LULA IS A CRIMINAL AND A DICTATOR: Brazilians Take to Streets to Protest Ban on Elon Musk’s X.

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.

As always, “spreading hate speech and disinformation” basically means “telling the truth about the regime.”