Category Archives: Censorship

A New Jersey high school teacher has been suspended after pro-President Trump messages were Photoshopped and edited out of the schools official yearbook.

Wall Township Public Schools Superintendent Cheryl Dyer said Monday that a teacher had been suspended pending further disciplinary action over the reported anti-Trump censorship at Wall Township High School, the Asbury Park Press reported.

The action comes after three students reported that their pro-Trump messages were censored by school officials. Grant Berardo, a junior, said a campaign slogan reading, TRUMP: Make America Great Again, was digitally editied from the shirt he wore in his class portrait.

It was Photoshopped, Grant told the Asbury Park Press. I sent it to my mom and dad, just like, You wont believe this. I was just overall disappointed.

A photo of Wyatt Debrovich-Fago, a junior, was cropped so that the Trump campaign logo on his sweater vest wasnt visible, CNN reported. Wyatts sister, Montana, was also left without an accompanying quote for her photo as class president when her quote from Mr. Trump didnt make it to print.

I want to know who thought it was OK to do this, their mother, Janet Dobrovich-Fago, told CNN. I want the school to seek disciplinary action and to be held accountable.

Ms. Dyer said the high school administration does not condone any censorship of political views on the part of our students.

In a statement Sunday night, Wall school board President Allison Connolly said the board found the allegations of wrongdoing disturbing and take the charge that students have had their free speech rights infringed upon very seriously, the Asbury Park Press reported.

Ms. Dyer did not name the suspended teacher, but the schools yearbook instructor is listed as Susan Parsons. Ms. Parsons told the New York Post: We have never made any action against any political party.

When asked if she knew who censored the messages, she said, Im going to hang up, the Post reported.

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N.J. teacher suspended over yearbook censorship of pro-Trump ... - Washington Times

Thought policing is alive and well in the new media as social justice activists ramp up their crusade to silence and de-platform wrongthinkers from producing content within their medium, citing issues as nebulous as cyberviolence as reasons to censor those who oppose progressive ideology.

Following the explosion of outrage against an independent game developer who once expressed views critical of feminism in the video game industry, outrage warriors are now calling for the industry to enact strict rules against hiring and associating with developers whose views do not align with feminist orthodoxy. The target of their ire, Tim Soret, is producing a game called The Last Night, which went viral at E3 2017 after its reveal.

As developers, collaborators, publishers we have to vet those we work with, wrote Maya Felix Kramer, a queer activist and PR person in the indie game scene.

Kramer, who lists they/them pronouns in her bio and sits on the board for Feminist Frequency, and manages Fez developer Polytron, has worked withZoe Quinn, Christine Love, and numerous other large personalities in the gaming scene. Her words have been magnified and re-tweeted by hundreds of game developers and high-profile game journalists.

If that sounds too bleak, youre in a position of privilege, continued Kramer. We have to make our entities, companies, and studios have public policies and then hold our collaborators to those policies. We have to.

Referencing Soret, who had a good reputation prior to Zoe Quinns call to arms against him, Kramer wrote: We can no longer afford to say we didnt know or they seem nice many people havent had this luxury in a long time. Welcome to 2017.

Among many others, game designer Jennifer Scheurle echoed Kramers call with a tweet of her own.

Essentially calling for a blacklist or the creation of a sort of Games Code Authority against developers guilty of wrongthink, Kramer and her supporters are outraged by game developers and products that do not partake in their crusade for social justice.

I would urge those who want to see the world grow and progress to make sure they align themselves only with people who share those dreams, wrote Kramer.

Censoring media to fit a narrative is an impediment to creative expression. As it was with comic books and the Comics Code Authority in the 1950s, history shows that institutionalizing rules and forcing compliance for acceptable or prohibited content only condemns a creative medium to rot in the ghetto of hollow art.

Ian Miles Cheong is a journalist and outspoken media critic. You can reach him through social media at@stillgray on Twitterand onFacebook.

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Feminists and Social Justice Activists Call for Video Game Developer Censorship Blacklist - Heat Street

Two way street.

Censoring the internet is as difficult as it is futile, and Russian internetusers have convincingly demonstrated this to the government this month by turningits website-blocking system against itself.

