or facilitate any conduct that would unconstitutionally abridge the free speech of any American citizen; and
(d) identify and take appropriate action to correct past misconduct by the Federal Government related to censorship of protected speech.
Sec. 3. Ending Censorship of Protected Speech. (a) No Federal department, agency, entity, officer, employee, or agent may act or use any Federal resources in a manner contrary to section 2 of this order.
(b) The Attorney General, in consultation with the heads of executive departments and agencies, shall investigate the activities of the Federal Government over the last 4 years that are inconsistent with the purposes and policies of this order and prepare a report to be submitted to the President, through the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy, with recommendations for appropriate remedial actions to be taken based on the findings of the report.
Trump orders government not to infringe on Americans’ speech, calls for censorship investigation
It’s not yet clear how the order could affect the work that several U.S. agencies do to track false claims that pose threats to election security, including the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, known as CISA.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Arab Leadership in Israel Appeals to Supreme Court Against Law Allowing Education Ministry to Dismiss Teachers and Cut Funding to Palestinian Schools Over Alleged “Support of Terrorism”
(December 17, 2024)
In the petition, Adalah Attorney Salam Irsheid argued that the law is clearly racist in intent, especially given the widespread persecution and criminalization of hundreds of Palestinian citizens by Israeli authorities and other entities since the outbreak of the war 7 October 2023, for merely expressing entirely lawful opinions. The law’s deliberate vagueness, and the fact that it only addresses “incitement to terrorism”—which is used almost exclusively to target Palestinians—while excluding incitement to violence or racism, highlights its discriminatory purpose. By granting broad, unchecked powers to political and administrative authorities, the law enables punitive actions to be taken against Palestinian educators for expressing views that fall outside the mainstream consensus, thereby severely undermining their basic right to freedom of expression. Adalah further argued that the law breaches the principle of the separation of powers, as it grants the Education Ministry the authority to infringe on teachers’ rights to freedom of expression and occupation, effectively requiring a determination of whether they have committed a criminal offense, even if no charges have been filed against them.
Petition to Supreme Court; Far-Right Govt Consider Bill Banning Left and Arab Campus Groups
Hadash MKs opposed the proposed legislation, calling it “dime-store fascist populism and McCarthyism.” According to Hadash MK Aida Touma-Sliman, “The Knesset is advancing two bills targeting critical students and professors, aimed primarily at Palestinian and leftist voices in academia. These bills seek to silence any remaining voices resisting the government’s policies of occupation and war. This marks another step in the fascist agenda to suppress any real opposition to the extreme right. Heads of universities, professors, and students recognize the danger of such legislation and are voicing their opposition.
On past week, the Knesset plenum, in a preliminary reading, passed a proposed law that would amend the Students Rights Law, allowing most Israeli higher education institutions to implement gender separation. MK Son Har-Melech proposed the law, which 55 members of the Knesset (MKs) supported and 45 MKs opposed.
Ministers back bill to privatize Kan public broadcaster, call for Haaretz boycott
Only hours after the cabinet voted unanimously on Sunday to support a boycott of the left-wing Haaretz daily, the Ministerial Committee on Legislation gave its backing to a bill mandating the privatization of the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation within two years, effectively closing down the public broadcaster.
The private member’s bill, sponsored by Likud MK Tally Gotliv, would require the government to issue a tender for the purchase of the television and radio networks controlled by the IPBC, which operates the Kan public broadcaster and Reshet Bet radio, among others.
Israel cracks down on Palestinian citizens who speak out against the war in Gaza
Ahmed Khalefa’s life turned upside down after he was charged with inciting terrorism for chanting in solidarity with Gaza at an anti-war protest in October 2023.
The lawyer and city counselor from central Israel says he spent three difficult months in jail followed by six months detained in an apartment. It’s unclear when he’ll get a final verdict on his guilt or innocence. Until then, he’s forbidden from leaving his home from dusk to dawn.
