WATCH: Brazilians Take to Streets to Protest Ban on Elon Musk’s X platform

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From the Wall Street Journal: SÃO PAULO—Tens of thousands of supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro took to the streets of Brazil’s biggest city Saturday on the country’s Independence Day to rally against the government and protest the Supreme Court’s ban of Elon Musk’s social-media platform X.

Scores of conservative politicians joined the demonstrations, many accusing the court of trying to censor the right-leaning opposition ahead of municipal elections on Oct. 6, when voters will pick mayors and local representatives in thousands of cities and towns.

The protest served as something of an indicator on whether Bolsonaro, whose term ended 20 months ago, still has the ability to draw support as the opposition prepares for the coming vote and future elections.

Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes banned X on Aug. 30 after a monthslong battle with Musk over the tech mogul’s refusal to take down accounts by conservatives that the judge accused of spreading hate speech and misinformation online.

Moraes not only banned the X platform in Brazil, but he also announced that anyone using avirtual private network (VPN) to get around the ban would be slapped with a $9,000 per day fine.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who just took office in January 2023, has praised de Moraes, declaring his stand against Musk should serve as an example to the rest of the world.

Despite the ban on X, videos reportedly of the protest have somehow made their way to the social media platform for all the world to see.

The ban against X doesn’t appear to be working. Prominent X user DogeDesigner explained, “BREAKING: 𝕏 remains the #1 news app in Brazil, even after 7 days of suspension. Despite Supreme Court fines over VPN use, Brazilians continue to use the platform. Protests today fuel even more downloads.”

Journalist Marcel van Hattem reported on Friday:

Besides censoring X in Brazil, Moraes illegally confiscated cars, aircraft, and Starlink equipment.

Starlink and X are not part of the same economic group, and there was no legal process to disregard the corporate entity due to fraud or asset commingling. The confiscation was just another step in the authoritarian escalation of Alexandre de Moraes, who neither respects the laws nor the Brazilian Constitution.

“This is true,” Elon Musk confirmed.

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