During President Vladimir Putin's third term, which began in 2012, Russia has significantly stepped up attempts to purge the internet of "extremist" views. But the Kremlindoesn't havean equivalent of China's "Great Firewall," whichcontrols the internet through the gateways between the nationalsegment and the rest of the global network. Instead, internet providers are required to block the sites on theblacklistof the regulator agency Roskomnadzor.

Internet providers are not legally required touse a specific blocking method--such as deep packet inspection which analyzes data that passes through the internet for undesirable elements-- so many of them, including large cellular operators, merely block any IP addresses linked toa banned web address. In recent days, this peculiarity of the Russian system has led to an effective anarchic protest against censorship.

Instructionshave spread on social networks on how to block virtually any site. First, turnthe blacklist intoa shopping list, and buy up or re-register domains that are no longer in use. Then, link those sites to government IP addresses to trigger anautomatic blocking. It worked spectacularly well.The nationalcellular operator BeeLine, for example, promptly shut down access to many sites, including bank payment serversand pro-Kremlin media outlets such as Life.ru and NTV.ru. Even Roskomnadzor, the keeper of the blacklist, ended up blacklisted. According to Alexander Litreev, a St. Petersburg developer who runs a cybersecurity channel on the Telegram messenger, more than 30 percent of Russian users were at some point affected by the blockages.

This presented a problem for Roskomnadzor, but not for the obvious reason that bank transactions weren't going through for many people.To address complaints, the censorship agency merely put out a press releaseblaming providers and saying it would all be fine if Roskomnadzor could dictate the blocking method. The real problem was that Putin's annual "direct line" with voters -- a major event with questions collected through the internet and the resulting multi-hour marathon broadcast online as well as on TV --was scheduled for June 15, and the owners of blacklisted domains had the power to block it.

So at first, Roskomnadzor's regional agencies sent out to providers a whitelist of more than 2,000 domains that were not to be blocked even if they were linked to a banned domain. Gov.ru and Kremlin.ru, the domains for the government and the presidential office, were at the top of the list. It also included all the variations of "Google," making it possible to register a site like BlowUp.Google.AllahAkbar.org and avoid being blocked. It wasn't a great solution, especially since providers weren't obliged by law to implement the whitelist, and most wouldn't bother merely to avoid the hassle of deactivating it once it was, inevitably, recalled.

OnJune 9, the censorship agency came up with a better solution. It sent out a letter to providers, saying that up until June 16 -- the day after the Putin event -- they were to block only the specific IP addresses on the blacklist and not the ones to which traffic from them was redirected. It promised not to penalize providers for softening censorship in this way.

The censors will eventually solve this particular problem, perhaps by weeding out inactive domains from the blacklist so it won't be as easy to buy them, perhaps by pushing through legislation that would give them more power to tell providers what blocking technology to use. Last week, a bill was also introduced in the Russian parliament that would limit the use ofanonymizing software to bypass the blacklist. After all, since Putin's re-election in 2012, the number of Russian users of the anonymizing Tor network has grown from some 20,000 a day to more than 200,000.

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But the bans are a game of whack-a-mole. Having tasted relative internet freedom, Russia is less accepting of censorship than, say, China. As the whole world knows now, it also has a large, inventive hacker community that doesn't have much respect for restrictions, foreign or homegrown. Exploiting the Roskomnadzor flaw didn't require any hacking expertise, but if it's required as the censorship grows tighter and more sophisticated, it will be applied.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

To contact the author of this story: Leonid Bershidsky at lbershidsky@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mike Nizza at mnizza3@bloomberg.net

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How the Russian Internet Censor Banned Itself - Bloomberg

After a drive to the Berkeley Carteret, Collin and Deanna get settled in before the dinner and dancing start. Deanna Carraher, who has Down Syndrome and is going to her Freehold Twp. prom with Collin Bitsko, a former football and lacrosse standout who now plays lacrosse in college. (Photo: Peter Ackerman)Buy Photo

It's been hot hot hot this week, so here aresome of the hottest trending school stories around the Jersey Shore.

Censorship of a pro-Trump T-shirt?

The lesson in Wall High School is that if you don't like a political statement in a student's yearbook photo, don't Photoshop it away. Now a teacher is suspended and school administrators are seeking answers.

Don't miss this story, which went viral on Monday after news organizations across the nation picked it up and ran with it.

