Latest news with #ChrisElston
Fox News
4 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Police arrest ‘Billboard Chris,' Christian activist in EU capital for denouncing child transgender treatments
Belgian police arrested a prominent conservative activist and an Alliance Defending Freedom International employee in the European Union capital of Brussels on Thursday while they were displaying signs opposing transgender medical treatment for kids. Chris Elston, also known as "Billboard Chris," and ADF International official Lois McLatchie Miller were detained by Brussels police while protesting gender-affirming care for children. They were released after several hours and not charged but were instructed to destroy their signs. "Chris and I were arrested for stating a simple truth in public: no child is born in the wrong body. I called the police because we were being surrounded and felt threatened. But instead of addressing the aggression of the mob, the police arrested us—two people standing peacefully with signs, open to conversation," McLatchie Miller told Fox News Digital. "That this happened in the heart of Europe is deeply troubling. If speaking up for children is now grounds for arrest, then our freedom to speak the truth on any important issue is truly in danger," the ADF International employee added. Elston, well known for wearing billboards decrying transgender medical treatment for children out in public, stood out in the streets of the Belgian capital alongside McLatchie Miller. Both wore billboards, with the ADF employee's sign reading, "Children are never born in the wrong body" and Elston's reading, "Children cannot consent to puberty blockers." According to ADF International's press release, the signs drew a crowd of onlookers, some of whom got aggressive. In a video recorded before their arrest, Elston showed Brussels police forming a ring around him and his colleague to keep onlookers from getting too close. "And we have quite a scene unfolding in Brussels, Belgium," Elston said in the recording. "We have been getting incredibly harassed for about the last hour. We've remained perfectly calm as always, having conversations about what is the greatest child abuse scandal in modern medicine history." Elston continued, saying they were the ones who called the police to protect them from harassment; however, he noted that the officers then ordered them to put away their signs. "We called the police because a man was harassing and following Lois everywhere she went, trying to stop us from filming. The police have now arrived, and they've told me I have to put – and Lois – they've told us we have to put our signs away. I have refused. He said I was violating the law. I said, 'What law?' He can't name it," he said. Elston added that he was told he was going to be arrested, stating, "So I said, 'That's fine. Go ahead.'" ADF International's press release stated the two were eventually arrested and taken to two separate police stations, where they were "ordered to remove their clothes and searched." They were released several hours later. In a statement, ADF International executive director Paul Coleman ripped Brussels' government for the action. "The Belgian authorities not only failed to uphold the fundamental right to speak freely, they turned the power of the state against those who were peacefully exercising their rights at the behest of a mob," he said. "This is the type of authoritarianism we challenge in other parts of the world, and it's deeply disturbing to see it here in the very heart of Europe. While we are grateful our colleague has been safely released, we are deeply concerned by her treatment at the hands of the police in Brussels," Coleman added. Fox News Digital reached out to the Belgian police for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Fox News
11-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Free speech advocates praise Trump admin for speaking out on global censorship
A Canadian free speech advocate who was fined by Australian authorities spoke out after the U.S. State Department appeared to come to his defense. "It's phenomenal. The Trump administration has been tremendous on this issue," Chris Elston, popularly known as "Billboard Chris" for his custom of wearing sandwich boards with slogans on them, said. In the Australian case, Elston had been fined $806 for "obstructing public movement" in response to displaying his billboard reading "children cannot consent to puberty blockers." Elston said he was peacefully conversing with members of the public and was issued a police "move on" order before being sent away. That incident was separate from a legal challenge Elston launched in April against the country's eSafety commission after the government had his tweet of a Daily Mail article about a transgender activist seated on an Australian board. "It's such a zealous overuse of authority," Elston said. "We don't elect [officials] to decide what we can say." After he was censored, the case was included in a tweet from a State Department bureau decrying government censorship and their coercion of tech companies into targeting individuals. "Freedom of expression must be protected – online and offline," it tweeted. "Examples of this conduct are troublingly numerous. EU Commissioner Thierry Breton threatened X for hosting political speech; Türkiye fined Meta for refusing to restrict content about protests; and Australia required X to remove a post criticizing an individual for promoting gender ideology." "The United States opposes efforts to undermine freedom of expression." Lois McLatchie Miller of Alliance Defending Freedom International, which has been defending Elston, said the group believes "everybody has the right to live and speak their truth, and Chris is a great example of that." "[W]e stood up with Chris alongside the Human Rights Law Alliance in Australia to defend free speech there, but we also see in my own country in the U.K., where people are having censorship thrust upon them, even being arrested for expressing their views."