Witch Hunt in Israel Against Peace Activists and Haaretz Editor
Israel’s Justice Minister Yariv Levin has announced Thursday, October 31, he’s pushing a bill to impose 20-year prison sentences on Israelis who advocate for sanctions against the country or its leaders. In other words: 20-year prison sentence for exercising freedom of speech in Israel.
The far-right government craziness in Israel is intensifying after a “Call for International Pressure,” initiated by Academy for Equality activists, was wide-world published last week and signed by over three thousands petitioners, including a group of leading Israeli academics, among them: Anat Matar, Smadar Ben-Natan, Moshé Behar, Tamir Sorek, Rafi Greenberg, Shira Klein, Lior Sternfeld, Ophira Gamliel, Hilla Dayan, Regev Nathansohn, Uri Hadar, Snait Gissis, Amalia Saar, Avishai Ehrlich, Efraim Davidi, Maya Rosenfeld, Avraham Oz, Ronnen Ben-Arie, Yael Berda, Anat Biletzki, Sivan Rajuan Shtang, Hannan Hever, Orly Lubin, Raz Chen-Morris, Hannah Safran, Revital Madar, Ilana Hairston, Amos Goldberg, Tamar Hager and Miriam Eliav-Feldon.
The petition stated, “We, Israeli citizens, living in Israel and abroad, are calling on the international community – the United Nations and its institutions, the United States, the European Union, the Arab League and all the countries of the world – to intervene immediately and apply every possible sanction… put real pressure on Israel for an immediate ceasefire.”
Biden suggests Trump supporters are ‘garbage’ after comic’s insult of Puerto Rico
“Just the other day, a speaker at his rally called Puerto Rico a floating island of garbage. Well, let me tell you something, I don’t, I don’t know the Puerto Rican that I know, the Puerto Rico where I’m fr — in my home state of Delaware. They’re good, decent honorable people,” he said.
The president then added: “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters. His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American. It’s totally contrary to everything we’ve done, everything we’ve been.”
From Free Speech to Free Palestine: Six Decades of Student Protest
“You’ve got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon the levers, upon all the apparatus, and you’ve got to make it stop,” he said. Soon the students would flood into a campus administration building.
That scene played out 60 years ago at the University of California, Berkeley. The words were directed at the university leadership, and referring to its restrictions on campus political activity. But the speech, from the student leader Mario Savio, and the sit-in that followed could have happened yesterday.
Defending Academic Freedom at Rutgers in 2024
(April 10, 2024)
A statement of the Rutgers AAUP-AFT Executive Council and Academic Freedom Committee and the Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union Executive Board and Academic Freedom Committee
Since late 2023, Rutgers University has been the target of repeated attacks on academic freedom, including pressure from elected officials to limit the speech and activities of professors, students, academic centers, and departments at Rutgers. These attacks claim to be focused on antisemitism, but in fact they aim at a broad sweep of expression, seeking to stifle the free exchange of ideas that is at the core of Rutgers’ educational mission as the premier public university of New Jersey. To protect Rutgers’ academic mission, we speak out against attempts to infringe on free speech, research, teaching, and writing. We call on the Rutgers administration to do likewise and robustly defend our institution and targeted members of the Rutgers community.
12 suspended Columbia students reinstated just days after anti-Israel protest, as lawyer vows to take ‘fascist’ school to NY Supreme Court
“Speech, no matter how unpopular it may be, is the essence of academia. Protest against Zionism in Israel is pure protected speech. … If Jewish students are made uncomfortable by it, f— them!” Cohen, who was raised in an Orthodox Jewish home, told the Village Sun.
“Speech is supposed to make you uncomfortable. This is not lighting candles and kumbaya. … All speech is protected unless the imminent intent is to commit violence — like shouting ‘Fire!’ in a crowded movie theater,” he added. (…)
“I got f—ing suspended from Columbia 50 years ago. I got thrown out of Columbia after a week for anti-war protesting,” he lamented.
“Columbia is fascist,” he said.
Civil rights groups in Israel file petition demanding authorisation for anti-war protests
The petition was filed after the police refused on Tuesday to approve the protest, for the third time.
The petition states that the police‘s refusal to approve the protest „joins the systematic oppression of protests, even small demonstrations, that criticise the combat, its results, and demand a diplomatic solution“.