A prom story for a girl with Down syndrome

Freehold Township senior Deanna Carraher has Down syndrome and needed a prom date. Collin Bitsko is a lacrosse star who fulfilled her wishes. For theinclusive millennial generation, their pairing is natural.

"People now are willing to go the extra mile to make everyone feel included, and thats great," said a friend of Deanna's.

A Trenton intervention

The state Assembly passed a bill that wouldgive the Monmouth County superintendent of schools the power to make the Colts Neck school district, rather than the Tinton Falls schooldistrict, responsible for educating about 60 children of military familieswho live at Earle.

Tinton Falls Board of Education President Peter Karavites said the currentarrangement no longer works because their schools have become overcrowded while Colts Neck's have not.

"Blackface" photo creates stir in Brick

A middle school student covered his face in athletic eye black during a celebration, and whileteachers did not react, one parent did.

"I dont think he knew what he was doing," said Brick momAimee VanDuyne, who is white and has three children who are black.

The incident has spurred hard conversations about racism and racial sensitivity in the school district.

In other news:

APP business writer Michael Diamond tells us what we should have learned in college, but probably didn't.

Some Jersey Shore student writers won big at the APP Student Voices awards. "Student Voices is our opportunity to celebrate the academic achievements of young students," said Hollis R. Towns, Gannett New Jersey Regional Editor & Vice President/News. "We often celebrate sports and music but its rare that we invest as much as we should in academics, so Im extremely proud of this program."

State Sen. Jennifer Beck in an APP op-ed tells us to keep a close eye on school funding talks. "Over the next several weeks, a new plan for school funding will be debated in Trenton," she writes.

One lucky Toms River high school student won a car in the district's second annualDriven to Excellence program, a character-building effort. Here's how it works.

That's all for this week. Have a wonderful weekend.

Amanda Oglesby: 732-557-5701; aoglesby@GannettNJ.com

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School Scoop: Trump, censorship and race in schools - Asbury Park Press

Recently I had the opportunity to visit the Tri-Cities, and as a news reporter here in North Carolina, I thought I would "listen" to the scanner I use as the normal course of work I am engaged in. I was surprised when I had programmed the channels publicly available into my scanner corresponding to those "licensed" by the Federal Communications Commission to Sullivan County, Tennessee, and I heard NOTHING!

I saw emergency vehicles in the normal course of daily activities but heard NO calls from either a "dispatch" center or an individual vehicle. I saw an ambulance running emergency traffic, and I saw a Johnson City Police car stopped with another vehicle in an apparent traffic stop. On Friday, I spoke with an official at Washington County Emergency Services, who told me that he knew all local emergency communications in Sullivan County were "encrypted" or "blocked" which is overreach of local officials and bothers me as someone who lives by the U.S. Constitution and the First Amendment including free speech!

I understand this newspaper published a news story about six months ago concerning this issue. Folks, this is plain censorship of the public airways! It should NOT be tolerated!

I am surprised at the folks who feel they can do this and somehow show their face to the public or work for better relations between the police and the public!

Sullivan County, you gave a lot going for you. Don't continue to mess it up with overreach and excessive control of the "public" airways. Fix this censorship immediately!

The government belongs to ALL people, NOT a few employed by the government!

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LETTER: An unseen kind of censorship - Bristol Herald Courier (press release) (blog)

By Fred Mazelis 14 June 2017

The corporate and right-wing attacks on the production of Julius Caesar by the Public Theater, part of the annual free Shakespeare in the Park season in New York Citys Central Park, illustrate the danger of artistic censorship and more generally that of authoritarianism posed by the Trump administration.

Directed by Oskar Eustis, who is also the artistic director of the Public Theater, this Julius Caesaris staged with unmistakable allusions to the current occupant of the White House. Caesar (Gregg Henry) is portrayed as an egomaniac who needs constant adulation. This Caesar has a love of glitz, including a gold bathtub. He is dressed in a blue suit and has a shock of blond hair and the trademark Trump comb-over. His wife Calpurnia (Tina Benko) has a Slavic accent and the style and appearance of Melania Trump. His son Octavius (Robert Gilbert) is portrayed as a callow Jared Kushner-type figure.

