CRACKS APPEAR IN PUBLIC DISCOURSE AS GOVERNMENT WEIGHS PROTEST CURBS
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is considering new powers to limit protests, citing their 'cumulative effect' on communities and public order.
#ProtestLaws, #UKPolitics, #CivilLiberties, #KeirStarmer, #PublicOrder
https://newsletter.tf/uk-government-may-limit-protests-cumulative-effect/
Prime Minister Starmer signaled a potential crackdown on protests, saying the government needs 'further powers' to manage demonstrations.
#ProtestLaws, #UKPolitics, #CivilLiberties, #KeirStarmer, #PublicOrder
https://newsletter.tf/uk-government-may-limit-protests-cumulative-effect/
NSW Police Reviewing Charges After Protest Laws Struck Down
NSW police are reviewing charges for arrests made at a February 9, 2026, Sydney protest after laws used were struck down. See who is affected.
#NSWPolice, #ProtestLaws, #SydneyProtest, #LegalReview, #HerzogVisit
https://newsletter.tf/nsw-police-review-protest-charges-law-invalidated/
Charges are being reviewed for protesters arrested in Sydney on February 9, 2026, following a court decision. This is a change from the initial charges.
#NSWPolice, #ProtestLaws, #SydneyProtest, #LegalReview, #HerzogVisit
https://newsletter.tf/nsw-police-review-protest-charges-law-invalidated/
The #NewSouthWales #government's struck-down #ProtestLaws may have put taxpayers on the hook for #damages, as legal experts review the implications of yesterday's court outcome.
On Thursday afternoon the government was dealt a blow by the highest court in the state when it ruled that #expandedPolicepowers to #restrict #protests were #unconstitutional.
The controversial Public Assembly Restriction Declaration (PARD) laws were passed in the aftermath of the Bondi terrorist attack on Christmas Eve during an emergency sitting of parliament, allowing the police commissioner to restrict protests throughout parts of Greater Sydney until they ultimately lapsed on February 17.
Yesterday the Court of Appeal found the laws "impermissibly burdened" the implied right to #freedom of political communication under #Australia's #constitution.
The ruling has left Redfern Legal Centre reviewing its cases to determine whether #CivilDamages can be sought for its clients from #NSWPolice.
"We will be looking at the law to see what we would advise to those who participated in the protest and reviewing options to see if there is grounds for recourse," principal assistant Samantha Lee said.
"Lawyers will now be looking at that possibility."
During the nearly two months when public assemblies were restricted a #MajorEventsDeclaration was announced, which is a separate instrument not covered by the court's ruling.
"There are a few layers to this ongoing scenario, but certainly peeling off this layer [PARD] will make it a possibility of some civil action against possibly police," Ms Lee said.
The court's ruling creates an opportunity for people who were #charged with a #CriminalOffence during an #assembly that "could have been #lawful" to have the #ChargesWithdrawn, she said.
The ruling leaves the government exposed, but not vulnerable to a civil action, University of NSW law professor Luke McNamara said.
"What it will do is encourage closer #scrutiny of individual incidents that might provide the basis for civil damages in individual circumstances," he said.
"That's going to be case by case."
The government can seek an appeal before the #HighCourtOfAustralia, but Professor McNamara described the Court of Appeal's ruling as robust.
"The [Court of Appeal] applied a pretty familiar conventional three-part test that has been endorsed by the High Court of Australia," he said.
"It would be a brave government, I think, to take on this matter on appeal."
News of the court ruling was met with praise from pro-democracy groups.
The NSW Council for #CivilLiberties said the ruling was a repudiation of "draconian" laws. It claimed police "knowingly wielded unconstitutional powers to harass and silence citizens protesting peacefully".
"While the courts have been able to protect our freedoms today, we have seen many examples in the past where the structure of our democracy, and an elected parliament at its core, prevents them from doing so," president Timothy Roberts said.
The #HumanRightsLawCentre legal director Sarah Schwartz said "NSW Police should drop all charges against people who peacefully protested on 6 February who were subject to police harassment and violence".
The #AustralianDemocracyNetwork said a review was needed on how protests are policed and regulated in the state.
"Protest is a fundamental democratic right," campaigner Anastasia Radievska said.
"Any restriction must be justified and proportionate, and these laws went too far."
The government and the opposition independently described the court's ruling as disappointing.
The government is considering the court's decision.
"The NSW government absolutely stands by the decision to introduce this legislation," Premier Chris Minns said.
"We believe it was necessary and important for Sydney at the time."
Shadow Attorney-General Damien Tudehope blamed the government for rushing the legislation through.
"The NSW Liberals and Nationals consistently warned Labor against rushing through complex legislation before it could be thoroughly examined," he said.
"[Yesterday's] decision is a consequence of that rushed approach."
#auspol #Minns #NSWpol
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-04-17/nsw-protest-laws-damages-charges-withdrawn-legal-experts/106573150
How new protest laws are impacting political demonstrations
More than a dozen states have passed laws regulating protests in recent years, raising concerns among free-speech advocates.
By Akilah Johnson,
January 2, 2026
Excerpt: "While serving in the Florida state legislature, #RandyFine helped pass legislation that provides some protection under certain circumstances to drivers who hit #protesters blocking #roadways. In Congress, the Republican representative has introduced a similar bill — what he calls the '#ThumpThumpAct' — for drivers who may encounter protesters in other parts of the country.
" 'When the consequences for inappropriate behavior are severe enough, people will stop doing it,' Fine said. 'Blocking roads is a form of political terrorism. They should get run over.'