Last night‘s events in Tel Aviv paint a disturbing picture: the Tel Aviv police are becoming highly influenced by Ben Gvir‘s sentiments regarding protestors. From the accounts of demonstrators, including videos and testimonies, it is evident that severe violence, dismantling of signs, political persecution, and incitement against protesters are becoming disturbingly routine.
We urge the Attorney General not to remain silent when the police transform into a political tool, targeting those who dissent from the government‘s stance.
Particularly in times of war, it is crucial to safeguard freedom of expression and the right to protest.
Hadash MK Cassif: ‘They Want to Silence Us’
MK Ofer Cassif (Hadash) is being threatened with expulsion from Israel’s parliament after he signed a petition supporting South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, accusing it of acts of genocide. Cassif says the impeachment is based on an antidemocratic law that suppresses free speech. “They want me and my friends to shut up,” he says of the far-right government’s persecution of dissenting legislators in an interview to Amy Goodman broadcasted by Democracy Now! “We’ve been against the war from the beginning because we are against bloodshed.”
Courts Strike a Blow Against White House‘s Social Media Censorship | Opinion
The plaintiffs in the case, led by the states of Missouri and Louisiana, eminent doctors, and others alleged that under guise of combating „mis-, dis-, and mal-information,“ the Biden White House and nearly a dozen federal agencies have, alongside private-sector cutouts, cajoled and colluded with Big Tech platforms to silence millions of Americans. The topics social media platforms have censored at the government‘s direction, measuring likely hundreds of millions of posts, range from the Hunter Biden laptop story, to matters of election integrity, to virtually every aspect of the coronavirus pandemic.
Declaration of Israel‘s Independence 1948
(14th May,1948)
THE STATE OF ISRAEL will be open for Jewish immigration and for the Ingathering of the Exiles; it will foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions; and it will be faithful to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
Declaration of Israel‘s Independence 1948
(14th May,1948)
THE STATE OF ISRAEL will be open for Jewish immigration and for the Ingathering of the Exiles; it will foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions; and it will be faithful to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
Biden likely violated First Amendment during COVID-19 pandemic, federal judge says
A U.S. District Court judge is temporarily preventing White House officials from meeting with tech companies about social media censorship, arguing that such actions in the past were likely First Amendment violations.
The Tuesday injunction by Louisiana Judge Terry A. Doughty was in response to recent lawsuits from Louisiana and Missouri attorneys general. The suits allege that the White House coerced or „significantly encourage[d]“ tech companies to suppress free speech during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Judge limits Biden administration in working with social media companies
U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty of Louisiana granted the injunction in response to a 2022 lawsuit brought by attorneys general in Louisiana and Missouri. Their lawsuit alleged that the federal government overstepped in its efforts to convince social media companies to address postings that could result in vaccine hesitancy during the COVID-19 pandemic or affect elections.
Civil Liberties: Restore our Rights
Our administration will make it a top priority to protect and restore the fundamental civil liberties, enshrined in the Bill of Rights, that hold the essence of what America can be. These liberties have endured constant assault for over twenty years, starting with the Bush/Cheney War on Terror, and accelerating in the era of Covid lockdowns.
Freedom of speech is the capstone of all other rights and freedoms. Once a government has the power to silence its opponents, no other right is safe. We will therefore dismantle the censorship-industrial complex, in which Big Tech censors, deplatforms, shadowbans, and algorithmically suppresses any person or opinion the government asks them to. We will respect the right to privacy and freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures, by ending mass surveillance of American citizens and the abuse of civil asset forfeiture. We will make sure that the Covid-era suspension of the right to assembly, trial by jury, and freedom of worship will never happen again. The same for the right to property. During Covid, 3.4 million business were forced to close. Many of them, including 60% of Black-owned businesses, will never reopen.
A Kennedy administration will respect American citizens and stop treating them like suspects and schoolchildren. We will stop manipulating the public with propaganda and targeted leaks. We will never weaponize the law against political opponents, nor hold our own officials above the law. We will return the intelligence agencies to their proper role as protectors not violators of liberty.
