My cousin in Berlin warned me about their new hate speech laws before I visited

He said joking about certain historical stuff online could get you fined, even as a tourist. I thought he was overreacting until I saw a guy get questioned by police for a dumb meme he posted at a cafe. It made me realize how a law meant to protect can just shut down normal talk. Anyone else get a chill from seeing free speech limits up close like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

abby_henderson1mo ago

Yeah that stuff is wild. Saw something similar in London last year, cops getting called over a political cartoon someone shared. It's never just about the "bad" speech, the line always creeps into regular jokes and opinions. Makes you appreciate the messy free for all back home even with all its problems.

robin4891mo ago

That London case Abby mentioned shows how fast those speech laws can spread.