17
                                            October
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Christian in Pakistan Charged with Blasphemy for Bible Post on Facebook
                                        
                                                                                                           Pakistani Christian community overwhelmed after a posting on Facebook.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            19
                                            July
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           T shirts and Thought Police
                                        
                                                                                                           In this day and age in Canada, the default is not always tolerance of others. For some, the only thing that matters is forcing everyone into their image. How does it come to be that someone's T shirt could ruin your day?
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            14
                                            July
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Bard of the Prairies
                                        
                                                                                                           If you want to better understand how rural Western Canadians view the world, here is a unique perspective on a great young artist, Colter Wall.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            10
                                            July
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Is praying speaking?
                                        
                                                                                                           Officials in various countries attempt to control even the prayers of their citizens. Kazakhstan has been aggressively targeting those who dare to pray without state permission. 
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            11
                                            April
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Anti-Trans Activist Appears To Have Dropped Plans To Include Canada On Current Tour
                                        
                                                                                                           Interesting how various ‘human rights’ organizations present Human rights. To label oneself ‘Antihate’ would seem to indicate an openness to hearing a variety of perspectives, rather than choosing one position and working to eliminate all others.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            02
                                            April
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Free to Speak!
                                        
                                                                                                           This prophetic article from 2019 discusses how the web is a threat to governments which wish to control or repress information.   Now in countries around the world, including Canada, there are moves to take control of the internet.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            31
                                            January
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Hostility Against Churches Is on the Rise in the United States
                                        
                                                                                                           Family Research Council is finding acts of vandalism, arsons, bomb threats, gun-related incidents, and other acts of hostility perpetrated against churches in the United States have been steadily on the rise for the past several years.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            15
                                            October
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Internet Freedom issues are increasingly important, and controversial
                                        
                                                                                                           The Internet Freedom Project by 21Wilburforc is a good tool to educate ourselves on how internet censorship and control can affect an individual’s opportunity to participate fully in society.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            29
                                            September
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Iranian authorities increase attacks on journalists in response to September protests.
                                        
                                                                                                           Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the Iranian government to immediately stop the suppression of journalists, to release the ones in detention, to allow free media to have access to information and to restore the network integrity.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            28
                                            June
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Free speech decision in Washington DC overturns lower court restrictions
                                        
                                                                                                           A trio of pro-life counselors won a major free speech legal victory when a District of Columbia appeals court ordered a lower court to dismiss a lawsuit against them.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            28
                                            June
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           The Invisible Jihad: the Treatment of Christians by Iran Proxies
                                        
                                                                                                           A new report examines the use of proxy militias in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen by the Iranian government that have played a significant role in the dramatic decline of Christians in the region.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
			
			Päivi Räsänen, Finland’s interior minister from 2011 to 2015. | Courtesy of ADF International.
           
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            27
                                            April
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Finnish MP wins on all charges in major free speech trial
                                        
                                                                                                           All charges against Finnish , MP Päivi Räsänen and Bishop Pohjola are unanimously dismissed following high-profile free speech trial. The former Finnish Minister of the Interior, faced three criminal charges for sharing her faith.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            25
                                            April
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Canadians are on the verge of seeing their internet regulated by the gov’t
                                        
                                                                                                           Canadians are on the verge of seeing their internet regulated by the gov’t if they don’t contact their MPs
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            11
                                            April
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           ADF General Counsel Kristen Waggoner Harassed at Yale Law School Event
                                        
                                                                                                           Campuses are becoming places of repression rather than education. Even the supposedly ‘top’ of schools are no longer able to guarantee basics such as freedom of speech.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            10
                                            April
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Time to Challenge Compelled Speech?
                                        
                                                                                                           We have an interesting article discussing the (relatively) new phenomenon of ‘compelled speech’.  An increasing number of educational institutions have adopted political statements that they require employees and prospective employees to agree to.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            10
                                            April
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Religious Liberty Tested in Finland
                                        
                                                                                                           A very comprehensive and compelling analysis of freedom of speech issues in Finland and the EU sphere as former Minister of the government of Finland has been tried on freedom of speech issues, even after the police recommended charges be dismissed.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            29
                                            January
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Social Media's Role in Attack on Minorities in the Middle East
                                        
                                                                                                           Colleagues of mine are involved in a variety of projects. Here’s a video of the Anti-Defamation League Task Force on Middle East Minorities webinar, “Inciting and Enabling the Mob: Social Media’s Role in Attacks on Minorities in the Middle East.†
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            29
                                            January
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Finland Persues Charges Against Member of Parliament for Expressing Her Faith View
                                        
                                                                                                           Ongoing case of Finland legislator being persecuted for her faith perspectives and communication of it
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            18
                                            December
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Foreign influencers used to whitewash Xinjiang abuses: Report
                                        
                                                                                                           The power of governments to manipulate reality is demonstrated by the Chinese governments ability to establish ‘foreign influencers’ to carry its version of what is happening in Xinjiang.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            21
                                            August
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           A year and a half - comments on Covid-19
                                        
                                                                                                           Its been an unusual year and a half to say the least.   I want to share my thoughts and comments here over the next little while about COVID and provide additional insights into what has been happening in this pandemic.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            02
                                            August
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Chinese Pastors Ordered to Preach on President's Speech
                                        
                                                                                                           President Xi Jinping continues his attempts to hijack the faith of Chinese Christians and pastors
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            06
                                            July
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Christian organisations in Europe blacklisted as anti-gender religious extremists by MPs
                                        
                                                                                                           Bizarre rhetoric around prolife issues expose the paranoid misrepresentations of EU prochoice MPs. I guess the notion is if you call someone something that means they must be that very thing. Extremely dangerous when those who do it are in power.
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            06
                                            July
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Controversial “anti-rights black list†in Argentina includes pastors, churches and evangelicals
                                        
                                                                                                           Incredibly dangerous moves by Planned Parenthood to try to isolate and violate the rights of many groups in Argentina. 
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            27
                                            June
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           China shuts down Bible App and Christian WeChat
                                        
                                                                                                           The Chinese government continues harassment of Christians by further interfering with their ability to access Christian material and websites, even as state sponsored churches crank up their indoctrination using President Xi’ promotional propaganda
                                         
                                     
                             
                                
                                
                                                     
  
                                
                                
                                    
                                        
                                            27
                                            June
                                        
                                        
                                            
                                        
                           Flattered to Be on China’s Sanctions List 
                                        
                                                                                                            Criticism of the Chinese government typically attracts a quick reaction. Two Commissioners of the USCIRF respond to being placed on the Chinese Communist Party’s sanctions list.