Category Archives: Freedom

In this opinion post, we hear fromPaula Collio Mndez, an MSc International Relations student at LSE, who argues that the replications of power structures under the ideas of liberty in the case of France, based on a singular notion of modernity, perpetuates colonial power dynamics that disproportionately affect non-white and non-first-world women.

Over the past two decades, Muslim women have faced an increase in the prohibition of the use and persecution of traditional attires from European countries like Germany, Belgium, and Austria. One of the most high-profile and systematic bans is the rulings that France has issued in the name of its principle of secularism, or lacit. These laws are intended to keep the state neutral in religious matters while guaranteeing citizens the right to freely practice their religion in private. But where does this freedom start and end?

The restriction against women wearing headscarves (such as the Hijab, Niqab, Burka, Chador, and Khimar) or recently the Abaya, the long, loose dress worn by some, separates Muslim women as the other within French society. The questioning of this attire is only focused on traditional looking Muslim women a white woman can wear it in the name of fashion without restriction. It is more complex than simply seeing it as freedom or not, because it involves components of discrimination against race, minorities (among many others), and of course, gender.

The questioning of this attire is only focused on traditional looking Muslim women a white woman can wear it in the name of fashion without restriction.

In fact, French President Emmanuel Macron turned to feminist arguments and claimed that this legislation is to help and protect Muslim women, allowing them to live free lives. Authors like Chakravorty Spivakhave a quote that applies specifically to this case: white men saving brown women from brown men that falls into the practices known as white or western feminism. These ideological statements reproduce Western canons of the correct way to be a woman in a modern world that has understood race as gendered, and gender as raced, in particularly different ways for Europeans/whites and colonised/non-white people.

From this perspective, we can question whether being a woman in France under the principle of lacit actually oppresses rather than liberates. A particular notion of womanhood that conforms to liberal feminist ideals is being imposed. This unravels a white saviour complex that makes some white women claim that they have the knowledge and obligation to rescue the Other women, whether these Other women need or want it or not.

We can question whether being a woman in France under the principle of lacit actually oppresses rather than liberates. A particular notion of womanhood that conforms to liberal feminist ideals is being imposed.

Liberal feminism centres on equality in the public sphere between women and men, to be achieved through legal changes. Its primary aim is to enable equal access for women to education, health provision, and the workplace. Issues concerned with the private sphere are less focused upon. Liberal feminists have been critiqued for their heteronormative investment in, and lack of challenge to, patriarchy as an institution. This liberal or commonly (and pejoratively) named white feminism is characterised by its focus on the experiences and struggles of white women. It neglects the distinct forms of oppression encountered by women from ethnic minority backgrounds, or those lacking other privileges, without considering the intersectionality in the matter. Under these premises, the core idea of feminism that the personal is political does not apply.

The replications of power structures under the ideas of liberty in the case of France, based on a singular notion of modernity, perpetuates colonial power dynamics that disproportionately affect non-white and non-first-world women. The exclusion of non-white women from emancipatory movements is a paradox of freedom, where every decision that falls outside of the parameters of Western standards is deemed incorrect and subject to regulation, particularly impacting Muslim women. Ideas from authors like Sara Salemraise a valuable critique of mainstream feminism, noting its tendency to overlook the significance of religion while placing excessive emphasis on liberal notions of decision-making. There is a common oversimplification that views secularisation as modern, and religion as traditional, negative, and obsolete, which can undermine the nuanced experiences of religious women.

There is a common oversimplification that views secularisation as modern, and religion as traditional, negative, and obsolete, which can undermine the nuanced experiences of religious women.

In Maheen Haqs words, this type of feminism intersects deeply with imperialism and Western saviourism, leading to the hijacking of Muslim womens voices when they speak out against patriarchy within their own cultures. Their narratives and activism are exploited by governments who manipulate the issue of gender injustice in the name of secularism and liberty, just like the case of France. As Haq states, under this notion of secularism a woman could only have her revolutionary spirit and be actively resisting the oppressing power if she took off her veil and started to dress like her oppressors. Their veil is not just a religious practice now, it is a symbol against cultural imperialism. Unfortunately, secularism is instrumentalised to establish complete control over a religious minority and further push them to the margins of society where they hold no social or political power. No other religious group in France is as targeted as the Muslim community.

