Thread: Brazilian comedian jailed for eight years for offensive jokes

Brazilian comedian jailed for eight years for offensive jokes

Léo Lins plans to appeal against sentence imposed by judge who told him ‘freedom of expression is not absolute’


A Brazilian comedian has been sentenced to more than eight years in prison for telling offensive jokes.

Léo Lins was found guilty of inciting intolerance with a 2022 stand-up routine that made fun of black people, indigenous people, fat people, gay people, Jews, evangelicals, disabled people and those with HIV.

During the performance, which was uploaded to YouTube and has more than three million views, Lins told a 4,000-strong crowd in Curitiba, in southern Brazil: “Prejudice, to me, is a primitive thing that shouldn’t exist any more. Just like indigenous people. Enough already.”

Wearing a bright red shirt and yellow trousers, he warned the audience that he “jokes about everything and everyone”.

‘I hired interpreter so I could offend the deaf’
He told them: “What show could be more inclusive? I even hired a sign language interpreter just to be able to offend the deaf-mute.”

However, a judge in the São Paulo state criminal court last week found that his act amounted to “practising” or “inciting” racism and religious intolerance, as well as being discriminatory towards disabled people.

Judge Barbara de Lima Iseppi said that “freedom of expression is not absolute nor unlimited” and “when there is a confrontation between the fundamental precept of liberty of expression and the principles of human dignity and judicial equality, the latter should win out”.

The judge imposed a total jail sentence of eight years and three months, which Lins intends to appeal against.

Lins’s targets were not limited to minorities and those with disabilities. “I’m totally against paedophilia – I’m more in favour of incest,” he told the audience, who roared with laughter throughout the set. “If you’re going to abuse a child, abuse your own. What’s he going to do? Tell his dad?”

The comedian remains free pending the appeal, and continues to post messages and videos to his more than 4.5 million followers on social media.

On Monday, he posted a photograph of his “prison kit”, which included a packet of cigarettes and a pair of handcuffs.

His legal team has described the sentence as a threat to freedom of speech and an attempt to “criminalise comedy”.

“It seems like people have lost the ability to interpret the obvious,” said Lins. “We’re living through one of the biggest epidemics of our time: rational blindness. Judgments are now based entirely on emotion – no one listens any more, they only want to impose their own truth.”

New drive to enforce hate speech laws
On top of the prison sentence, he has been ordered to pay a fine of 300,000 reais (£40,000) in collective moral damages.

Brazil has had anti-hate speech laws on the books for years, but has only recently begun to aggressively enforce them.

The Washington Post reported that Jamil Assis of the Sivis Institute, a Brazilian free speech think tank, said there had been an increase in “modern judges” who were removing protections historically granted to satirical speech.

Lins’s conviction has been criticised by sections of Brazilian society, including journalists, free speech advocates, conservative politicians and other comedians.

But others have defended the decision to jail him. Fábio de Sá Cesnik, a lawyer with the Brazilian law firm CQS/F, told the Folha de S.Paulo newspaper that there must be some limits on free speech.

“Harming the dignity of someone else is equally important,” he said.

THE TELEGRAPH

8 years? Damn they aint mucking around

Even in Medieval Times Jesters were allowed to make fun of the King.
Now, we have the wokeness, and laws will be changed to force us to be nice to each other, with Cy and his ilk readying the re-education camps.

Originally Posted by pickel

Even in Medieval Times Jesters were allowed to make fun of the King.
Now, we have the wokeness, and laws will be changed to force us to be nice to each other, with Cy and his ilk readying the re-education camps.

And yet you try to claim that you are a liberal.

Wait a minute. I am a liberal but I don’t see the point in locking up comedians for what they say. If comedians aren’t edgy, they aren’t much good. Everyone should get jabbed, no matter what race, creed or color!

My favorite comedian is forever catching shit.

- YouTube

Anyone who thinks court jesters took the piss out of the King must be a bit simple.

Originally Posted by misskit

Wait a minute. I am a liberal but I don’t see the point in locking up comedians for what they say. If comedians aren’t edgy, they aren’t much good. Everyone should get jabbed, no matter what race, creed or color!

Exactly. See you in the re-education camp.

Originally Posted by misskit

My favorite comedian is forever catching shit.

- YouTube

Chappelle is brilliant. Love his stuff.

Jimmy Carr is well worth a watch.

as is this old timer.

Jokes that are offensive just for shock value are rarely actually funny

^^^ Jimmy Carr is a hoot.

Wearing yellow pants is no joke,lucky the fashion police did not arrest him.

Originally Posted by DrWilly

Jokes that are offensive just for shock value are rarely actually funny

is it true that the last time you laughed was in 1990?

Originally Posted by taxexile

is it true that the last time you laughed was in 1990?

Not true. Last evening I was laughing at an old Trevor Noah skit about English people who hate immigrants but want all the spices that immigrants bring to the uk

^ But you have never posted even one pic on the Amusing Pics thread here.

Originally Posted by Salsa dancer

^ But you have never posted even one pic on the Amusing Pics thread here.

Not true stalker.

Originally Posted by DrWilly

English people who hate immigrants but want all the spices that immigrants bring to the uk

hating immigrants and wanting a reduction in immigration are not the same willy.

spices that immigrants bring to the uk

spices come in big containers sent by ship from overseas, but i think you already knew that.

If he hadn't made fun of black and indigenous people, he might have had no problems.