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US President Joe Biden has ended a two-day visit to Poland by delivering a speech in the courtyard of Warsaws Royal Castle in which he began and ended by drawing on the Polish peoples resistance to Soviet-imposed communism as inspiration for Ukraines resistance today against Russia.

Biden started by quoting the famous words of Polish Pope John Paul II Be not afraid which he uttered during his inauguration in 1978. The US president then repeated them again as he finished his address.

They were words that would change the world, said Biden, showing the power of faith, power of resilience, power of the people in the face of a cruel and brutal system of governmenthelping end Soviet repression in Central and Eastern Europe.

Biden also cited the importance of Solidarity and its leader, Lech Wasa, in bringing down Polands communist regime, as well as of Warsaw itself.

This city holds a sacred place in humankinds unending search for freedom, he declared. For generations, Warsaw has stood where liberty has been challenged and liberty has prevailed.

Now, continued the US president, it is Ukraine and its people in the front line[of] the perennial struggle for democracy and freedom. But, as during the Cold War, this battle will not be won in days or months; we need to steel ourselves for the long fight ahead.

But in that struggle, my message to the people of Ukraine iswe stand with you, period, declared Biden, to applause from the crowd in Warsaw. Among the spectators were Polands president, Andrzej Duda, and prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki.

Earlier in the day, during a meeting with refugees in Warsaw who are among the more than two million to have fled Ukraine for Poland since Russias invasion, Biden described Vladimir Putin as a butcher.

For Gods sake, this man cannot remain in power, the US president then declared during his speech at the Royal Castle. Later, the White House said that Biden had not been calling for regime change, simply saying that Putin cannot be allowed to exercise power over his neighbours or the region, reports CNN.

In his speech, Biden also praised the Polish people for opening their hearts and their homes to Ukrainian refugees, who have been welcomed in Poland by a range of support from national and local authorities, NGOs, businesses, religious groups, and millions of individual Poles.

He also sought to reassure NATO allies in the region that, if they were attacked by Russia, the US would respect its sacred obligation to defend them. Dont even think about moving on one single inch of NATO territory, he warned Moscow.

At an earlier meeting with his Polish counterpart, Biden had likewise pledged that the US would respect its sacred commitment under Article 5 of the NATO treaty. Your freedom is ours, he told Duda, echoing a famous Polish motto.

Biden, along with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, also today met in Warsaw with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov.

Yesterday, after his arrival in Poland, Biden visited US troops stationed in Poland and, alongside Duda, met with representatives of NGOs who have been supporting refugees.

Main image credit: Slawomir Kaminski / Agencja Wyborcza.pl

Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief ofNotes from Poland. He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications, includingForeign Policy,POLITICO Europe,EUobserverandDziennik Gazeta Prawna.

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Biden draws on Poland's anti-communist history to inspire Ukraine resistance in Warsaw speech - Notes From Poland

Published: 3/29/2022 2:10:23 PM

Modified: 3/29/2022 2:09:27 PM

When I turned 10years old, I was allowed to take New York Citys public transportation to school. On board, one of the advertisements in particular caught my eye. It proclaimed in bold block letters, Stand up and be counted in the fight against Communism. The slogan included a graphic of an all-American Everyman standing up, arms akimbo, gazing upwards to the beacon of liberty. No doubt, he would stand up to communism by denouncing his liberal neighbors to the House Un-American Activities Committee (when my parents were stationed in Texas during World War II, their neighbors thought they were communists because they had honeymooned in Europe!)

While the world watches in horror as Vladimir Putins forces in Ukraine destroy maternity hospitals, apartment buildings, shelters housing women and children as well as other civilian targets, Im watching in equal horror as American right-wing conservatives cheer Putin and openly support Russia. The American Right has degenerated to the point of mimicking Putins big lies about Ukraines non-existent bio-labs and its Neo-Nazi genocidal government, an odd accusation seeing that it is headed by a Jew whose ancestors were murdered by the Nazis. To add to the lunacy, QAnon, the racist, anti-Semitic conspiracy cult believes that COVID-19 began in Ukraine, not China.

Lost in the footage of the Ukraine invasion is a short clip of a Russian tank proudly flying the old red flag of the Soviet Union, emblazoned with the hammer and sickle of communism.

American conservatives supporting Vladimir Putin, a former communist KGB operative? Ronald Reagan must be spinning in his grave.

Global pundits have joined President Zelensky in casting the Ukraine war as a struggle between democracy and autocracy. But this struggle began in the United States years ago and has only gotten worse for those of us who favor the former. It has taken the form of sleazy Republican voter suppression tactics in a myriad of states and lately in the assault on free speech, gender equality and the blatant censorship of thought-provoking literature. The poster child of American authoritarian dictatorship is, of course, Donald Trump, an open admirer of Putins genius who has never been shy about his distaste for the democratic process and his wish of making himself president for life. The fact that 70% of Republicans still believe his big lie about a stolen 2020 election is frightening proof that our cherished institutions are in danger.