Their veil is not just a religious practice now, it is a symbol against cultural imperialism.

We should not overlook that in parts of the world the veil is synonymous with oppression. At the same time, the intersectionality of factors complexifies and makes it impossible to play a totalitarian game of worth without understanding the reasons behind the motives of the women who wear it. Imposing a single truth keeps perpetuating colonial and western logics directly associated with white feminist saviours.

Banner photo from ContinentFlickrCC by 2.0 DEED (cropped)

This article represents the views of the author,and not the position of the Department of International Relations, nor of the London School of Economics.

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'The veils and the women': Can we really advocate for freedom when we are banning them? - LSE Home

Freedom had to endure a seven-game losing streak, but that streak is no more. They blew past the Brandon Eagles 17-7. That result was just more of the same for these two, as Freedom also won the last time the pair played back in March of 2023.

The team relied heavily on Bryce Nanns, who went 2-for-4 with three runs, four RBI, and a triple. Another player making a difference was Connor Cress, who went 1-for-3 with a triple, two RBI, and a run.

On Brandon's side, Charles Rodriguez made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and scored three runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3. The team also got some help courtesy of Aidan Junttila, who went 1-for-2 with three RBI and a double.

Freedom's victory ended a six-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 2-8. As for Brandon, their loss was their 11th straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 1-9.

Freedom will be playing in front of their home fans against Strawberry Crest at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. The last four games Strawberry Crest has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one. As for Brandon, they are on the road again on Thursday to play Lennard at 7:00 p.m. Lennard's pitching crew has only allowed 3.6 runs per game this season, so Brandon's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps

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Freedom wins going away against Brandon - MaxPreps

By Clara Snyder | Reporter

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is currently fighting extradition the process of being handed over to the jurisdiction of a foreign state in which a crime was committed from a UK prison to be tried in the US for espionage and spying. If he is convicted, press freedom will take a detrimental blow in America, which will have a ripple effect across the globe.

Founding the organization in 2006 as an intelligence agency for the people, Assange created a name for himself with WikiLeaks by publishing countless classified documents and US military secrets, making him the worlds most infamous hacker-publisher activist.

The conversation about prosecuting the WikiLeaks founder for these actions is not a new one. The Obama administration decided not to indict Assange for publishing the Afghanistan and Iraq war logs, recognizing that a case against WikiLeaks also meant a case against the news organizations that published the information.

The Trump administration had different feelings about the situation, indicting Assange in 2019. The change of heart, in my opinion, had everything to do with former CIA director Mike Pompeos personal animosity toward Assange for exposing CIA hacking tools through the Vault 7 leaks.

Embarrassed and taking the leaks personally, Pompeo sought revenge through a CIA campaign to kidnap and possibly assassinate Assange. This plot remained secret until 2021, when Yahoo News published The CIAs war on WikiLeaks, compiling information from over 30 unnamed former US intelligence sources on the agencys plans to silence the leaker.

Worried that kidnapping him without legal basis would impact the US ability to charge Assange, the Justice Department was urged to quickly draft an indictment against him in case the CIA moved forward with its kidnapping plans. With this evidence, it is reasonable to assume that the political motivations behind the indictment will pose a clear threat to ensuring Assanges right to a fair trial in the US.

Assange as an individual is flawed, but his role in framing the understanding Americans now have of their countrys foreign affairs is invaluable. Particularly in the cases of Iraq and Afghanistan, the picture we now have of those conflicts realities is a direct result of Assanges pursuit to share true information he believed the public deserved to know.

Recently, discussions on whether Assange is a journalist and can be protected as one have been circulating in the journalism community. The top of the site for the Free Julian Assange Movement reads, Journalism is not a crime.

But is Assange a journalist?

Although the digital age has smeared the defining boundaries of who can be called a journalist, Assange should be protected as one because his actions are journalistic.