News.com.au
08-05-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
‘Censorship': United States government slams Australia for ‘coercing' tech companies
The United States has accused Australia of 'coercing' Elon Musk's social media platform, X, into 'censoring' free speech, as part of a broader complaint about foreign countries pressuring the tech giants. At issue is a decision taken by Australia's eSafety Commissioner to require that X remove a post by Chris Elston, a Canadian campaigner against 'gender ideology'. Mr Elston is known online as 'Billboard Chris'. The tweet in question, from February of 2024, took aim at an Australian transgender activist, Teddy Cook, who had been appointed to an advisory panel at the World Health Organisation. Mr Elston misgendered Mr Cook, who identifies as male, and suggested global guidelines for dealing with trans issues were being written by 'people who belong in psychiatric wards'. He later acknowledged it was 'not my nicest tweet ever', but insisted it was accurate. 'These kids are lost and confused and they're being lied to, but there are clearly psychiatric issues, and as per all the scientific evidence, the children who end up in these gender clinics are struggling with various mental health comorbidities,' Mr Elston said. Mr Cook complained to the eSafety Commission, which issued a takedown request for the post, saying it 'deliberately' misgendered him in a way 'likely intended to invalidate and mock the complainant's gender identity'. X and Mr Elston both challenged that decision, prompting a more formal removal order. Mr Elston's tweet is now geoblocked in Australia, but remains visible overseas. The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour, which is housed in America's State Department, has cited the case as a reason to be 'concerned' about governments 'coercing' tech companies. 'The Department of State is deeply concerned about efforts by governments to coerce American tech companies into targeting individuals for censorship. Freedom of expression must be protected, online and offline,' the bureau said in a statement. 'Examples of this conduct are troublingly numerous. EU Commissioner Thierry Breton threatened X for hosting political speech; Turkiye fined Meta for refusing to restrict content about protests; and Australia required X to remove a post criticising an individual for promoting gender ideology. 'Even when content may be objectionable, censorship undermines democracy, suppresses political opponents, and degrades public safety. 'The United States opposes efforts to undermine freedom of expression. As (American Secretary of State Marco) Rubio said, our diplomacy will continue to place an emphasis on promoting fundamental freedoms.' Here's a very brief summary of the two non-Australian examples. Mr Breton, a Frenchman who was, at the time, commissioner for the internal market of the European Union, was accused of going rogue when he sent a letter to Mr Musk threatening consequences if content on X placed European Union citizens at risk of 'serious harm'. Turkey fined Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, for resisting pressure from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government to restrict content from its political opponents. Meta said the content was 'clearly in the public interest'. 'Government requests to restrict speech online alongside threats to shut down online services are severe and have a chilling effect on people's ability to express themselves,' the company said in a statement at the time. Back to Australia. Last month, the eSafety Commissioner and Mr Elston both testified before the Administrative Review Tribunal in Melbourne. The Commissioner argued the X post was likely 'intended to have an effect of causing serious harm'. Mr Elston was asked why he had chosen to write the post. 'Because the World Health Organisation has global influence,' he said. 'We should have evidence-based care.' Mr Elston is being supported by the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative American legal advocacy group, and Australia's Human Rights Law Alliance, which is associated with the Christian lobby. 'The decision of Australian authorities to prevent Australian citizens from hearing and evaluating information about gender ideology is a patronising affront to the principles of democracy,' said Robert Clarke, ADF International's director of advocacy. 'The confidence of the Australian eSafety commissioner to censor citizens of Canada on an American platform shows the truly global nature of the free speech crisis. 'Speaking up for free speech is critical at this juncture, and we're proud to be backing Billboard Chris as he does just that.' Mr Elston himself has welcomed the US State Department's intervention. 'It's tremendous to have the State Department support what we all know is true: free speech is a fundamental right, critical to a democratic society,' he said. 'If our free speech can't be protected when we speak out against the greatest child abuse scandal in the world right now, when can it be?'