The Trumpian depiction of Caesar, combined with a graphic, bloody scene of his assassination, has provoked outrage among Trumps ultra-right supporters. Breitbart News and the Fox and Friends television show have focused on it. Donald Trump, Jr. tweeted, I wonder how much of this art is funded by taxpayers.

The reaction was almost immediate. The Public Theater in fact receives most of its funding from giant corporate sponsors, not from public sources. A number of the most prominent funders issued statements disavowing the production, although none of them had uttered a word of complaint, through its weeks of previews, until the right-media campaign began.

Delta Airlines announced that the production does not reflect Delta Airlines values and that the artistic and creative direction crossed the line on standards of good taste. Bank of America, the lead corporate sponsor for the past 11 years, declared that the production had been designed to provoke and offend and, had this intention been made known to us, we would have decided not to sponsor.

American Express joined the chorus, explaining, We would like to clarify that our sponsorship of the Public Theater does not fund the production of Shakespeare in the Park, nor do we condone the interpretation of the Julius Caesar play.

As Deltas employees and passengers know full well, the airlines values have nothing to do with anything but the ruthless drive for profit. The company would prefer to stay off Trumps enemies list. The reactions of financial and corporate management are a direct reflection of the atmosphere being whipped up under this administration.

Even more ominous than the actions of the corporate sponsors was the reaction of the National Endowment for the Arts, the federal agency that funds arts institutions large and small around the US. Trumps budget proposes to eliminate funding for the NEA entirely. The agency issued a brief statement on its website two days ago stating, No taxpayer dollars support Shakespeare in the Parks production of Julius Caesar.

The implication could hardly be clearer. If Congress sees its way to continuing the funding of the NEA, the agencys leadership will ensure that nothing is done to offend the neo-fascistic billionaire in the White House.

As many critics and Shakespeare scholars have pointed out, Julius Caesar does not in fact present the assassination of the Roman tyrant in a favorable light. Harvard professor Stephen Greenblatt explained that a major theme of the play was that the elimination of a dictator could bring an end to the very republic youre trying to save.

In a statement posted on its website, the Public Theater announced that it stands completely behind our production of JULIUS CAESAR. Our production of JULIUS CAESAR in no way advocates violence towards anyone. Shakespeare's play, and our production, make the opposite point: those who attempt to defend democracy by undemocratic means pay a terrible price and destroy the very thing they are fighting to save. For over 400 years, Shakespeares play has told this story and we are proud to be telling it again in Central Park.

This is hardly the first time that Julius Caesar and other Shakespearean tragedies and history plays have been presented in topical or contemporary guise. The famous 1937 production of Julius Caesar directed by the 22-year-old Orson Welles featured a Caesar modeled on Benito Mussolini. Shakespeare himself wrote plays that were unmistakable in their contemporary political references, although these were never expressed directly. Julius Caesar was written in the final years of the reign of Elizabeth I, and Shakespeares career was bound up with the social and political conflicts that would erupt several decades later in the English civil war.

James Shapiro in 1599: A Year in the Life of William Shakespeare, as we have noted on the WSWS, draws a connection between intense political repression under the aging queen and the writing of Julius Caesar, about which he asserts, ironically in light of the present controversy, No play by Shakespeare explores censorship and silencing so deeply as the one he was writing during these months in 1599.

Topical interpretations such as the Public Theaters run the risk of obviousness, of course. Although there is a satirical element in the Central Park production, there is also something too easy and limited in the allusions to Trump.

Needless to say, however, the Public Theaters right-wing critics are not in the least concerned with the productions artistic qualities. The purpose of their campaign is intimidation, and such behavior has been directed not only at the theater. For Breitbart and similar sources, moreover, there is no contradiction between making free speech claims when protests against provocateurs like Milo Yiannopoulos occur, and then demanding clampdowns in the case of such events as the production of Julius Caesar.

The current controversy also calls attention to American capitalisms scandalous treatment of the arts. Public spending and subsidies, never generous, have been continuously cut and now face the threat of complete elimination. Over the last several decades theater, art, music and dance have become increasingly dependent upon the largesse of multimillionaire donors and corporate philanthropy. The Julius Caesar production shows how rapidly corporate donations can evaporate, and the implications of reliance on such sources of funding.