Journalists get information the public needs when it needs it. They act as watchdogs for the state. Journalists dont take the story provided by those in power at face value. They dig to affirm its truth or prove its falsity.

The original press baron, Lord Northcliffe, said it best: News is something someone somewhere doesnt want printed. Everything else is advertising.

Even if we cant agree that Assange is a journalist, and even if we cant agree on support for him as a person, it is imperative that we agree on the principles of the situation. Prosecuting someone whose actions align with the daily practices and goals of journalism would be an attack on the First Amendment freedom that allows the press to give the public the news it needs.

Press freedom in America has been declining in recent years, becoming a growing cause for concern among journalists. If Assange is convicted of the charges against him in the US, press freedom will be impacted in three major ways:

1. The arguments used in the case lay the groundwork for other journalists to be prosecuted on similar grounds. This threatens the protection of journalists under the First Amendment, and it criminalizes common reporting tactics used by investigative journalists.

2. A precedent will be set that anyone who reveals information the government doesnt want revealed is an enemy of the state and can be treated as such in a court of law, threatening Americas press freedom and paving the way for government suppression of media.

3. Onlooking authoritarian leaders have an example of the US imprisoning an individual for publishing information critical of the government, which they can use to back future efforts to imprison journalists they see as a threat to their regime.

Assanges case is a reminder to us all that being American does not make us immune to democratic injustice. Freedom isnt a guarantee we can overlook; it is a luxury we must protect.

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Protect the founder of WikiLeaks for the future of press freedom - The Baylor Lariat

Formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America

Washington, DC Today, Senate Democrats confirmed President Bidens nomination of Judge Nicole Berner to serve on the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Berner previously served as general counsel at the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and advanced reproductive freedom as an attorney for Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

Reproductive Freedom for All President and CEO Mini Timmaraju released the following statement in response:

Judge Nicole Berner is a sharp, fair legal expert. She understands that reproductive freedom is a fundamental right, and we applaud Senate Democrats for confirming her to the Fourth Circuit. Ensuring that fair-minded judges sit on federal courts is essential to protecting our rights and democracy, and were grateful to the Biden-Harris administration for making nominations that recognize this.

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For over 50 years, Reproductive Freedom for All (formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America) has fought to protect and advance reproductive freedom at the federal and state levelsincluding access to abortion care, birth control, pregnancy and post-partum care, and paid family leavefor everybody. Reproductive Freedom for All is powered by its more than 4 million members from every state and congressional district in the country, representing the 8 in 10 Americans who support legal abortion.

Press Release National Mar 18, 2024

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Applauds Confirmation of Judge Nicole Berner to Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals - Reproductive Freedom for All - Reproductive Freedom for All

On Monday, March 4, 2024, CITP and DeCenter co-hosted a workshop on the topic of decentralized social media. The invite-only workshop brought together a diverse group of leaders and innovators from the growing decentralized social media sphere, including scholars, engineers, and administrators who actively study, build, and manage decentralized social networks such as Mastodon, Bluesky, and Nostr. The workshop included a keynote on decentralized online governance by Nathan Schneider, a panel on content moderation led by Aaron Shaw, and multiple unconference breakout sessions ranging from Comparative Analysis of Protocols to Funding Community-owned Decentralized Social Media, where participants split into different tables to discuss specific topics of interest. Researchers and practitioners came together to explore the possibilities of a social media landscape that is collectively owned and governed. The discussions articulated the existing challenges and identified potential solutions to foster a more democratic, secure, and user-centric future for social media.

Here, we summarize a few key takeaways and questions raised from the discussions around five emergent themes:

1. Community and Platform Governance

Discussion in both the keynote and unconference sessions revolved around the governance of online communities in decentralized social media platforms. Participants identified the need for flexible governance structures to accommodate the diverse needs and functionalities of different services within the decentralized social media ecosystem. This flexibility should allow for experimentation and democratic rule-making, ensuring that governance adapts to changing needs and innovations. Also, participants noted the problematic power dynamics on platforms like Nextdoor, leading to segregation and a lack of true local engagement. The discussion highlighted the sparse network issue and the lack of personalized content, contributing to a weakened sense of community.