Declaration of Israel‘s Independence 1948
(14th May,1948)
THE STATE OF ISRAEL will be open for Jewish immigration and for the Ingathering of the Exiles; it will foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions; and it will be faithful to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
The Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel
(14th May,1948)
THE STATE OF ISRAEL will be open for Jewish immigration and for the Ingathering of the Exiles; it will foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture; it will safeguard the Holy Places of all religions; and it will be faithful to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
UN Human Rights Chief urges UK to reverse ‘deeply troubling’ Public Order Bill
The Public Order Bill, which has now been passed by Parliament in the United Kingdom, is deeply troubling legislation that is incompatible with the UK’s international human rights obligations regarding people’s rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk warned on Thursday.
“This new law imposes serious and undue restrictions on these rights that are neither necessary nor proportionate to achieve a legitimate purpose as defined under international law. This law is wholly unnecessary as UK police already have the powers to act against violent and disruptive demonstrations,” Türk said.
UK falls below Israel in global free speech ranking thanks to Online Safety Bill
The study published on Wednesday by the London-based nonprofit Index on Censorship (IOC) describes the UK as only “partially open” in every key area measured.
In this year‘s ranking, the UK fell below other advanced economies including Australia, Israel, and Japan. European neighbours such as Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, and Denmark also all rank higher than the UK.
The people have spoken. Accounts who doxxed my location will have their suspension lifted now.
Protests erupt across China in unprecedented challenge to Xi Jinping’s zero-Covid policy
The campus protests continued on Sunday. At Tsinghua University, another elite university in Beijing, hundreds of students gathered on a square to protest against zero-Covid and censorship.
Videos and images circulating on social media show students holding up sheets of white paper and shouting: “Democracy and rule of law! Freedom of expression!”
Destined for Downing Street? Rishi Sunak could be named PM TODAY after Boris Johnson pulls out of Tory leadership contest and Penny Mordaunt well short of the 100 supporters she needs ahead of 2pm deadline
– Rishi Sunak, who launched his bid yesterday morning, has received public backing of more than 150 Tory MPs
– As of last night, 155 MPs said they are backing Mr Sunak, while 25 had spoken out in support of Ms Mordaunt
– A further 54 who were hoping Mr Johnson would return are yet to publicly reveal to whom they will now back
– Mr Johnson earlier said he had in fact reached the ‚very high hurdle of 102 nominations‘ as he bowed out
– Ms Mordaunt‘s team, though, believe his decision to pull himself from the race will ‚propel her over the line‘
AFL LAWSUIT REVEALS DAMNING CDC DOCUMENTS PROVING GOVERNMENT COLLUSION WITH BIG TECH TO CENSOR FREE SPEECH AND PROMOTE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION PROPAGANDA
Last July, then-White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki admitted that the White House was working with social media companies to identify “misinformation.” Specifically, she said, “we’re regularly making sure social media platforms are aware of the latest narratives, dangerous to public health that we and many other Americans are seeing across all of social and traditional media. And we work to engage with them to better understand the enforcement of social media platform policies.”
AFL immediately submitted FOIA requests to the Department of Health and Human Services, the CDC, the Food and Drug Administration, and the National Institutes of Health to uncover the degree to which the CDC and the White House have been censoring content that it has deemed “disinformation” or “misinformation.” Predictably, the Biden Administration obstructed and delayed complying with their legal obligation to provide such information, and AFL sued the CDC to compel their release.
Today, after a year of work, AFL has obtained its first damning release of documents.
The WashPost‘s Doxxing of @LibsOfTikTok Reveals Who Corporate Journalists See as Their Targets
(video)
German government funds ‚research‘ project that doxxed Libs of Tik Tok
(19.04.2022)
Brown is working on an ongoing project with support from Prototype Fund, an organization that provides financial support to Brown‘s so-called „Hatespeech-Tracker.“ Protoype Fund is a project of the Open Knowledge Foundation Germany, which is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
Travis Robert Brown’s Hassreden-Tracker is composed of his existing tools, such as cancel-culture, which Travis uses to track, stalk, dox, and harass those he has a personal vendetta against. You can see the hundreds of lists he’s created here.