Historically, in times of stress and uncertainty, people gravitate towards a strongman, especially if the preceding democracy has been weak and ineffectual. Examples include the Weimar Republic of pre-Nazi Germany, the Russian Kerensky provisional government before the Bolsheviks overthrew it in 1917 and more recently, the upheaval endured during the inept administration of Boris Yeltsin. Adolf Hitler was elected by a popular majority and despite his seizure of absolute power, was adored by the German people.

The attack on American democracy has not gone unnoticed. Freedom House, which has tracked the rise and fall of global democracies for over 75 years, now ranks the United States 59th, below Argentina and Mongolia. In their report, they warned that we faced an acute crisis for democracy due to our limiting of political and civil liberties. A Swedish-based think tank specializing in the same subject, added the United States to its list of backsliding democracies.

Another aspect of autocratic dictatorship is the need to have a convenient scapegoat to channel the anger, fear and resentment of the people. It should never be forgotten that Donald Trump launched his 2016 presidential campaign by targeting Mexican immigrants as rapists and murderers. Thats all it took. It was like setting a match to a puddle of gasoline. The puddle being the innate racist fears of dark-skinned people taking over when in fact all they really want is to be included in the American Dream. The Republican attack on critical race theory has less to do with protecting our children than it is to rewrite history from a white supremacist standpoint.

So now is the time for Americans to stand up and be counted in the fight against authoritarianism. While democracy can be flawed, Winston Churchill got it right with his famous quote.

Many forms of government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.

Daniel A. Brown lived in Franklin County for 44 years and is a frequent contributor to the Recorder. He lives in New Mexico with his wife, Lisa and dog, Cody.

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My Turn: Stand up and be counted - The Recorder

More than 400 companies have withdrawn, at least temporarily, from Russia since it invaded Ukraine. Some have been there since the fall of communism symbols of the enduring power of Western culture and commerce.

By Alex Kalman,Antonio de Luca and Maia Coleman

Opened 1990

Its a rather complicated sandwich. A customer upon her first encounter with a Big Mac.

Opened 2010

Clothing is a necessity of life. The people of Russia have the same right to live as we do. Uniqlos founder, before reversing course.

Product sources: mcdonalds.ru; ikea.ru; cocacola.ru; pepsi.ru; Reynolds Innovations Inc.; ru.levi.com; uniqlo.com; dior.com; ferrari.com; pizzahut.ru; dhl.com; apple.ru; ford.com; bp.com; burgerking.ru; americanexpress.com; adidas.ru; harley-davidson.com; kfc.ru; louisvuitton.com; bulgari.com; dunkindonuts.com; delta.com; Andia/Universal Images Group, via Getty Images; cocacola.ru; littlecaesars.com; chanel.com; starbucks.com; skittles.com; dove.com; rsb.ru; playstation.ru; mms.com.

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These Are the Companies That Have Withdrawn From Russia - The New York Times

A substantial part of the Russia-Ukraine war is being fought in the digital space and it may now take its toll on major online services and platforms. The Russian government has warned Google, Apple, Meta, Twitter, TikTok, and others that they only have till the end of this month to comply with its new landing law. Meanwhile, agencies outside Russia are claiming the law to be just another attempt to increase internet censorship, and are advising tech majors to publicly oppose it.

The new Russian law, first presented in November last year, came into effect on January 1, 2022. It mandates foreign digital entities, including websites and social media platforms, with over 5 lakh daily users, to have a local leader in Russia. It also requires these companies to register as legal entities with Roskomnadzor, the national agency that controls the Russian mass media.

With the landing law, Russia also aims to prevent the practice of big tech firms having a minimal physical presence in the country, while still managing their operations online. It directs the companies to create an electronic form for both Russian citizens and the government authorities so that the companies can be contacted for complaints.

In November, the government had listed a total of 13 companies that must comply with the new landing law. These companies are - Apple, Google, Meta, Twitter, TikTok, Likeme, Pinterest, Viber, Telegram, Discord, Zoom, Spotify, and Twitch. The firms had been given till the end of February 2022 to comply with the law and take the necessary measures. Earlier this month, a Roskomnadzor official reiterated this deadline and warned the companies of penalties and possible shutdowns if these demands were not met.

The companies listed above have responded differently to Russia's demands. Some, like Apple, TikTok, and Spotify, have complied with the landing law. As mentioned by Roskomnadzor, Meta (Facebook's parent firm), and Twitter have only partially complied with the law. Twitch and Telegram have not accepted the terms, The New York Times reports.

On the sidelines, major platforms including Meta and Google have started placing bans on the Russian state media outlets. Blaming them for spreading misinformation around the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, Meta banned four Russian state media firms from running ads on its social networks and started independent fact-checking of their content. Google also placed restrictions on these media outlets, limiting their ability to earn revenue from YouTube advertising.

The Russian agency has responded accordingly. Roskomnadzor restricted access to Facebook in the country on Friday, by slowing down traffic. A similar restriction was also reported for Google services and Twitter.

The law is being enforced on the tech majors at a critical time that sees Russian forces storm Ukraine in the attempt of an invasion. While Russia pushes the companies to comply with the landing law, experts from other parts of the world warn that this is just another attempt by the nation to censor the information on the internet.