The discussion also included potential solutions, such as stewardship-first approaches that emphasize community values and collective responsibility over technological solutions. Drawing inspiration from existing governance models of institutions such as W3C and ALA, conversations emerged around the pros and cons of institutionalization. Participants recognized the drawbacks, such as burnout and potential obsolescence, while also exploring the concept of intentionally ephemeral institutions or coalitions. This involved discussing planned spin-down cycles, wherein platforms and associated assets are provisioned and decommissioned within fixed time intervals, such as every five years.

Participants also raised open questions about the practice of governing online communities in decentralized social media:

2. Platform Trust and Safety

Participants highlighted the importance of developing adaptable trust and safety measures for decentralized social media, aiming to avoid market dominance by a few platforms to maintain true decentralization. They also delved into data governance issues, emphasizing the need for ethical data use that respects user consent and privacy, amidst the challenges posed by evolving social norms and legal standards. These discussions underscored the need for transparent and accountable data governance mechanisms that balance privacy protection with beneficial data use, advocating for governance models that consider the interests of tech developers, users, and regulators to ensure responsible data handling.

Decentralized social media has opened up opportunities for developing third-party curation and moderation services/microservices, potentially outsourced for trust and safety management. Nonetheless, privacy and sustainability present significant challenges in this context.

Here are some open questions that emerged from the discussion focus on the practical implementation of the ideals in decentralized systems:

3. Content Moderation

Content moderation in decentralized social media platforms differs from traditional centralized platforms, presenting opportunities and challenges.

Among these, the time and labor required for moderation stand out, highlighting the need for automated tools that support community-centric operations. Furthermore, the decentralized nature of these platforms often results in a lack of institutional support, making information sharing and exchange problematic in some instances.

Some specific issues, such as CSAM (child sexual abuse material) and the use of generative AI, were salient topics during the workshop. The CSAM discussion centered around the issue of how to scan for CSAM, raising critical questions about coordinating scanning tools with platform protocols and whether single or multiple entities should provide these tools. For generative AI, participants posed concerns regarding misinformation and privacy violations while recognizing some positive applications for using generative AI to enhance customization and personalization of content moderation. There was also some skepticism about the severity of generative AI-enabled misinformation and its potential harms; for example, participants questioned whether text-to-image generative models have made things much worse when products like Photoshop have already existed for a long time and could be used to propagate similar misinformation.

Additionally, there was a strong advocacy for more effective content curation to boost community engagement. Participants critiqued the For You feed approach for leading to context collapse and diminishing meaningful community interactions, expressing interest in exploring solutions to these issues on decentralized social media platforms.

Some of the open questions include:

4. Artifact Design and Development

In the realm of decentralized social media, protocols play a crucial role, with various ecosystems developing around them. Popular protocols in decentralized social media include ActivityPub (e.g., Mastodon), AT Protocol (e.g., Bluesky), and Nostr (e.g., Damus). During the workshop, participants from industry and academia brought up topics about protocol design and development. Participants were interested in misalignments between protocol designers and users. Designers and engineers shared insights and lessons learned, especially about the mechanism of data deletion in these protocols. For instance, BlueSky designed its protocol to make data unremovable, but it turned out that users preferred the content to be removable.

A pivotal question emerged in the discussion: Will a single protocol eventually dominate, or will there be interoperable bridges between different protocols? While some bridges currently exist to facilitate coordination, the variation in content moderation policies across platforms complicates the moderation of content that spans multiple protocols. Participants also noticed some tensions between maintaining a decentralized ethos and the practicalities of swift decision-making in protocol development. Thus, Nostr introduces a model of nominated veto power to balance diverse developer inputs and maintain protocol integrity. Moreover, inclusivity and diversity in protocol development were highlighted as challenges, emphasizing the need for broader participation beyond the developer-centric community. For example, how might individuals without a coding background influence protocol development? It remains a challenge to build for minority users when the majority of the developers are not members of said minority groups.