"Florida is one of more than a dozen states that have cracked down on protests in recent years, passing laws that often equate political demonstrations with riots in ways that #FirstAmendment experts say could be illegal.
"Since 2017, 23 states have passed at least 55 laws to address how and when people can protest, according to the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law, which tracks such statutes. The laws do such things as mandate at least 30 days in jail for rioting — often loosely defined as a group involved in tumultuous or potentially violent behavior — restrict protests on college campuses, and imprison and fine people who block sidewalks, streets and highways.
"Some lawmakers like Fine want federal legislation that mirrors those efforts. Among the 16 pending federal bills are proposals to tighten restrictions on protesting near federal judges, jurors or court staff; strip #nonprofits of their tax status for certain #protest-related activities; and block people convicted of rioting from small business aid.
"First Amendment advocates warn that the patchwork of state laws, pending federal bills and court battles risk rewriting the rules of public demonstrations. There are already laws to prosecute violent behavior, making these new efforts unnecessary, they say.
There have been few arrests or prosecutions under the recently passed protest laws, but free-speech advocates say the measures can be used to control or dissuade would-be demonstrators.
" 'What we have consistently seen is lawmakers responding to protest movements by introducing new laws that restrict the #RightToProtest,' said Elly Page, senior legal adviser for U.S. programs at the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law."
Read more:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2026/01/02/anti-protest-laws-randy-fine/
Archived version:
https://archive.ph/yyFNm
#AntiProtestLaws #USPol #ProtestLaws
#Project2025 #Authoritarianism #Fascism #SilencingDissent #CriminalizingProtest #BlockingTraffic
#SB743: Steep penalties for #protests near places of worship
Creates sweeping, vaguely-defined new crimes that can cover peaceful protesters near any place where people are engaged in religious worship, or along routes to such places. The new law increases penalties and expands the scope of a preexisting offense for “willfully disturb[ing], interrupt[ing], or disquiet[ing]” an “assemblage of people met for religious worship.” Under the new law it is a serious misdemeanor to knowingly approach someone and engage in certain expressive activity, including chanting or holding signs, within 100 feet of a place where people are meeting for religious worship. The bill explicitly includes such conduct occurring on public sidewalks. As written, the offense could seemingly cover demonstrators who happen to be marching past a church or synagogue and encounter worshippers on the sidewalk outside, even fleetingly. The law also creates a serious misdemeanor for “obstructing in any manner” traffic along any highway within a mile of a place where people are meeting for religious worship. The offense does not require that an individual know or intend to impede access to such a place; as written, it would seemingly cover protest activity that slows highway traffic anywhere within a mile of any house of worship—or any other location where there is an “assemblage of people met for religious worship,” such as a prayer circle in a public park. The offenses are punishable by up to one year in jail and $500 for a first offense; subsequent offenses are a felony subject to up to two years in prison and $1,000. Lawmakers advanced the bill in 2025, but adopted it in emergency sessions in 2026 citing recent protests including one inside a church in St. Paul, MN.
Status: enacted
Introduced 25 Mar 2025; Approved by Senate 27 March 2025; Approved by House 6 May 2025; Approved by Senate 4 February 2026; Signed by Governor Stitt 6 February 2026
Source:
https://www.icnl.org/usprotestlawtracker/
Full text of bill:
https://www.oklegislature.gov/BillInfo.aspx?Bill=sb743&Session=2600
#AntiProtestLaws #USPol #ProtestLaws
#Project2025 #Authoritarianism
#Fascism #SilencingDissent #CriminalizingProtest
#NorthDakota - 'Mask bill' passes Senate
By Dave Thompson
Published April 10, 2025
"The state Senate has passed a measure that would prohibit someone from wearing a mask or hood with an intent to hide their identity.
The bill – HB 1226 – applies when people commit crimes or gather in public places during a protest."
Source:
https://news.prairiepublic.org/local-news/2025-04-10/mask-bill-passes-senate
From #USProtestLawTracker:
North Dakota
HB 1226: New criminal penalties for masked protesters
Creates a serious new crime that can cover peaceful protesters who choose to wear a mask. The law makes it a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and $3,000, to wear a mask “with the intent to conceal the identity” of the wearer while “congregating in a public place with other individuals wearing a mask, hood, or other device that covers, hides, or conceals any portion of the individual’s face.” The bill exempts public gatherings to celebrate “Halloween, a masquerade, or other similar celebration,” but does not include exemptions for masks worn during protests, or worn for health, religious, or other reasons. As written, the law can cover a protester wearing a mask to avoid retaliation for their political speech, if there are other individuals in the crowd also wearing a mask—for instance, a medical mask to avoid spreading or contracting a contagious disease.
(See full text of bill here)
Status: enacted
Introduced 13 Jan 2025; Approved by House 10 February 2025; Approved by Senate 9 April 2025; Signed by Governor Armstrong 23 April 2025
Issue(s): Face Covering
https://www.icnl.org/usprotestlawtracker/
#AntiProtestLaws #USPol #AntiMaskLaws #ProtestLaws #Project2025 #Authoritarianism #Fascism #SilencingDissent #CriminalizingProtest
Western Australia Proposes New Laws to Restrict "Hate-Promoting" Protests
Western Australia is proposing new laws to give police more power to stop protests that might promote hate. Learn why and what people think.
#WesternAustralia, #ProtestLaws, #FreeSpeech, #PublicSafety, #Community
The Western Australian government wants to make new laws. These laws would let police stop protests if they think the protests might cause hate or trouble. The government says this is to keep people safe and united.
#WesternAustralia, #ProtestLaws, #FreeSpeech, #PublicSafety, #Community
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