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Attempt at censorship in reaction to New York's Public Theater production of Julius Caesar - World Socialist Web Site

Grant Berardo, a Wall High School junior, saw his image digitally-altered with a plain black T-shirt in his yearbook. Mike Davis

Wall Township High School junior Grant Berardo's T-shirt was digitally altered in the school's yearbook. He wore a Donald Trump campaign shirt for his portrait.(Photo: Courtesy of Joseph Berardo, Jr.)

WALL The Wall High School teacher and adviser of the yearbook club has been suspended due to alleged censorship of images and quotes by students supporting President Donald Trump.

Superintendent Cheryl Dyer said Monday that the teacher, who she declined to name, was suspended "pending further disciplinary action" from the school board.

On the high school's website, the yearbook club's adviser is listed as Susan Parsons. According to public records, she collected an$87,950 salary last year.

"I don't have definitive answers to all of my questions yet, but I knew enough at this point to get board approval to take that action," Dyer said.

ICYMI: Wall teen's Trump shirt censored in yearbook

Dyer declined to identify what disciplinary action could be taken. Termination would require the board to file tenure charges against her.

According to her LinkedIn page, Parsons has worked in the district for 15 years.

On her yearbook class's website within the district homepage, Parsonsincludes "photo editing" as one of the "real world skills" that students learn during yearbook production.

She did not return a call to her home seeking comment. In an interview with the New York Post, she said we have never made any action against any political party.

But when asked if she knew who altered the photos, Parsons simply said, Im going to hang up.

There have been three reported instances of censorship in the yearbook, all revolving around students supporting President Donald Trump.

Grant Berardo, a junior at the school, took his school pictures wearing a navy blue "Make America Great Again" shirt from the campaign. But in the yearbook, his photo had been digitally altered so it resembled a nondescript black T-shirt.

Wall High School(Photo: File photo)

It was Photoshopped," Grant said in an interview on Friday. "I sent it to my mom and dad, just like You wont believe this. I was just overall disappointed.

"I like Trump, but its history too. Wearing that shirt memorializes the time," he said.

According to CNN, a brother and sister at the school also alleged censorship. Wyatt Debrovich-Fago wore a sweater vest in his picture with a Trump campaign logo, but it was seemingly cropped out of the photo.

His sister, Montana, served as president of the school's freshman class. That role usually comes with a quote next to a picture, and Montana selected: "I like thinking big. If you are going to be thinking anything, you might as well think big."

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But in the yearbook, hers was the only photo without a quote.

"I want to know who thought it was okay to do this," Janet Dobrovich-Fago, the teens' mother, told CNN. "I want the school to seek disciplinary action and to be held accountable."

In a statement released Sunday night, Wall school board President Allison Connolly said the board "found the allegations of wrongdoing disturbing and take the charge that students have had their free speech rights infringed upon very seriously."

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In a previous interview, Dyer saidthe only reason a student's image would be altered isif itwasin violation of the dress code clothing referencingdrugs, alcohol or violence. Political messages are "absolutely not" a violation, she said.

A spokesman for Jostens, the companythat takes the photographs and prints the yearbooks, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

It's not immediately clear whether the change was made by someone from the school district or photography company.

NEPTUNE:Superintendent responds after racist photo

In an interview, Joseph BerardoJr. Grant's father called for the school to recall the yearbooks and reissue new ones with the unaltered photo. He said he would consider legal action if that doesnt happen.

From my perspective, I dont understand the censorship, Berardo said.I think it was probably politically motivated. It was inherently offensive to somebody and they made a decision to Photoshop it and without discussion, which is the worst part."

TEACHING TRUMP:How schools handled 2016 election

The problem would be "equally" as egregious if images of clothing supporting Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton also had been altered, Berardo said.

What are you doing? Dont you go to school to debate this stuff at the collegiate level, at the high school level, asked Berardo. Whats frustrating to me is that this was the first election he took interest in, but what message did the school send?

Mike Davis: 732-643-4223; mdavis@gannettnj.com

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Wall HS teacher suspended over Trump yearbook censorship - Asbury Park Press

U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May has called forgreater regulation of the Internetto combat the growing threat of Islamist extremism.Addressing the public after the latest attack on Londonthe third act of Islamist terrorism in the U.K. this yearMay rightly placed blame for the string of recent attacks on the evil ideology of Islamist extremism.