Perth Now
03-05-2025
- Politics
- Perth Now
‘Concerning': US' wild move against Australia
The US State Department has taken the unusual step of calling out the Australian government for 'censorship', after an anti-trans activist's posts on X were geo-blocked for being 'offensive'. Canadian internet personality and anti-trans protester Chris Elston, better known on the internet at 'Billboard Chris', has received support from the White House while he waits for a tribunal judgment after taking the Australian government to court over its demand to have an 'offensive' post removed. Canadian internet personality and anti-trans protester Chris Elston, better known on the internet at 'Billboard Chris', Instagram Credit: Supplied Mr Elston 49, was last year ordered by the Australian eSafety Commissioner to take down a post on X attacking a transgender activist who was hired by the World Health Organisation to draft care guidelines for trans and non-binary people. X initially refused to take the content down but later geo-blocked it in Australia following a formal removal order from the eSafety Commissioner. Australia's eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant at the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee Estimates at Parliament House in Canberra. NewsWire / Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia The US Department of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor published a statement on social media on Thursday saying it was 'deeply concerned' by the decision to remove the post. 'The Department of State is deeply concerned about efforts by governments to coerce American tech companies into targeting individuals for censorship,' the statement said. 'Freedom of expression must be protected – online and offline. 'Examples of this conduct are troublingly numerous. EU Commissioner Thierry Breton threatened X for hosting political speech; Türkiye fined Meta for refusing to restrict content about protests; and Australia required X to remove a post criticizing an individual for promoting gender ideology. 'Even when content may be objectionable, censorship undermines democracy, suppresses political opponents, and degrades public safety. 'The United States opposes efforts to undermine freedom of expression. As [US Secretary of State Marco Rubio] said, our diplomacy will continue to place an emphasis on promoting fundamental freedoms.' The Australian eSafety Commissioner defended the decision to remove the post, arguing that it was 'likely … intended to have an effect of causing serious harm' and constituted 'cyber abuse', and should therefore be removed in accordance with Australia's Online Safety Act. The eSafety Commissioner issued a 'removal notice' to Mr Elston in April last year, after he re-posted a Daily Mail article headlined 'Kinky secrets of UN trans expert REVEALED: Australian activist plugs bondage, bestiality, nudism, drugs, and tax-funded sex-change ops – so why is he writing health advice for the world body?'. In the X post, Mr Elston added the comment: 'This woman (yes, she's female) is part of a panel of 20 'experts' hired by the @WHO to draft their policy on caring for 'trans people.' 'People who belong in psychiatric wards are writing the guidelines for people who belong in psychiatric wards.' Canadian internet personality and anti-trans protester Chris Elston, better known on the internet at 'Billboard Chris', speaking at the United Nations in Geneva. Instagram Credit: Supplied The decision from the tribunal is expected to be handed down in the second half of this year. Mr Elston's bio on X says he is a 'human male who protects his kids from gender ideology. Traveling (sic) the world to stop child transition one conversation at a time'. Since 2020, Mr Elston has gained a following of more than 500,000 users on X, where he shares videos of him standing with his signs with slogans such as 'children cannot consent to puberty blockers' in cities around the world. The incident comes as foreign policy experts have described the relationship between the Trump administration and the Australian government as terse, following reports the President will not answer calls from the Prime Minister to negotiate 'Liberation Day' tariffs.
News.com.au
03-05-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
White House calls out Australian eSafety Commissioner for ‘censorship'
The US State Department has taken the unusual step of calling out the Australian government for 'censorship', after an anti-trans activist's posts on X were geo-blocked for being 'offensive'. Canadian internet personality and anti-trans protester Chris Elston, better known on the internet at 'Billboard Chris', has received support from the White House while he waits for a tribunal judgment after taking the Australian government to court over its demand to have an 'offensive' post removed. Mr Elston 49, was last year ordered by the Australian eSafety Commissioner to take down a post on X attacking a transgender activist who was hired by the World Health Organisation to draft care guidelines for trans and non-binary people. X initially refused to take the content down but later geo-blocked it in Australia following a formal removal order from the eSafety Commissioner. The US Department of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor published a statement on social media on Thursday saying it was 'deeply concerned' by the decision to remove the post. 'The Department of State is deeply concerned about efforts by governments to coerce American tech companies into targeting individuals for censorship,' the statement said. 'Freedom of expression must be protected – online and offline. 'Examples of this conduct are troublingly numerous. EU Commissioner Thierry Breton threatened X for hosting political speech; Türkiye fined Meta for refusing to restrict content about protests; and Australia required X to remove a post criticizing an individual for promoting gender ideology. 'Even when content may be objectionable, censorship undermines democracy, suppresses political opponents, and degrades public safety. 'The United States opposes efforts to undermine freedom of expression. As [US Secretary of State Marco Rubio] said, our diplomacy will continue to place an emphasis on promoting fundamental freedoms.' The Australian eSafety Commissioner defended the decision to remove the post, arguing that it was 'likely … intended to have an effect of causing serious harm' and constituted 'cyber abuse', and should therefore be removed in accordance with Australia's Online Safety Act. The eSafety Commissioner issued a 'removal notice' to Mr Elston in April last year, after he re-posted a Daily Mail article headlined 'Kinky secrets of UN trans expert REVEALED: Australian activist plugs bondage, bestiality, nudism, drugs, and tax-funded sex-change ops – so why is he writing health advice for the world body?'. In the X post, Mr Elston added the comment: 'This woman (yes, she's female) is part of a panel of 20 'experts' hired by the @WHO to draft their policy on caring for 'trans people.' 'People who belong in psychiatric wards are writing the guidelines for people who belong in psychiatric wards.' The decision from the tribunal is expected to be handed down in the second half of this year. Mr Elston's bio on X says he is a 'human male who protects his kids from gender ideology. Traveling (sic) the world to stop child transition one conversation at a time'. Since 2020, Mr Elston has gained a following of more than 500,000 users on X, where he shares videos of him standing with his signs with slogans such as 'children cannot consent to puberty blockers' in cities around the world. The incident comes as foreign policy experts have described the relationship between the Trump administration and the Australian government as terse, following reports the President will not answer calls from the Prime Minister to negotiate 'Liberation Day' tariffs.
