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In Latest Blow To Free Speech, German Courts Could Issue "Speaking Ban" Against Top AfD Politician

In Latest Blow To Free Speech, German Courts Could Issue "Speaking Ban" Against Top AfD Politician

Via Remix News,

German courts are currently deliberating whether leading Alternative for Germany (AfD) politician Björn Höcke could be hit with a “speaking ban” during a campaign event in the city of Lindenberg im Allgäu.

The move could signal a worsening of free speech in Germany, with Höcke using the legal proceedings to make the case that his fundamental rights are being violated.

“Democrats of all countries, look to Germany! Right now, German courts are seriously deliberating whether I should be issued a speaking ban for political events! I am entitled to the fundamental right to exercise freedom of speech. I am a member of a constitutional body. I am the opposition leader of a German parliament,” wrote Höcke.

“And then there is also the party privilege: So in the future, a supposedly neutral administration should be allowed to decide with whom a party may conduct election campaigning and with whom not? That is absurd! What we are witnessing here is yet another attack on parliamentary democracy in Germany,” he added.

The move to ban Höcke from speaking comes after the city of Lindenberg im Allgäu lost its initial effort to ban the campaign event entirely. Now, the city is shifting its strategy to specifically bar Björn Höcke from the stage.

The city originally attempted to cancel the AfD’s rental of the town hall entirely. However, the Augsburg Administrative Court blocked this move during urgent proceedings, declaring the total revocation of the hall inadmissible. Crucially, the judges noted that “as a milder priority measure, a ban on speaking for Mr. Höcke” was a legally viable alternative.

According to a city spokesperson, Lindenberg is now pursuing this option, according to the BR news outlet.

In response, the Westallgäu-Lindau AfD district association has signaled its intent to challenge this speech ban in court. In a court hearing expected to take place in Augsburg today, a final ruling is expected to be issued.

The dispute centers on a rally scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 15, in the municipal Löwensaal, where the AfD intends to introduce its candidates for the upcoming local elections on March 8. The city moved to reclaim the hall once it became clear that Höcke, the Thuringian AfD leader, was on the guest list.

City officials justified the move by stating they expected “criminal statements as well as statements approving of the Nazi dictatorship and anti-Semitic statements” from Höcke, specifically citing his two previous convictions for using a prohibited Nazi slogan.

While the Administrative Court found the city’s concerns to be “understandable,” they ruled that canceling the rental outright violated the principle of equal treatment for political parties. The court maintained that the administration’s arguments were “not sufficient for such a step.”

As the legal battle continues, local tensions are high. Opponents of the AfD have organized rallies and a demonstration, with at least 2,000 participants expected to gather in Lindenberg.

Lindenberg is not the only municipality fighting a “Höcke appearance” this week. A similar battle is unfolding in Seybothenreuth, Upper Franconia, where Höcke is slated to speak on Saturday. The local municipality is also attempting to block his speech, and a decision from the Bayreuth Administrative Court is expected this Thursday.

Read more here...

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/14/2026 - 09:55

Newsom Tells Europe "Trump Is Temporary," Doubles Down On Failing Green Agenda

Newsom Tells Europe "Trump Is Temporary," Doubles Down On Failing Green Agenda

California Gov. Gavin Newsom spoke at the Munich Security Conference earlier on Friday, telling European elites that President Trump is "temporary" and will be gone within three years.

Newsom, noticeably angered by Trump's push for deregulation and the rollback of climate policy, lashed out at the president, calling him "more destructive" than the current occupant of the White House.

The issue for Newsom is that he still operates within the climate crisis framework promoted by globalists, even as the West is moving on from two decades of nation-killing green policy regime that hollowed out parts of the industrial base and fueled inflation.

On Thursday, President Trump rescinded the 2009 Obama-era "Endangerment Finding," a determination that greenhouse gases threaten public health and welfare, which he said has been used by the radical left to justify $1.3 trillion in regulatory costs that have hurt American households and sent consumer prices soaring, especially for automobiles.

"The single largest deregulatory action in American history. That's a big statement in American history, and I think we can add the words by far," Trump told reporters.

Also this week, there was considerable discussion among industry leaders in Europe about Brussels watering down carbon-pricing markets, which have made electricity outrageously expensive and crushed the industrial base (Goldman explained more here).

And it is not just Trump and European industry leaders pushing to unwind green policies that have financially crushed working-class families and hollowed out the industrial base; major companies are also dialing back EV production plans and softening green targets as the net-zero dream collides with reality.

Here's what Newsom said earlier at the MSC (courtesy of Real Clear Politics):

GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM: Donald Trump is doubling down on stupid.

California has been a leader in climate policy going back to Ronald Reagan. In 1967, Governor Ronald Reagan established the first tailpipe emissions standards in the United States of America and created the California Air Resources Board. Three years later, a president by the name of Richard Nixon — another Republican — codified California's leadership under the Clean Air Act.

