Free Speech Union council member Dane Giraud speaks with Ashley Church  - a prominent media commentator on politics and property - about the religious impulse driving the "woke doctrine" and the challenges it poses for traditional text-based Christians like Ashley.  The boys also touch on the pros and cons of progressive congregations in a wide-ranging discussion on today's competing belief systems fsu.nz 

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Climate change dominates tense debate around the world. Some aren't satisfied with just words however and are taking dramatic protest actions like blocking motorways and gluing their hands to roads to demand the attention they believe this crisis demands.

In this podcast, Jonathan Ayling sits with Simeon Brown MP to discuss his proposed Bill to increase the penalty for those who protest by disrupting key infrastructure. He is also joined by climate change activist James Cockle - himself no stranger to controversial protest - to discuss the limits of free speech, and whether disruption is a winning strategy to persuade kiwis to consume less. 

Enjoy a great debate! And don't forget to share this podcast fsu.nz/join  

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In today's special episode, Free Speech Union board members Dane Giraud and Ani O'Brien discuss the emerging narrative that now-former Prime Minster Jacinda Ardern resigned due to online abuse.  Were the levels of abuse she faced unprecedented and have they been contributive to increased polarisation? Or is this a cynical attempt to limit criticism through censorship? fsu.nz/join 

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We kick off the year with a very special episode: New Zealand Free Speech Union Chief Executive Jonathan Ayling in discussion with his UK and South African counterparts Toby Young and Sara Gon respectively.  This inaugural meeting offers a chance to reflect on the global fight for free speech and to learn about the unique cultural challenges each union faces in 2023 and beyond. 

You can look forward to an assortment of invigorating and thought-provoking guests on the 2023 NZ Free Speech Union podcast as we steam into an election year determined to leave everything on the canvas! Enjoy! And don't forget to share the free speech message - and all our wonderful content - with friends and family fsu.nz/join 

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Tune in for this special end-of-year discussion with guests Karl du Fresne, Prof Natasha Hamilton-Hart, and Alex Penk for a 'stock take' of the work the Free Speech Union has done in 2022. Will our guests give us a pass mark? Enjoy! fsu.nz 

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The Free Speech Union's Chief Executive Jonathan Ayling sat down with Paul Goldsmith MP, National's Justice Spokesperson, Prof. Paul Moon, a prominent historian from AUT, Dr. Michael Johnson from the New Zealand Initiative, and Prof. Ananish Chaudhuri, an economist from Auckland University at the recent Free Speech Union AGM to discuss the importance of fostering a culture of free speech. The panel started by noting the differences in the relatively strong legal defense to free speech which Kiwis still enjoy, which is at odds with the current recession of free speech culturally. Enjoy! fsu.nz/join 

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The Free Speech Union celebrated a victory with Justice Minister Kiri Allen announcing the government would be dropping proposed hate speech laws. But the single inclusion of religion means we still have a fight on our hands. Could it really soon become harder to criticise religion? In a thoughtful and far-ranging discussion, Dr. Michael Johnson (NZ Initiative) and Marcus Roberts (Maxim Institute) wrestle with this possibility along with examining the concept of "settled science" and whether the horrors of totalitarianism becoming a distant memory is behind a new generation taking their freedoms for granted. fsu.net/join 

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Free Speech Chief Executive Jonathan Ayling sat down with respected journalists Janet Wilson and Yvonne van Dongen to discuss the health of the New Zealand media in regard to fostering free and open debate. Are we seeing a new bias? Is ideology polluting journalism and undermining public trust? What role or responsibility does a journalist have in combatting mis or disinformation? And are the majority of contemporary journalists even trying to speak to the masses, or is their audience themselves (their own class)? A fascinating, bold, and revealing discussion on free speech and the press in New Zealand from two of our most experienced journalists. Enjoy! fsu.net/join 

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Free Speech Union member Daphna Whitmore and council member Dane Giraud discuss the Curia poll featured in a Herald recent piece from Left-wing commentator Bryce Edwards that found lower-socio-economic communities stood against the government's Hate Speech laws. Why is this? Weren't such laws supposedly sought by vulnerable, multicultural communities? Dane and Daphna (both South Aucklanders) discuss the myriad reasons why the working class has always rejected state censorship, and the team recaps their thoughts on the recent Free Speech Union AGM. The link to Bryce's piece is below...

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/bryce-edwards-why-labour-government-capitulated-on-hate-speech-laws/RGKOXGGXGBA5NN7QYGIK4SMWDU/

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Free Speech Union member Daphna Whitmore speaks with Dr. Forough Amin about what’s happening in Iran after two months of growing protests across the country.  Forough is a women's rights activist and the founder of the Iranian Women in NZ Charitable Trust.  Forough discusses the dire state of civil rights in Iran, the rigid power of the regime, the important role women and youth are playing in the protests, and reveals the origin of the slogan "Women, Life, Freedom". https://www.facebook.com/IWIN.Charity/

Correction: The town where Ruhollah Khomeini's house was set fire to by protesters is referred to as Khomeini Shah in the interview. The correct name of the town is "Khomein".  

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