Podcaster and UFC commentator Joe Rogan has expressed serious concerns about the erosion of free speech and civil liberties in England and Europe, warning that these developments could eventually threaten American freedoms if left unchecked. During a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience featuring comedian Andrew Schulz, Rogan argued that the trajectory of authoritarian policies in England represents a genuine threat that Americans cannot afford to ignore.
The discussion centered on England’s recent crackdown on speech, with Rogan noting that authorities have arrested approximately 12,000 people for social media posts. Many of these arrests involved individuals who were simply critical of immigration policies or other government decisions. The implementation of digital ID systems in England, combined with aggressive prosecution of online speech, has created what Rogan describes as a dangerous precedent for Western democracies.
“If England falls, if England like completely falls, like they just passed the digital or they’re trying to force the digital ID on people and they have arrested 12,000 people for social media post and some of them are just critical about the amount of immigration that’s coming in and they’re putting them in jail for this,” Rogan explained during the podcast.
Rogan emphasized that the situation becomes particularly alarming when considering that England lacks the constitutional protections Americans enjoy. Without robust free speech laws or gun rights, citizens in England have limited means to resist government overreach. This vulnerability makes the country susceptible to sliding further into authoritarian control.
The podcast host warned that if these trends continue and spread throughout Europe, America could face increasing pressure to adopt similar policies. “If that is a trend and that starts spreading through Europe and they lock those people down because those people don’t have guns, they don’t have free speech laws, they don’t have any of the things that protect us,” Rogan said.
He continued: “If it becomes a trend for the entire world and we’re the only ones, and they’re like, “The problem, the consequences of free speech is an unsafe society. We have to protect the marginalized groups.” You know how that ends? That ends with a military dictatorship.”
When asked by Schulz whether he genuinely believed these developments posed a threat to America, Rogan acknowledged that while the United States has stronger constitutional protections, the spread of authoritarian ideas through cultural and political channels remains a legitimate concern.
Rogan argued that Americans should care deeply about what happens in allied nations like England because trends that take hold in Europe often influence political movements in the United States. The normalization of digital surveillance, speech restrictions, and government control over online discourse could gradually shift the Overton window of acceptable policy in America.