[Premiering 10/14 at 1 PM ET] 22 Days in Jail for Journalist Who Reported on Anti-Lockdown Protests: Monica Smit | Facts Matter
At the height of Australia’s COVID-19 lockdowns (which were among the strictest in the world), a wave of anti-lockdown protests emerged. These protests saw tens of thousands of people take to the streets, demanding their government lift the restrictions.
The response from the government was a mix of apathy and heavy-handed police tactics.
Caught up in this was an Australian woman named Monica Smit—who was both a citizen journalist and the founder of an organization called Reignite Democracy Australia.
Despite her having paperwork from the government that granted her permission to report on the protest, Smit was arrested multiple times, fined, and given 22 days in jail….