They argue that a local presence for the companies will make them vulnerable to intimidation by the government in the future. The state may then threaten the companies into complying with future demands through employee arrests, penalties, and restrictions, legal experts warn.

Simultaneously, the growing anti-Russia sentiment is leading to a widespread appeal to tech majors to limit their services in the country. As reported by The New York Times, officials and lawmakers in the US, Ukraine, and other parts of the world have urged the companies not to let their platforms be misused for spreading Kremlin propaganda.

While the big tech has acted against any such misuse of their services, it remains to be seen how well they can protect this integrity of their products and services in Russia and other parts of the world.

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Tech majors in a bind as Russia seeks to tighten internet ...

Childrens authors and performers say growing censorship, institutional timidity and online backlash are resulting in stories about diversity, sexuality and even contemporary world events being deemed inappropriate for younger readers.

It feels like were living through a second section 28, but one that the UK government has outsourced to an anonymous Twitter lobby, one performer says.

When acclaimed gay author Simon James Green was banned from school visits in the south of England by the Catholic church last month, it drew attention to what many believe is a developing trend that mirrors the escalating censorship of childrens reading in the US, described by Art Speigelman recently as a culture war thats totally out of control.

Savita Kalhan was expecting to take a school assembly with a group of teenagers for World Book Day recently. She planned to touch on themes of respect and consent that appear in her young adult novels That Asian Kid about institutional racism in schools and The Girl in the Broken Mirror which includes a sexual assault. But the event was cancelled because the deputy head deemed her work inappropriate.

Since then, Ive had lots of school librarians message me to say they believe the situation is getting much worse and more widespread, with a backlash against certain topics from school management and parents, Kalhan says. There seems to be a fear of something that might or might not happen, and its unnecessarily affecting childrens choice of reading.

Young adult books, covering diversity, sexuality, even contemporary world events, are now being deemed unsuitable for teenage readers, she adds. This is completely out of touch with what teenagers are actually reading and watching, and the expertise of librarians themselves is completely overlooked.

Juno Dawson author and former teacher, whose acclaimed sexuality handbook for young people, This Book is Gay, is the subject of removal petitions in the US agrees there is a shift in mood.

Its part of a wider culture war, she suggests, now gaining traction in the UK. You cant stop a kid being trans or LGBT but you can stop a book. A lot of these attempts to have books pulled or readings cancelled feel vexatious, so huge credit to the librarians and teachers who are dealing with irate parents and campaigners.

Elle McNicoll joined Simon James Green on the platform for the Bristol Teen Book Awards the week after his ban, which she describes as sending a painful message to young gay pupils.

Ive seen the absolute force for good that Simon is when he visits a school, and Im just sorry that some children will be denied that joy.

McNicolls latest book, Like a Charm, includes a dyspraxic protagonist; her debut featured a heroine who is autistic, like McNicoll herself.

Diverse authors take on a lot more than questions about plot and story, she argues. Were also often expected to fix societal problems or defend ourselves outside of our work.

Hazel Plowman, head of creative learning at the Bath Childrens Literature festival, says there has been a definite shift towards more inclusive stories in children and young peoples books since she started working there a decade ago.

Were programming our autumn festival, and while theres still work to do, we are getting all kinds of voices pitched as commercial books now, rather than being pigeonholed as an issues book for example. There are LGBTQ+ books for all ages, picture books with two mums, British-Indian detectives and neurodiverse authors and characters.

Jodie Lancet-Grant is one of the authors Plowman lists. Her debut picture book for 37 year olds, The Pirate Mums a swashbuckling adventure about a boy called Billy who happens to have two mothers attracted some trolling earlier this year. The idea that anyone would think this story is not appropriate for children beggars belief. Its just a different family circumstance, but its incredibly important that children see that represented.

There is a worrying trend of censorship of LGBTQ+ authors and books happening as a consequence of the more polarised world we are living in, she says, suggesting that section 28 the legislation enacted in 1988 to prohibit the promotion of homosexuality by local authorities and only abolished in 2003 still has an impact. A lot of adults grew up not reading about these subjects because of clause 28, and now assume they are not acceptable because they accepted that absence as children.

Drag performers have attracted particular controversy, with a number of schools caught out in recent years after booking an act seen as having a non-child friendly name or online presence. Sab Samuel AKA Aida H Dee, childrens author and founder of Drag Queen Story Hour UK, is clear that not all drag acts are suitable for education, but believes that schools and local councils are becoming increasingly aware of the potential for backlash, and consequently steering clear of anything that could be deemed risky.

Adam Carver, whose drag performance for kids Palaver! generated complaints to local authorities and the Arts Council England last year, is blunt: It feels like were living through a second section 28, but one that the UK government has outsourced to an anonymous Twitter lobby.

Carvers company, Fatt Projects, is working on a model to support arts organisations facing similar attacks, offering advice on how best to respond to criticism.

There is a resurgence of the idea that queer people shouldnt be around children, he says. There is a perfect storm now where venues and organisations are so afraid of backlash that they dont take any risks. But there is still demand from children and families for work that explores difference.

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Out of touch: childrens authors describe increasing censorship of books on diversity - The Guardian