They never wanted to ban memes. In fact, the so-called "meme ban" and accompanying "link tax" has already been approved in 2019, and implemented in several countries, including Germany. By now it must be clear that this directive does not in fact ban memes or tax links, and that that was always an exaggerated reading by internet zealots.

More information at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directive_on_Copyright_in_the_...