Participants also delved into issues of identification, authentication, and authorization, discussing the pros and cons of existing implementations such as WebFinger for identification, OAuth2.0 for authentication, and blocklist for authorization. User experience (UX) design was another area of focus, with conversations about meeting the unaddressed needs of users in decentralized environments and exploring potential solutions through design innovations.

Yet, some questions remained open for further debate, including:

5. Funding

Discussions on funding decentralized social media platforms focused on creating sustainable models that support both user engagement and platform maintenance without compromising the ethos of decentralization. A central theme was the exploration of innovative monetization strategies that go beyond traditional advertising or donation models, including transactional systems that offer fair compensation to creators (e.g., through digital assets or tiered access similar to Patreon models). Participants debated the integration of cryptocurrency to facilitate decentralized payments, despite concerns about user accessibility and maintaining true decentralization. The conversation also addressed the practicality of ads, with a focus on designing accountable advertising models that users would feel comfortable with and the potential for a dedicated ad layer in decentralized protocols. Furthermore, the discussion highlighted various funding sources, from community-driven micro-payments and membership fees to leveraging smart contracts for sponsorships. The aim was to ensure platform sustainability, balancing the need for financial support with the desire to keep platforms accessible and true to decentralized principles, while also considering the human costs involved in maintaining these ecosystems.

Some of the open questions include:

In summary, the workshop covered topics that are frequently discussed in relation to centralized social media platforms, but present new challenges and opportunities in decentralized settingsfor example, online governance, trust and safety, and content moderation. While pointing out the harms stemming from the current social media landscape, participants maintained a hopeful outlook on the potential design and future of decentralized social media. Additionally, it highlighted unique issues specific to decentralized environments, like protocol development and innovative funding models. We hope the discussions and questions from this workshop will chart out new paths for practitioners and researchers alike to explore the increasingly rich landscape of decentralized social media.

This report was prepared by Yuhan Liu (Princeton University), Varun Rao (Princeton University), Owen Zhang (Princeton University), Ryan Liu (Princeton University), Priyanka Nanayakkara (Northwestern University), Zilin Ma (Harvard University), Kevin Feng (University of Washington), Zhilin Zhang (Oxford University)

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Five Themes Discussed at Princeton's Workshop on Decentralized Social Media - Freedom to Tinker

Meghan Markle dropped her surprise new project on a sentimental calendar date.

On Thursday, the Duchess of Sussex, 42, launched a new website and Instagram page for what appears to be a lifestyle brand called American Riviera Orchard, marking her return to social media with the new venture. The update came on a poignant date the fourth anniversary of what Prince Harry dubbed the "freedom flight" from Canada to Los Angeles in their Netflix docuseries Harry & Meghan.

On March 14, 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, along with their son Prince Archie and Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, flew from Vancouver Island, where they were staying as the couple transitioned out of their roles as senior working royals in the U.K., to L.A.

Viewers got a glimpse of the video that Prince Harry, 39, recorded on the plane ride shared in Harry & Meghan, where he said, "We are on the freedom flight. We are leaving Canada and we are headed to Los Angeles. Shh!"

Harry panned the camera to show "Grandma" Doria, their dog Pula and Meghan holding Archie, who was then 10 months old.

Andrew Chin/Getty

"This is the current situation thanks to another amazing friend who weve never met but who believes in us and wants to help," Prince Harry said in the video, referring to director Tyler Perry, who offered his Beverly Hills home to the family as they got settled in the U.S.

Perry spoke about his friendship with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in the Harry & Meghan docuseries, where he sweetly revealed that the couple later asked him to be the godfather to their daughter Princess Lilibet, who was born in California in 2021.

Meghan and Prince Harry eventually settled in Montecito after relocating to her home state four years ago, and California is a key theme in the Duchess of Sussex's new venture. American Riviera Orchard's name itself seems to nod to Santa Barbara, the California town where the Sussex family lives. Travel & Leisure reported that Santa Barbara has been known as the "American Riviera" for over 100 years "because of its temperate climate and lush landscapes, as well as its robust food and wine culture."