Russian propagandists to respond in same way as those who drop bombs on innocent people – Zelensky
„War crimes are impossible without propagandists covering them up. I want to tell them one thing: you will respond in the same way as those who order bombs to be dropped on civilians,“ he said in a video statement distributed on Thursday afternoon.
„We will find all the property of propagandists and persons associated with them. We will do everything to have it seized, wherever it is. You love the rich life. Love prosperous countries. You won‘t have it anymore. And this is just the beginning,“ he said, adding that „you will be prosecuted for complicity in war crimes.“
Here‘s what the climate is producing toward any American who is even slightly off-key or mildly questioning the unified script. If you think this is healthy, I think you ought to re-consider that.
In Landmark Bundestag Speech, Israel‘s Knesset Speaker Warns of Breakdown of Democracy
Germany’s descent into Nazism provides an object lesson on the fragility of democracy and the need to preserve it, Knesset speaker Mickey Levy told German lawmakers on Thursday. Levy is the first Knesset speaker to address the German parliament.
Murray Jailing Latest Move to Stop Journalism
It may not be surprising that corporate journalists, keen to hold on to their jobs, are consenting through their silence to this all-out assault on journalism and free speech, with Craig Murray its latest victim, writes Jonathan Cook.
The government threat to YOUR free speech: Misguided Online Safety Bill will be ‚catastrophic‘ for ordinary people‘s social media, says MP David Davis – with tech giants able to ban posts for being ‚harmful‘ that are perfectly legal
The Government‘s new Online Safety Bill will be ‚catastrophic‘ for ordinary people‘s freedom of speech, former minister David Davis warned today.
The Conservative MP said forcing social networks to take down content in Britain they deem unacceptable ‚seems out of Orwell‘s 1984‘.
Mr Davis, 72, slammed the idea Silicon Valley firms could take down posts they think are ‚not politically correct – even though it is legal‘.
OPINION: To end the violence, we must end the occupation
We reject the suggestion that it is only certain kinds of Jews of certain nationalities who abhor the violence of the occupation. Our members include rabbis, youth movement leaders, Jewish professionals and others who are deeply committed to Jewish communal life.
We come from every mainstream denomination and our conviction for justice is informed by our commitment to Judaism.
We care profoundly about our community and feel compelled to actualise the Jewish values by which we have been taught to live; values such as chesed (loving-kindness), tzedek (justice) and pikuach nefesh (the sanctity of each human life).
The free-speech crisis is not a right-wing myth
Too many on what passes for the left today are keen to dismiss the free-speech crisis in universities as a ‘right-wing myth’. They brush off the countless examples of censorship as overhyped. And they ignore concerns about the moral policing of dissenting views.
In short, they effectively deny that a free-speech crisis exists. And they do so by attacking those who are sounding the alarm. As far as these deniers are concerned, the problem is not cancel culture; it is those dishonest myth-makers who are drawing attention to it.
Journalists Start Demanding Substack Censor its Writers: to Bar Critiques of Journalists
This new political battle does not break down along left v. right lines. This is an information war waged by corporate media to silence any competition or dissent.
Why we need Free Speech Champions
Free speech is the central principle of a healthy democracy. It is a vital tool for giving a voice to the voiceless, and for ensuring that everyone gets a say without being shut down. We are lucky to live in a country where we are free to criticise those in power, and where the government can be held to account by a young footballer. We must make the most of this.
Censorship never was a left-wing tactic. Opposing censorship was never the hallmark of right-wing values. And censorship is never aimed at one ideology or the other, but at *dissent* from the ruling class wherever it comes from. Listen to Noam Chomsky:
Read how Chomsky, in 1981, object to the attempts to have a tenured professor in France fired for Holocaust revisionism, because Chomsky knew that that framework, once implanted, would be used against people like him, Edward Said, Howard Zinn, etc.:
I don‘t see much of an „insurrection“ or „armed rebellion“ underway at the moment. However, I do see a massive ongoing corporate censorship purge, as well as the overt criminalization of political speech. Odd
Patriot Act 2, Censorship, And Other Notes From The Edge Of The Narrative Matrix
“We need to stop fascism so let’s give massive sweeping powers to an elite alliance of unelected authoritarians.”