Never in the history of the United States of America has there been a more destructive president than the current occupant in the White House in Washington, D.C. He's trying to recreate the 19th century. He's a wholly owned subsidiary of big oil, gas, and coal. He's quite literally reopening coal plants in the United States of America.

He's received close to half a billion dollars in campaign contributions. He asked for $1 billion — look it up — in return for basically eliminating all regulations in the United States of America. De facto, he just did that yesterday with federal regulations and the endangerment finding.

It is code red in terms of American leadership in this space — low-carbon, green growth — and I know a thing or two about this. I represent the fourth-largest economy, from a GDP perspective, in the world, and we ran the fourth-largest economy last year nine out of ten days on 100% clean energy — two-thirds renewable energy.

We've seen our GDP grow by 81% since 2000, and we've reduced our greenhouse gas emissions by 21%. Seven times more clean energy jobs than fossil fuel jobs.

We're proving at scale that we can implement, we can compete, and we can dominate. But Donald Trump is trying to turn back the clock. And so we're showing up, but we're also showing what can be accomplished — the power of emulation.

We are in the great implementation in my state.

Final word. I hope, if there's nothing else I can communicate today: Donald Trump is temporary. He'll be gone in three years. California is a stable and reliable partner in this space, and it's important for folks to understand the temporary nature of this current administration in relationship to the issue of climate change and climate policy.

MODERATOR]: Governor, many have called Joe Biden the climate president, but that didn't help with his re-election. So how important do you think climate issues will be for the 2028 presidential election?

GAVIN NEWSOM: Well, you may not believe in science, but you've got to believe your own eyes. I mean, people are burning up, choking up, heating up. We have simultaneous droughts and floods. Historic wildfires. You may know little about California, but you've seen those images of these wildfires.

Talk about being as dumb as we want to be — places, lifestyles, traditions being wiped off the map. Greenville. Paradise, California.

And so this issue has been brought home in a very personal way, not a political way. Senator Whitehouse is here — he's also someone who deeply understands that climate risk is financial risk. It's becoming uninsurable.

This is an economic issue, not just a moral issue. It's not just a competitiveness issue. And so it's incredibly important that we talk in those terms to address some of the political dynamics. But it's again something we're on the other side of in California.

It's a big blue state, but it also has more Republicans than most Republican states. And we have long moved beyond the partisanship on this issue, because there is no Republican thermometer, there's no Democratic thermometer — there's just reality.

And people in my state have been mugged by reality. Those that have been in denial understand that we're on the other side of the debate.

Watch Here:

The key question is why Newsom continues to prioritize a failed green agenda instead of pursuing deregulation and other relief measures for working-class families; for now, Trump is the one pressing ahead with what he describes as historic deregulation.

We think we know why. Newsom serves...

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/14/2026 - 08:45

UK's Insane New Trans Guidance Says School Kids As Young As Four Can 'Change Gender'

UK's Insane New Trans Guidance Says School Kids As Young As Four Can 'Change Gender'

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

The UK government has issued new guidance allowing primary school children, some as young as four, to ‘socially transition’ the gender by changing their pronouns at school.

According to reports in The Times, the guidelines state that parents should be involved in the “vast majority” of cases where a child questions their gender, and schools should not initiate steps towards social transitioning.

However, the move has sparked outrage, with critics arguing it undermines parental rights and exposes vulnerable children to harmful ideologies.

 

The guidance specifies that “social transitioning in primary schools should happen very rarely,” but “children will be allowed to change their gender and adopt different pronouns.”

Helen Joyce, director of advocacy at Sex Matters, lambasted the new guidance during an appearance on TalkTV, asserting that schools have been “indoctrinating children” with trans ideology for a decade, influenced by online content, influencers, and lobby groups like Stonewall and Mermaids that have been “mis-training teachers.”

She emphasized that “the government has started a de-radicalisation programme but we actually need to de-radicalise a whole generation of teachers,” adding that the guidance falls short because “only total clarity will stop it” at this point, as the issue has “gone so far.”

Joyce urged the public to respond to the 10-week consultation on keeping children safe in education, stressing that “no child can change sex.”

Maya Forstater, chief executive of the campaign group Sex Matters, said: “It should be clear by now that allowing children and parents to think that a child who starts their education as a girl can graduate as a boy, or vice versa, is a dangerous fairytale.”

Forstater noted that while the guidance has generated backlash, there are elements of it that constitute a step forward.

This latest development comes amid ongoing controversies over gender ideology and children, with trans lobbyists continuing to push extreme agendas.

Radicals from Stonewall have demanded schools stop calling pupils ‘boys and girls’ and that they replace ‘he’ and ‘she’ with ‘they’ to “remove any unnecessarily gendered language” from classrooms.

The group also advocated for gender-neutral bathrooms and uniforms in schools, even offering rewards for compliance.

A publicly funded LGBT group in Scotland was exposed for urging teachers not to inform parents about children ‘transitioning,’ with guidance stating that “a transgender young person may not have told their family about their gender identity” and that inadvertent disclosure could cause stress or risk.

