London's Black Churches Oppose Religious Hatred Bill

The leaders of over 100 black majority churches in London have spoken out against the Racial and Religious Hatred Bill, passed on Monday night after its third reading, vowing to bring around 5,000 people to protest with them in front of Westminster on Monday.

Ms Katie Kirby, general manager of the African Caribbean Evangelical Alliance (ACEA), told Ekklesia that black churches supported the right to choose and freely express one’s faith but were concerned that attempts to evangelise members of different faiths would no longer be acceptable under the bill.

Non-religious organisations have also expressed the concern that the liberty to criticise religious views might be curtailed. Hanne Stinson commended the bill’s attempt to protect people from hatred but regarded the bill nonetheless as a "clear threat to free speech".

Ms Stinson went on to say: "Our consistent position on this issue for the last four years has been that there is a gap in the law, there are people in society currently in need of protection who are not getting used to it, and a law that properly addressed the issue of incitement of hatred of people on the grounds of their beliefs without restricting the right to criticise religious beliefs and practices would be welcomed."

Catholic MP and Home Office minister Paul Goggins was one of several Government spokespersons who tried to allay such fears, stating freedom of speech would not be threatened by the new law.

Government spokespersons said the new law was intended to extend existing race hatred legislation, which only covers members of a few faiths like Jews and Sikhs, to include Christians, Hindus and Muslims.

The Government’s reform proposal is supported by numerous Christian denominations, and the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), as well as Justice, the legal and human rights campaign.

In addition to black churches, opponents to the bill include several non-religious organisations like the National Secular Society, the British Humanist Association, and the civil rights campaign Liberty, as well as media personality Rowan Atkinson. The Evangelical Alliance UK has also expressed opposition to the bill.

An earlier attempt by a member of the Liberal Democrats to have the religious hatred bill replaced by a mere amendment was rejected by the Government.

It is not expected that many prosecutions under the new law will be brought forward, but any that arise will need the approval of the Attorney General.

In a further attempt to dispel fears, Goggins said on Monday night: "I agree that it is important that we put in place safeguards to ensure that no over-zealous interpretation of the new offence, or of specific circumstances in which it may occur, inadvertently adds unnecessarily to tensions that may exist."

The Government allowed an amendment to the bill that prevents the ‘malicious’ application of the legislation through citizen’s arrests.

Critics remain unconvinced, however, with many regarding the bill as poorly drafted and its contents as unclearly defined, particularly the word ‘hatred’. Numerous lawyers have been quick to point out that ‘hatred’ itself is not a criminal offence, and so question the feasibility of illegalising incitement to something which is not a criminal offence.

The Government has defended the bill saying that it will "send out a signal" to those tempted to incite religious hatred. It has, however, failed to demonstrate any form of incitement or intimidation against religious groups that do not already fall under the auspices of existing public order offences.

London’s black majority churches have said that they will not be silenced by the bill, which must yet pass through the House of Lords before becoming law.