American Riviera Orchard/Instagram

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American Riviera Orchard's logo also features Montecito, the name of the neighborhood where they currently reside.

The project's first Instagram Story shows Meghan picking flowers and cooking in a kitchen to the tune of "I Wish You Love" by Nancy Wilson, and the general website features a waitlist signup to stay looped about "products, availability and updates," promising something similar to The Tig, the lifestyle blog Meghan created in 2014 before shutting it down in 2017 during her courtship with Prince Harry.

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Meghan Markle Unveils New Brand on Poignant Date with Prince Harry - PEOPLE

BETHLEHEM, Pa - While the high school football season is still off in the distance for 2024, one local school is already busy scheduling non-conference games. Freedom High School is taking advantage of it's first non-conference schedule taking on Torrey Pines of out California.

The Patriots will travel to Poly Prep High in Brooklyn, New York on August 23rd to take on the San Diego based program.

California is very similar to Pennsylvania when it comes to high school football, one of the hotbeds in the country producing top-level talent each year. The Falcons compete at the highest level within the state, Division I.

In 2023 the Falcons finished with a 7-4 record, and fell in the second round of their Divisional playoffs.

This upcoming season will mark the first time since 2014-15 when the EPC formed that member schools have the ability to schedule non-conference games.

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Freedom set to open the 2024 season against Torrey Pines (CA) - 69News WFMZ-TV

December 28, 2023 by Kenny Graves

Since the first week of August, a Texas A and M task force has been working on multiple issues related to academic freedom. Decembers meeting of the A and M faculty senate was dominated by a task force update. One of the task force members, Heather Lench of the faculty affairs office, said one of the outcomes is creating an academic freedom task force.

The elected council could review allegations of what is said or presented by faculty and staff.

The council could also provide advice to the university administration about academic freedom.

In an online message posted by university president Mark Welsh before Christmas break, he wrote that the academic freedom council would be composed of faculty, at least one librarian, and one research scientists.

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Texas A&M Creating A Task Force To Work On Academic Freedom - Navasota News

JUSTIN EPLEY Sports editor

Down 11 points after three quarters, the Freedom girls basketball teams hopes for advancing to the championship game of its home holiday tournament looked slim.

But the Lady Patriots put together a 27-15 fourth quarter to rally past Asheville School 63-62 in Wednesday evenings semifinal game in Morganton, sending FHS into the first-place game versus Concord Academy at 7 p.m. on Thursday evening.

For Freedom (8-4), the comeback started with a Sydnie Demiter 3-pointer just 9 seconds into the fourth quarter and was followed by her 2 for 2 trip to the foul line. Junior Peyton Caldwell then went on a tear for the hosts, scoring the teams next 11 points, including going 5 for 5 at the foul line, to bring the Lady Patriots within 56-52 with 3:45 left to play.

Three straight points from Ava Whitaker, followed by two more free throws from Caldwell, tied the game with 1:43 left to play. Another pair of makes from the stripe by Caldwell gave Freedom a 59-57 lead with 1:21 left, its first lead since late in the second quarter.

The Lady Blues retook the lead, 60-59, with 59 seconds left, but Cheryllana Cunninghams 3 with 51 ticks left on the clock made it 62-60. Another tie came on an Asheville School steal-and-score with 37 seconds left.

Caldwell set the final margin with a free throw with 13 seconds left before both teams proceeded to miss a pair of free throws in the final 9 seconds, and the Lady Blues turned over the ball on an inbound pass with 0.3 seconds left.

Caldwell (25 points) and Demiter (16) led the way for FHS. The rest of the hosts scoring came from Ava Cooke (seven points), Cunningham (five), Whitaker (five), Haven Gladden (four) and Ava Whisnant (one).

Asheville School, which slotted into Thursday afternoons third-place game versus Hibriten, was led by Ryann Hernandez (27 points), Alisha Watkins (15) and Maya Robinson (11).

Both teams encountered foul trouble late as the Lady Blues lost Robinson, Sarah Cutshaw and Carmen Perez Aparicio and Whitaker fouled out for the Lady Patriots.