Defeating this ideology is one of the great challenges of our time, she said. But it cannot be defeated by military intervention alone. It will only be defeated when we turn peoples minds away from this violence and make them understand that our valuespluralistic British valuesare superior to anything offered by the preachers and supporters of hate.

To combat this evil ideology, May has proposed greater regulation of the internet, imposed through international agreements, in order to prevent the spread of extremist and terrorism planning.

We cannot allow this ideology the safe space it needs to breed, May said. Yet that is precisely what the internet, and the big companies that provide Internet-based services provide.

May is yet to outline the details of her proposal. But ifinitial reportsare anything to go by, it is likely to include laws forcing companies to weaken their encryption standardsmaking all online data less secureas well as a push for new international agreements that require internet companies to deny a platform to extremist propaganda. In other words, it will be nothing short of a China-style regime of internet censorshipa comparison May hasdeclined to refute.

This proposal has alreadygained the supportof Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, after Australia suffered its own small attackon Monday, when a lone gunmanclaimed as a soldier of ISISkilled one man and took a women hostage.The idea is also likely to gain support from President Trump, who called for closing that Internet up in some way,during his campaign.

It is good to see a western political leader facing up to the challenge posed by Islamist ideology. But increased internet censorship is not the solution to this problem. It will only make the problem harder to combat by infringing on legitimate speech, pushing the problem further underground, and leaving the real-life safe spaces untouched.

The internet safe space argument is compelling. Its undeniable that groups like ISIS devote considerable resources to online propaganda, and have motivated people in the west to both join them and to carry out attacks in their homelands. People are right to worry about lone wolves being radicalized on the internet.

But this doesnt describe the perpetrators of the last three attacks in the U.K., most of whom were already known to the police. Nor does it describe the Australian terrorist, who not only had a history of violence and connections to terrorism, but was out on bail at the time of the attack.

More importantly, it ignores the far greater problem of the safe spaces Islamist extremism benefits from in the real world.For too long terrorist attacks have been met with little more than stoic sympathy and willful blindness, as leaders deny that repeated attacks are anything more than the actions of a few maniacs, with no discernible connection to the religion of Islam.

On the one hand, its understandable for political leaders not to want to ascribe blame to the wider Muslim community, the vast majority of whom have nothing whatsoever to do with the barbarism carried out in the name of their religion.

On the other hand, this approach has only exacerbated the problem by insulating the Muslim communityand therefore Islamismfrom the sort of criticism that all other groups in western societies are subjected to. In many European countries, this bigotry of low expectations has led to the development of entire suburbs that are de-facto no-go zonesareas of a city that are completely disconnected from wider society, where its dangerous for any non-Muslims to enter.

A prime example is the area of Molenbeek, in Belgium, where an alleged participant in theNovember 13Paris attacks (which left 130 people dead and 368 wounded) wasable to hide outfor nearly four months, despite being the most wanted man in Europe.Theres nowhere as bad as Molenbeek in the U.K., but the British Muslim community has nevertheless been afforded the kind of protection from criticism that no other community enjoys.

The harm caused by this insidious political correctness was highlighted in 2014, when anindependent inquiryfound that police, community leaders, and local politicians had systematically failed to prevent the sexual exploitation of 1,400 children between 1997 and 2013a figure described as a conservative estimatein the north-England town of Rotherham (population 257,000).

The reason blamed for this failure was thefear of being accused of racism, since these so-called grooming gangs were mostly made up of Muslims of Pakistani origin. Even when the crimes were eventually reported, the perpetrators were described as mostly Asian men, rather than as Muslims.

It obviously goes without saying that these appalling crimes are not the fault of all British Muslims, most of whom would be horrified by such behavior. Nevertheless, it highlights the failure of British society to hold the Muslim community to the same standards as everyone else.

Its undeniable that appallingly illiberal views have been allowed to persist in the British Muslim community. In a2015 pollof 1,000 British Muslim, 27 percent said they have some sympathy for the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris. Anadditional 2016 pollfound that two out of three British Muslims would not report someone they knew to the police, if they became involved with terrorist sympathizers. These sentiments arent new. A2006 pollfound that 20 percent of British Muslism had sympathy for the motivations of the London bombings of July 7, 2005 (which left 52 people dead and784injured).