These lobbyists, including LGBT Youth Scotland receiving nearly £1 million in taxpayer funds annually, have signed up over half of Scotland’s secondary schools and 40 primary schools to their schemes.

The new English guidance appears to continue this trend, despite the landmark Cass Review in 2024, which concluded that evidence for puberty blockers and gender-affirming care for children is “remarkably weak” and built on “shaky foundations.” 

The review led to a ban on puberty blockers for under-18s outside clinical trials, highlighting risks like impacts on bone health and fertility.

Yet, controversy persists with a planned clinical trial in 2026 assessing puberty blockers’ risks and benefits for about 220 children under 16. 

Campaigners have launched legal efforts and petitions to suspend it, arguing it could harm vulnerable kids, with a government response acknowledging the “unacceptable safety risk” but proceeding to gather evidence.

The new guidance also comes despite the UK Supreme Court ruling in April 2025 that the legal definition of sex under the Equality Act 2010 is based on biological sex at birth, not altered by a Gender Recognition Certificate.

The latest development is thus a massive step backward, allowing activist-driven policies to once again infiltrate education while sidelining science and parental authority.

With detransition lawsuits mounting and evidence mounting against hasty transitions, protecting children’s innocence from ideological overreach remains paramount.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/14/2026 - 08:10

UK's Insane New Trans Guidance Says School Kids As Young As Four Can 'Change Gender'

UK's Insane New Trans Guidance Says School Kids As Young As Four Can 'Change Gender'

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

The UK government has issued new guidance allowing primary school children, some as young as four, to ‘socially transition’ the gender by changing their pronouns at school.

According to reports in The Times, the guidelines state that parents should be involved in the “vast majority” of cases where a child questions their gender, and schools should not initiate steps towards social transitioning.

However, the move has sparked outrage, with critics arguing it undermines parental rights and exposes vulnerable children to harmful ideologies.

 

The guidance specifies that “social transitioning in primary schools should happen very rarely,” but “children will be allowed to change their gender and adopt different pronouns.”

Helen Joyce, director of advocacy at Sex Matters, lambasted the new guidance during an appearance on TalkTV, asserting that schools have been “indoctrinating children” with trans ideology for a decade, influenced by online content, influencers, and lobby groups like Stonewall and Mermaids that have been “mis-training teachers.”

She emphasized that “the government has started a de-radicalisation programme but we actually need to de-radicalise a whole generation of teachers,” adding that the guidance falls short because “only total clarity will stop it” at this point, as the issue has “gone so far.”

Joyce urged the public to respond to the 10-week consultation on keeping children safe in education, stressing that “no child can change sex.”

Maya Forstater, chief executive of the campaign group Sex Matters, said: “It should be clear by now that allowing children and parents to think that a child who starts their education as a girl can graduate as a boy, or vice versa, is a dangerous fairytale.”

Forstater noted that while the guidance has generated backlash, there are elements of it that constitute a step forward.

This latest development comes amid ongoing controversies over gender ideology and children, with trans lobbyists continuing to push extreme agendas.

Radicals from Stonewall have demanded schools stop calling pupils ‘boys and girls’ and that they replace ‘he’ and ‘she’ with ‘they’ to “remove any unnecessarily gendered language” from classrooms.

The group also advocated for gender-neutral bathrooms and uniforms in schools, even offering rewards for compliance.

A publicly funded LGBT group in Scotland was exposed for urging teachers not to inform parents about children ‘transitioning,’ with guidance stating that “a transgender young person may not have told their family about their gender identity” and that inadvertent disclosure could cause stress or risk.

These lobbyists, including LGBT Youth Scotland receiving nearly £1 million in taxpayer funds annually, have signed up over half of Scotland’s secondary schools and 40 primary schools to their schemes.

The new English guidance appears to continue this trend, despite the landmark Cass Review in 2024, which concluded that evidence for puberty blockers and gender-affirming care for children is “remarkably weak” and built on “shaky foundations.” 

The review led to a ban on puberty blockers for under-18s outside clinical trials, highlighting risks like impacts on bone health and fertility.

Yet, controversy persists with a planned clinical trial in 2026 assessing puberty blockers’ risks and benefits for about 220 children under 16. 

Campaigners have launched legal efforts and petitions to suspend it, arguing it could harm vulnerable kids, with a government response acknowledging the “unacceptable safety risk” but proceeding to gather evidence.

The new guidance also comes despite the UK Supreme Court ruling in April 2025 that the legal definition of sex under the Equality Act 2010 is based on biological sex at birth, not altered by a Gender Recognition Certificate.

The latest development is thus a massive step backward, allowing activist-driven policies to once again infiltrate education while sidelining science and parental authority.

With detransition lawsuits mounting and evidence mounting against hasty transitions, protecting children’s innocence from ideological overreach remains paramount.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/14/2026 - 08:10

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