“Well I’m a leftist and I haven’t been banned on social media.”
That’s because the left is politically impotent in our society. Unless this is just a hobby for you, at some point you should plan on the left becoming a threat to the oligarchs and warmongers. What do you think happens then?
Do you really think if the left actually becomes a threat to the status quo the Neera Tandens and Rachel Maddows aren’t going to suddenly discover a reason why you’re dangerous and need to be censored? The only way to be fine with censorship is to plan on never challenging power.
It‘s sorta weird that Twitter does this mass banning of accounts, including, like, Red Scare, and the response from so many people is „Well they were all Nazis.“ Were they? What has Twitter revealed to you guys about the process that they are hiding from the rest of us?
It was a *Democratic-controlled* House sub-committee that just a few months ago issued a lengthy report concluding that FB, Amazon, Google & Apple are *monopolies*. That means competition is impossible. Now Dems are happy that it‘s used for them:
I‘ve been resisting the conclusion that this is Liberals‘ 9/11 because it at first seemed hyperbolic, even though they‘re using the same weapons against their critics (if you question all the new powers they want, it means you love the Terrorists).
But this is Liberals‘ 9/11.
If you‘re a liberal, there‘s no need to reply by saying how happy you are that this is happening, or how justified you think it is. I‘m already well-aware that huge numbers of liberals favor censorship of their adversaries and venerate the power of tech monopolies.
That the ACLU can’t issue a clear, definitive statement about Silicon Valley oligarchical monopolies radically expanding their control over political speech – see if you can figure out what this even means — speaks volumes not only about ACLU but how repressive this moment is:
Freedom of expression fears grow as tough new Ofcom code classes ‚political opinion‘ in its definition of hate speech
(04.01.2021)
Tory MP Iain Duncan Smith said: ‚We are drifting into a totalitarian ‚woke‘ state where nothing can ever be said for fear that somebody will be offended. It‘s madness, and it‘s driven by a small minority. Most people don‘t care.‘
Mother of Julian Assange‘s children says if a British court sends her fiancé to face life in a US jail, this country‘s no longer a safe haven for free speech
But that is what would happen if the UK decides to extradite Julian. It would rewrite the rules of what it is permissible to publish here. Overnight, it would chill free and open debate about abuses by our own government and by many foreign ones, too.
In effect, foreign countries could simply issue an extradition request saying that UK journalists, or Facebook users for that matter, have violated their censorship laws.
Reporters Without Borders and the National Union of Journalists have said that as long as Julian remains in prison facing extradition, the UK is not a safe place for journalists and publishers to work.
The press freedoms we cherish in Britain are meaningless if they can be criminalised and suppressed by regimes in Russia or Ankara or by prosecutors in Alexandria, Virginia.
If Westminster Magistrates‘ Court accepts the US arguments tomorrow, every other country can use them, too. It would place an impossible burden on you, me, everyone, not to violate foreign censorship laws.
It’s Not Section 230 President Trump Hates, It’s the First Amendment
(09.12.2020)
Under Section 230, the only party responsible for unlawful speech online is the person who said it, not the website where they posted it, the app they used to share it, or any other third party.
Citing Failure To Repeal Section 230, Trump Vetoes Military Spending Bill
“Your failure to terminate the very dangerous national security risk of Section 230 will make our intelligence virtually impossible to conduct without everyone knowing what we are doing at every step,” Trump stated in his message to Congress.
“Section 230 facilitates the spread of foreign disinformation online, which is a serious threat to our national security and election integrity,” the president added. “It must be repealed.”
Feindsender
Feindsender (‚Enemy radio station‘) was a term used in Nazi Germany to describe radio stations broadcast by enemies of the German Reich before and during World War II, such as the United Kingdom or the United States. It also referred to radio stations in Germany which broadcast anti-Nazi material. The term has not been in general use since the downfall of the Third Reich.
