Access Denied!

On Censorship, Paywalls, and the Free Flow of Information

I recently gave a talk on dehumanization at a university out west. The event was organized by a friend, with little support, financial or otherwise, from their institution. As usual, my topic was dehumanization, with an emphasis on events unfolding in the world right now.

A few days before my talk, I sent slides to my host. My host responded that two of the slides presented a problem. Could I delete them? The University was in Trump’s crosshairs, and the funder of the event made it a condition that the event was “non-partisan.” I agreed, because I did not want to endanger my friend, with the intention of getting my points across during the Q & A.

At this point, I expect that you’re wondering what the offending slides contained. Here’s the first one.

The slide quotes the words of President Trump. If I were to quote different words, such as “Make America great again” I very much doubt that this would be deemed unacceptable. The fact is, I was urged to remove this slide because of raw fear of the regime’s fist coming down hard. That fear was justified. Less than a week after giving my talk, I learned that dozens of students attending this university had been deported by the Trump regime.

Here’s the second deleted slide.

Ironically, my presentation was specifically timed for Genocide Awareness Week. Again, I was doing no more than quoting the unambiguously dehumanizing words of Yoav Gallant and Benjamin Netanyahu. Presumably, that would be sufficient for me (a Jewish man) to be charged with pernicious antisemitism.

This was a learning experience for me. I expect to encounter similar demands in the future. And in the future when I am invited to speak I will first enquire whether I am expected to censor myself and cower before the regime. If so, I shall refuse. I urge others to do the same.

This brings me to the issue of paywalls. Subscribers to this newsletter will have noticed that I do not restrict any content to paid subscribers. All of my content is free and available to everyone. I write these posts from a sense of moral urgency, not as a means for enhancing my already adequate income. It’s not a job, it’s a mission.

That said, of course I appreciate those who support my work with paid subscriptions. It makes a difference. I won’t lie. That kind of support is motivating. But if I ever start sequestering content only for those who pay, I hope that all of you, paid and free subscribers alike, will desert this Substack.