Its unlikely that these attitudes, which are alarmingly out of step with the rest of British society, would still exist if not for their safe spaces, created by the taboo on criticism of Islam. The first step to combating Islamist extremism is to remove this taboo.

Not only will increasing internet censorship do nothing to remove the safe-spaces that exist in the real world, it may even make the problem worse.

There is simply no way to completely censor anything in the internet age. All states can do is push ideas and discussions further underground, where the ideas are harder to combat and where it is harder for intelligence services to keep track of thema point stressed by the U.K.s leading digital advocacy organization, theOpen Rights Group.

There is also a long track record of anti-free speech lawsdesigned to protect the public from harmful speechbeing used suppress discussion of important issues, simply because they are controversial and may offend some people.In 2016, Dutch politician Geert Wilders wasfound guiltyof violating Hate Speech laws for comments he made in 2014 that were demeaning and thereby insulting towards the Moroccan population. Wilders had asked a roomful of his supporter if they wanted to have more or fewer Moroccans in the country. When the crowd shouted back Fewer! he replied, Well, well take care of that.

In the recentMarch 15election, Wilders party got over 1.3 million votes (13.6 percent), so he clearly represents a significant proportion of the Dutch population. He would not have this support if the issues he talks about didnt resonate with the public. Ironically, these are the same issues that Mays proposal is attempting to addressnamely, the spread of radical Islamism.

People might disagree with the solutions Wilders proposes, but this is not the way to combat unwanted ideas. No one is served when we collectively decide to stick our heads in the sand. The problem will not magically disappear.

There is every reason to expect that Mays internet censorship proposal will also be used to suppress more than just Islamist propaganda. Perhaps the best evidence of this is a private conversation between German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, and Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, which waspicked up by a hot micin 2015. Merkel was overheardasking Zuckerberg what he was doing about anti-immigrant posts on Facebook. Zuckerbergs response was, We need to do some work. Make no mistake, this was nothing short of an attempt to reduce opposition to Merkels unprecedented decision to open Germanys borders to a seemingly unlimited number of refugees and migrants from the Middle East and North Africa.

Mays internet censorship proposal will create the infrastructure for politicians like Merkel to not just ask internet companies to act, but demand it.

Several European countries introduced Hate Speech laws in order to prevent the sort of anti-Semitism that led to the Holocaust. However, not only have these laws failed to eradicate anti-Semitism, it is now widely reported to be on the rise throughout Europe. The situation has gotten so bad, some people are now discussing whether itstime for the Jews to leave Europe, for good.

The situation could not be more different in the United States, which has become arguably the safest country for Jews on earth. The U.S. is also significantly better than Europe at integrating its immigrant population, including its Muslim population. This is because of the First Amendment, which helps ensure the existence of a vibrant and robust marketplace of ideas in which extremist propaganda can be combatted. This is an important lesson for western societies to learn: Free speech is the best way to combat unwanted ideas.

The western world needs to combat the ideology of radical Islamism. But this is only possible if we can openly discuss issues, free from the kind of politically correct taboos that have insulated the Muslim community. Mays internet censorship proposal will only make this more difficult.

Patrick Hannaford is an Australian writer based in Washington DC.

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Why Censoring The Internet Would Make It Harder To Fight Terrorism - The Federalist

New York Times

Making Google the Censor New York Times And studies suggest that ordinary internet users self-censor when they think they are being surveilled. Researchers found journalists afraid to write about terrorism, Wikipedia users reluctant to learn about Al Qaeda and Google users avoiding searching ...

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Making Google the Censor - New York Times

"Egypt Rap School for Biggenas" is plastered across the wall of a tiny recording studio in Alexandria, Egypt. Above it, hang three portraits: Notorious BIG, Bob Marley and Tupac Shakur. Like millions of fans, Temraz - his stage name - grew up listening to these icons.

Now, the 29-year-old Arabic rapper is part of Revolution Records, an underground label that he helped establish in Alexandria 11 years ago.

"We decided to name the label Revolution Records because we thought rap was still a very weird [genre] to Egyptian ears," Temraz said, before rolling a cigarette. "We also named it 'revolution' because rap music is about rebelling. To us, [rap] is about rebelling against everything."