Anything that poses a threat to the ability of mainstream media corporations and their employees to monopolize discourse and control information — Patreon, Substack, Joe Rogan, WikiLeaks, social media, etc. — they will hate and wage war on to try to either demonize or control.
The left now loathes the working class
Paul Embery, trade unionist, writer and author of Despised: Why the Modern Left Loathes the Working Class, joins spiked’s editor for the latest episode of The Brendan O’Neill Show. They discuss the left’s embrace of woke politics, and its rejection of the working class, national democracy and free speech.
France’s ‘global security’ bill
(23.11.2020) Perfectly in line with the trend of the times – and by consequence, we are sorry to have it observed, with very little inventiveness and innovation – these articles impose a general surveillance for the many and a privileged disclosure for the few, as they provide for ground mass surveillance, air mass surveillance and a ban on documenting police action.
France’s new national security bill could jeopardize freedom of expression
(26.11.2020)
That was the second protest gathering thousands of people that week, despite the country’s health crisis and lockdown due to the covid-19 pandemic. The demonstrations related to a new bill accused of obstructing civil liberties. As critics have argued, the “global security bill,” which received a first-reading adoption by the National Assembly on Nov. 24, jeopardizes the freedom of the press and could herald the introduction of a ubiquitous surveillance system.
So long as he doesn‘t suppress my First Amendment right to speak out against Netanyahu‘s racist and inhumane policies. The Palestinian people deserve equality and justice.
Rashida Tlaib accused of anti-Semitism for reaction to Biden‘s Jewish Sec of State nominee
„Biden names a Jew to his cabinet What’s Rashida’s response?! ‚Welp, as long as that Judische pick doesn’t stop me from focusing my hatred on one country, Israel, then he’s a good Jew!‘ It’s not your 1A right you’re trying to protect but your vile Jew-hatred! That’s ALL yours!“ Americans Against Antisemitism founder Dov Hikind reacted.
„You can just say you‘re worried because he‘s Jewish…“ the Republican Jewish Coalition tweeted.
French bill banning images of police worries activists and journalists
Critics, however, say the ban would essentially censor journalists by outlawing an activity that could be essential to their work. Images documenting police brutality or misconduct could also fall under the rubric of the ban.
#JewsForTrump vehicle convoy passes Trump Tower in Manhattan. #WNM
The procession described in this @nytimes article is NOT the „Jews for Trump“ caravan, which stayed in Brooklyn. The group that engaged in brawls in Times Square had no specific religious affiliation. This needs to be corrected ASAP.
Fights Erupt During ‘Jews for Trump’ Rally in Manhattan
According to the police, the pro-Trump caravan passed through Times Square, where it converged with a group of anti-Trump protesters who had marched from Brooklyn. The cars in the convoy were then blocked by counterprotesters, and some drivers got out of their cars to confront the anti-Trump demonstrators.
Family describes horror as violent maskless rioters throw rocks, attack ‚Jews for Trump‘ convoy
A member of the family told Fox News that the unprovoked attack happened while the family was driving down 5th Ave with the car windows down and Trump flags displayed.
The man, who wished to remain anonymous fearing his family could be targeted, said a car pulled up next to them and unleashed pepper spray into their vehicle.
Thousands of students march with torches in Hungary for academic freedom
The institution, which has nurtured many of Hungary‘s leading directors and filmmakers, has been caught up in a culture war as Prime Minister Viktor Orban‘s government seeks to enforce a conservative shift to end what it sees as the domination of the arts by liberals.
Hundreds of Small Protests Mushroom Across Israel Over ‚Draconian‘ Restrictions
Thousands of anti-government demonstrators took on Thursday to the streets across Israel, protesting the latest measures limiting the right to protest during the country’s second coronavirus lockdown.
Lebanon parliament approves sweeping powers for the army
The state of emergency allows the army to curb free speech, freedom of assembly, and freedom of the press, as well as to enter homes and arrest anyone deemed a security threat.