VFR banned at Free Republic

Harry Horse writes:

“August 6, 2009: a black day for America” is one of your best essays. In fact, so good that I decided to post it at Free Republic, where I have been a member for maybe five years. Whatever the site’s faults, it was instrumental for me in the beginning of my accelerated study of this world. I have posted infrequently there, and even less frequently have I posted essays by you (after you okay’d it). The median FReeper is a volatile animal, and one must approach him gingerly.

However, this is the response I got when trying to post your outstanding essay:

amnation.com not welcome on FR.

Other that disappointed and feeling as though “it is their loss,” I don’t know what else to say.

Stunned, Harry Horse

LA replies:

Thanks for trying. That’s the first time I recall that a publication that had banned me made the banning explicit. Usually such banners remain silent about what they’re doing.

However, VFR articles have frequently been posted at FR over the years. Did VFR, which is an open book, recently cross some line it had not crossed before? It would be interesting to know what had triggered this new policy.

Harry Horse writes:

My accelerated studying also extends to Christianity, and I remain very imperfect: The only suitable gesture I can come up with after this affront from FR is to donate more money to VFR! (FR has quarterly donation marathons)

Recogniizing it is the “poorest” of gifts, I also offer my sincerest thanks you for keeping up the very hard work. I will continue my own work and improvement.

Allan Wall writes:

Regarding VFR’s being banned from “Free Republic,” welcome to the club. VDARE.COM articles have been banned there for years.

I personally was kicked off of “Free Republic” while I was doing a tour of duty in Iraq . How’s that for supporting the troops? And when I say I was kicked off, I mean that I wasn’t even allowed to participate in an online discussion under a pseudonym.

Tim W. writes:

FreeRepublic has been banning members for the past couple of months for expressing racially impure thoughts. Not for actual racism, but merely for arguing that race matters. If VFR is now banned there, it’s probably because you discuss the ramifications of the loss of America’s white majority, which is becoming a forbidden topic at FR. That’s just speculation, of course.

LA replies:

I would have thought that FR has always banned people for saying that race matters, and that the ramifications of the loss of America’s white majority was always a forbidden topic there.

Tim W. replies:

Yes, but they seem to have really cracked down in recent months. I think the election of Obama woke up a lot of “race blind” Freepers and prompted a bit more open discussion of these issues, which in turn prompted the moderators to start banning people and/or postings from websites such as VFR. As long as such issues only came up occasionally there was some tolerance for modest discussion of race issues. Not any more.

Posted by Lawrence Auster at August 08, 2009 12:05 PM | Send