Read:Egypt's women find their voice against sexual harassment

There are 14 members in Revolution Records, which is one of many hip-hop movements in Egypt. Cairo, the capital, has a bustling scene. But Alexandria is considered the pioneer of rap music in the country.

Before the Arab Spring, rappers from Alexandria released tracks that mocked social norms and crony political elites. The lack of mainstream attention even enabled some artists to push the boundaries of censorship. And while their music was gaining traction, it wasn't popular enough to invite a crackdown from the state.

But in today's Egypt, where thousands of youth are in jail for criticizing the regime, rapping about politics is riskier than ever.

Rapping to ridicule

Shakur (photo, above) is the stage name of a 31-year-old artist who is part of a group called DaCliQue 203. He said that most rappers have been reluctant to ridicule Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi. His group, however, is one of few exceptions.

In February 2014, DaCliQue 203 released "Ana Malak," which means"I'm the King." The track was a remix of a song that Shakur originally recorded in 2005. The new version was made to mock el-Sissi who was by then fixed in power.

Notorious BIG, Bob Marley and Tupac Shakur bedeck the wall at Revolution Records' studio

"The lyrics go like this," said Shakur, as he proceeded to recite his impersonation of el-Sissi. "I'm not on the right and I'm not on the left. I'm not an Islamist nor an anarchist. I just follow the money so show me the money."

The song was daring. And yet, Shakur wouldn't record another track for three more years. He said he couldn't bring himself to make another one. Not after his younger brother, a former supporter of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, passed away suddenly in his home before "Ana Malak" was released.

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"We always fought about my love for hip-hop," said Shakur. "[My brother] thought I was wasting my time. He thought I should be writing articles about politics instead. But at the same time, he remained curious. He always wanted to know about the lyrics I was writing."

Other rappers became increasingly political while Shakur took a break from hip-hop. In April 2016, Revolution Records released "Masahsh Keda" - "That's Not Right" - on YouTube. The group appropriated the phrase from el-Sissi, who often says it condescendingly when addressing his citizens. The group made a music video for the song and included English subtitles.

"We sampled el-Sissi's voice and incorporated it in our music," Temraz told DW. "The track did well when we first uploaded it. I think it received more than 200,000 likes."

Despite the success, Temraz feared that the song might bring reprisal. After the track was released, members of Revolution Records were invited to Denmark to perform in a concert. Temraz was anxious when he arrived at the Cairo airport. He thought he would be arrested. Lucky for him, nothing happened.

Weeks later, the group was informed that "Masahsh Keda" had crossed a line. Their friend, who worked in the presidential palace, warned them that the government wouldn't tolerate another track like that again.

"We had to stop," Temraz said. "I gave up trying to change this country for the better."

Moving away, coming back

Not everyone lost hope. Some rappers tried to broach sensitive topics without explicitly blaming the state. Y-Crew, which is one of Egypt's first hip-hop groups, released a track titled "Blinded" nine months ago. The song was about the abuse and violence that street children face in Egypt.

"Mainstream music in Egypt is just about love. It doesn't talk about real problems," said Omar Bofolot, one of the original members of Y-Crew. "We want to talk about real stuff. But we don't want to preach to people about what they should do."

The group has recently moved to Dubai to work on their latest album. They told DW that they are also losing hope that their music can make a positive impact in Egypt.

"We been rapping about social and political issues since we started," said Shahin, the second member of Y-Crew. "Nothing is changing [in Egypt], and we're getting sick of it. Our next album is just going to promote peace, love and unity."

Shakur, however, won't stop rapping about the issues that matter to him. In January, he released his comeback track. And now, he's writing lyrics about the refugee crisis in Egypt and Europe.

Thousands of refugees and Egyptians have died trying to cross the Mediterranean from Alexandria. Shakur knows their stories firsthand. He's been a migration advocate for years and has even collaborated with some refugee rappers in Egypt.

The oppressive political climate doesn't scare him. Even if Egyptian rap becomes more commercial, he vows to never censor himself.

"I have to keep it real," he told DW. "The price might be bigger. But Egyptians are paying a heavy price anyways."

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Egyptian rappers fight against censorship - Deutsche Welle