The Lady Wildcats (4-7) collected their first win of the tournament with a consolation bracket victory in mercy-rule fashion over the Lady Stars on Wednesday morning in Morganton, leading 21-6 after a quarter, 42-14 at halftime and 62-19 after three periods.

A trio of players finished in double figures for Draughn. They included Zoe Rector (18 points), Kenley Berry (16) and Jenna Abernathy (14). The rest of DHS offensive output came from Emilee Cook (seven points), Rylee Woody (six), Ambria Blalock (two) and Jacey Davis (two).

It was Rising Stars Preps first game of the tournament after travel problems caused them to forfeit Tuesday evenings first-round game versus host Freedom. With the loss, the Lady Stars fell into Thursday mornings seventh-place game against T.C. Roberson.

The Patriots (6-6) gradually distanced themselves from the Wildcats (3-8) in Wednesday nights semifinal matchup in Morganton, using a 27-14 third period to pull away for good after leading 15-11 and 31-27 after the first two periods.

The result sent Freedom into Thursday nights championship game versus West Caldwell and Draughn into Thursday evenings third-place game versus T.C. Roberson.

It was still just a five-point lead, 43-38, with 2:15 left in the third before FHS caught fire at the end of the frame. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Braxton King suddenly made it a double-digit game, and a basket by Jaiveon Belin and back-to-back scores by Kris Creekmore made it 55-39. Another 3, this one by Amare Williams, let the Patriots end the quarter with a 58-41 lead.

Williams (two) and King combined for three more 3s in the first three minutes of the fourth frame to put the hosts up 22 points, 67-45, and they maintained things from there.

Kobe Johnson (15 points), who did much of the earlier damage, and King (14) finished in double figures for Freedom. Williams (nine points), Gavin McNaughton (eight), Elijah Davidson (seven), Belin (four), Creekmore (four), King Johnson (four), Jonah Griggs (two), Kayden Lytle (two) and Max Taylor (two) filled out the rest of the scoresheet.

DAndre Moore (26 points) and Eli Tillery (13) led the way for DHS. Also scoring for the Wildcats were Ethan Miller (six points), Blaine Blackwell (two), Connor Houston (two) and Blake McElyea (one).

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H.S. BASKETBALL ROUNDUP: Freedom teams advance to Christmas tournament title games - Morganton News Herald

Summary

Sound of Freedom premiered in July 2023 and was a surprise hit at the box office. But in the months following its release, the movie, the people behind the making of it, and its inspiration have been at the center of numerous controversies. The 2023 Angel Studios crime thriller film is based on Tim Ballard's work to combat sex trafficking and revolves around one of his missions to save a girl from a trafficking ring in Columbia. However, the truth behind the movie (and Ballard's accounts of his missions) has been questioned by many after its premiere.

The cast of Sound of Freedom featured Jim Caviezel as Tim Ballard, Mira Sorvino as Katherine Ballard, Bill Camp as Vampiro, Eduardo Verstegui as Paulo Delgado, Javier Godino as Jorge, Jos Ziga as Roberto Aguilar, Kurt Fuller as Frost, Gary Basaraba as Earl Buchanan, and Gerardo Taracena as El Alacrn. They came together to adapt Ballard's tale for the big screen with a script written by Alejandro Monteverde (also the director) and Rod Barr. Despite its shocking success (the movie grossed $250.3 million against a $14.5 million budget), there is much debate concerning the story's validity, especially since Ballard and others have been accused of several controversial actions.

Shortly after the release of Sound of Freedom on July 4, 2023, Operation Underground Railroad the Utah-based anti-sex trafficking organization that Tim Ballard founded in 2013 announced that Ballard had left the nonprofit in June 2023. He was the CEO, and given his recent increase in publicity due to the film about his life, it was surprising to learn that Ballard was no longer attached to Operation Underground Railroad. However, in the weeks following the news about his disassociation with the organization, it became clear why Ballard parted ways with the nonprofit (which has also been at the center of controversy regarding its methods, funding, and alleged false claims).

