In a candid and powerful discussion with RAIR Foundation USA, Edwin Wagensveld, leader of the Dutch branch of Pegida (Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West), opened up about the assassination of Salwan Momika, his own struggles as a vocal critic of Islam, and the grave consequences of Europe’s capitulation to Islamic ideologies.
Living Under Constant Threat
Edwin Wagensveld, like so many outspoken critics of Islam, faces a daily reality marked by threats, state persecution, and societal backlash. Wagensveld has been arrested more than 20 times for his lawful protests, including wearing a pig-shaped hat during a rally. These seemingly trivial actions have triggered legal action, highlighting the lengths to which authorities will go to suppress dissent.
Following the assassination of Salwan Momika, Wagensveld’s life has grown even more precarious. Reflecting on the murder, he stated, “Every criticism of Islam is met with either violence from jihadis or punishment from the state. Our governments fear the backlash of Muslim violence more than they value freedom of speech.”
A Culture of Fear and Suppression
The assassination of Salwan Momika has intensified concerns about the suppression of free speech in Europe. Momika, who gained global attention for his Quran-burning protests, was gunned down at a secret address. Authorities suspect that his live TikTok broadcasts may have inadvertently revealed his location to his killer. Despite the known threats to his life, Momika was left without adequate protection.
“The state’s failure to protect Momika—and others like him—is a clear signal,” Wagensveld said. “Governments are willing to sacrifice their own citizens to avoid offending Islamic sensitivities.” […]
— Read More: rairfoundation.com
Independent Journalism Is Dying
Ever since President Trump’s miraculous victory, we’ve heard an incessant drumbeat about how legacy media is dying. This is true. The people have awakened to the reality that they’re being lied to by the self-proclaimed “Arbiters of Truth” for the sake of political expediency, corporate self-protection, and globalist ambitions.
But even as independent journalism rises to fill the void left by legacy media, there is still a huge challenge. Those at the top of independent media like Joe Rogan, Dan Bongino, and Tucker Carlson are thriving and rightly so. They have earned their audience and the financial rewards that come from it. They’ve taken risks and worked hard to get to where they are.
For “the rest of us,” legacy media and their proxies are making it exceptionally difficult to survive, let alone thrive. They still have a stranglehold over the “fact checkers” who have a dramatic impact on readership and viewership. YouTube, Facebook, and Google still stifle us. The freer speech platforms like Rumble and 𝕏 can only reward so many of their popular content creators. For independent journalists on the outside looking in, our only recourse is to rely on affiliates and sponsors.
But even as it seems nearly impossible to make a living, there are blessings that should not be disregarded. By highlighting strong sponsors who share our America First worldview, we have been able to make lifelong connections and even a bit of revenue to help us along. This is why we enjoy symbiotic relationships with companies like MyPillow, Jase Medical, and Promised Grounds. We help them with our recommendations and they reward us with money when our audience buys from them.
The same can be said about our preparedness sponsor, Prepper All-Naturals. Their long-term storage beef has a 25-year shelf life and is made with one ingredient: All-American Beef.
Even our faith-driven precious metals sponsor helps us tremendously while also helping Americans protect their life’s savings. We are blessed to work with them.
Independent media is the future. In many ways, that future is already here. While the phrase, “the more the merrier,” does not apply to this business because there are still some bad actors in the independent media field, there are many great ones that do not get nearly enough attention. We hope to change that one content creator at a time.
Thank you and God Bless,
JD Rucker