According to Vice, Operation Underground Railroad performed an investigation into sexual misconduct claims from seven women within the organization concerning Ballard's behavior. Following the investigation, Ballard resigned, and Operation Underground Railroad released a statement that read:

"O.U.R. is dedicated to combatting sexual abuse, and does not tolerate sexual harassment or discrimination by anyone in its organization. O.U.R. retained an independent law firm to conduct a comprehensive investigation of all relevant allegations, and O.U.R. continues to assess and improve the governance of the organization and protocols for its operations."

As mentioned above, some experts allege that Sound of Freedom is primarily a work of fiction rather than a true tale of Tim Ballard's mission to save children from sex trafficking in Columbia. They claimed that the 2023 crime thriller's depiction of child sex trafficking and how the government combats it was inaccurate. These statements led to others revisiting investigations into Operation Underground Railroad and how truthful the organization had been when reporting figures concerning how many people its members had saved from sex trafficking. Plus, the nonprofit has been criticized for its methods. As a result, the truthfulness behind the movie has been widely debated.

In the months following the release of Sound of Freedom, NBC News reported that Tim Ballard was "very seriously considering" running for a vacant United States Senate seat in 2024. Mitt Romney, the junior Senator from Utah, previously announced that he would not run for reelection and would retire following the conclusion of his current term in 2025. So, Ballard was interested in running for Romney's Utah seat, but that might change due to recent events.

After the sexual misconduct allegations concerning Tim Ballard's behavior within Operation Underground Railroad became public, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints excommunicated him. It also didn't help that Ballard had previously claimed that M. Russell Ballard, the president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Mormon Church until his death in November 2023, approved of his work with his nonprofit. The Church released a personal rebuke of Ballard that stated:

"[We] never endorsed, supported or represented OUR, Tim Ballard or any projects associated with them. Once it became clear Tim Ballard had betrayed their friendship, through the unauthorized use of President Ballard's name for Tim Ballard's personal advantage and activity regarded as morally unacceptable, President Ballard withdrew his association."

In October 2023, five anonymous women filed a sexual assault lawsuit against Tim Ballard that alleged the former CEO of Operation Underground Railroad had manipulated and abused them during undercover missions. The lawsuit also claims that the higher-ups at Operation Underground Railroad were aware of the misconduct and did nothing about it. Quickly after the lawsuit became public, a sixth woman came forward and filed her own lawsuit. The Slate article goes into more detail concerning the troubling allegations, but most of them revolve around Ballard taking advantage of women while they were undercover as sex trafficking victims.

Tim Ballard wasn't the only figure associated with Sound of Freedom who has been the subject of sexual misconduct investigations Paul Hutchinson, a producer and Operation Underground Railroad employee, was caught on camera groping the breasts of an underage girl during a mission in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, according to Newsweek. Hutchinson claimed that the sex trafficking victim was over 18 years old at the time, but the FBI's investigation report suggests otherwise. Nevertheless, Mexican authorities did not press charges against Hutchinson.

Fabian Marta, one of the patrons who donated to Sound of Freedom, was arrested in St. Louis, Missouri, and charged with accessory to child kidnapping a few weeks after the 2023 film's premiere. A few months following his arrest, though, the Missouri Circuit Court dropped the charges and released a statement that revealed there was no sufficient evidence to prove Marta was guilty. Despite his release, the arrest certainly didn't quiet the controversies surrounding the movie.

Following the release of the 2023 crime thriller, Eduardo Verstegui, the executive producer and star of the film, announced he had filed the paperwork to run as an independent candidate for the upcoming presidential race in Mexico. Verstegui played Paulo Delgado, a wealthy man who funded Ballard's mission in the movie, and now he wants to be the President of Mexico. However, he has not been immune to the controversies surrounding Sound of Freedom. Verstegui previously posted a video on social media that seemingly threatened the LGBTQ+ community and climate change activists, which led to much criticism.

Sound of Freedom is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.

Source: Vice, NBC News, Slate, Newsweek

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Sound Of Freedom: All Updates & Controversies Since It Released - Screen Rant