Democracy cannot exist without the right to free speech.
Free speech should be robustly defended as a fundamental freedom.
The National Secular Society has defended free speech from religious threats since our founding. We played an instrumental role in abolishing "blasphemy" laws in Britain, but serious concerns remain. Blasphemy laws still exist in Northern Ireland. And throughout the UK, religious fundamentalists seek to impose their blasphemy taboos on others through violence and intimidation.
There are also increasing attempts to categorise offending religious sensibilities as 'hate speech', making criticism, mockery or perceived 'insult' of religion a criminal act akin to racial hatred or inciting violence – in other words, a 'blasphemy law by the back door'.
Without free speech no search for truth is possible; without free speech no discovery of truth is useful; without free speech progress is checked… Better a thousand fold abuse of free speech than denial of free speech.
We are further concerned by a developing 'culture of offence' in which any speech or action deemed likely to offend religious sensibilities is considered taboo. Enforced by a toxic mix of terrorism and religious deference, this is chilling free speech through self-censorship.
We also campaign against blasphemy laws around the world, where they continue to be used to target religious and political minorities. These are sometimes described by UK politicians as 'misuse' of blasphemy laws, but we contend there are never any legitimate uses for blasphemy laws.
Being offended from time to time is the price we all pay for living in a free society. Rather than trying to silence those we disagree with, we believe the answer to speech we don't like is more speech – better speech.
We therefore campaign to protect and preserve freedom of expression, including offensive, critical and shocking speech.
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Latest updates
Nick Cohen & Pragna Patel to address free speech at Secularism 2019
Posted: Wed, 13 Mar 2019 13:52
The National Secular Society is delighted to announce that Nick Cohen and Pragna Patel will address the subject of freedom of expression at its Secularism 2019 conference.
The conference, which will take place under the tagline 'reclaiming religious freedom', will take place on Saturday 18 May at The Tower Hotel in central London.
Nick is a noted journalist and author who writes regularly for publications including The Observer, The Spectator and Standpoint.
His books include You Can't Read This Book, which focuses on censorship in an age of freedom and includes several chapters making impassioned defences of free speech on religion.
Pragna is the founding member of Southall Black Sisters (SBS), which campaigns for the rights of black and Asian women. She accepted the NSS's Secularist of the Year prize on behalf of SBS in 2010.
She is also the co-founder of Women Against Fundamentalism, which formed in 1989 amid violent attempts to censor the author Salman Rushdie. She recently spoke about freedom of expression at an event to mark the 30th anniversary of the fatwa against Rushdie.
In an interview about the event last month she said freedom of speech was "necessary to secure private as well as public liberty".
Both speakers are NSS honorary associates.
NSS chief executive Stephen Evans thanked them for agreeing to speak.
"Nick Cohen and Pragna Patel are both staunch defenders of free speech on religious issues and they will be very valuable additions to our expanding line-up for Secularism 2019.
"It is particularly apt that we have such well-informed speakers ready to address this subject this year, as we mark the 30th anniversary of the fatwa against Salman Rushdie. We decided to address this topic out of concern that society has failed to learn the lessons of that affair, as religious groups engage in competitive offence-taking to silence debate.
"We very much look forward to hearing what Nick and Pragna have to say."
The other speakers at the conference will include Sara Khan, the lead commissioner for countering extremism; medical ethicist Dr Brian Earp, who will address ritual genital cutting; and Dr Ahmed Shaheed, the UN's special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief.
Rachel Laser, from Americans United for Separation of Church and State, will deliver a keynote speech discussing the organisation's work defending religious freedom and church-state separation in President Trump's America.
Protect free speech, NSS tells Scottish review of hate crime laws
Posted: Fri, 22 Feb 2019 14:37
The National Secular Society has urged the Scottish government to protect free speech and abolish blasphemy laws as it considers proposals to change legislation around hate crime.
The call came in a response to a government consultation on plans to ensure legislation is "fit for 21st century Scotland" and "affords sufficient protection for those that need it".
The recommendations for reform stem from a recent review of hate crime legislation in Scotland by Alastair Campbell (Lord Bracadale). They include proposals to create a set of offences dealing with threatening or abusive conduct which "stirs up hatred" and other measures to tackle hate crime, prejudice and sectarianism.
But the government has said it has "no plans at this time" to formally abolish the offence of blasphemy.
In its response the NSS raised concerns that the introduction of new offences related to the "stirring up of hatred" could pose a threat to freedom of expression. The NSS recommended that such laws should be framed towards incitement – establishing a clear and causal link between speech and any criminal action it encourages.
The NSS added that any new offences concerning the stirring up of hatred must contain an explicit freedom of expression provision that protects speech that may "shock, offend or disturb".
The consultation also considered whether sectarianism should be included within new hate crime legislation and, if so, how it would be defined.
The NSS cautioned against specifically criminalising sectarianism in hate crime legislation, arguing that existing legislation covering race and religion or belief could be applied to sectarian crimes. The NSS said criminalising sectarianism would merely "add more complexity and the potential for misuse".
It also criticised a proposal to limit the definition of sectarianism to Protestant/Catholic conflict, describing it as "short-sighted and inadequate for dealing with Scotland's growing religious diversity".
The NSS welcomed the government's acknowledgement that legislation on its own will not end sectarianism, and said it was "deeply regrettable that Scottish schools continue to entrench and sustain sectarianism".
"Any serious attempt to tackle sectarianism must include a move towards an inclusive and secular education system where children of all faith backgrounds and none are educated together.
"Social cohesion is best served by educational settings being inclusive environments where students are able to mix and build positive relations with those from different backgrounds. Scotland's longstanding commitment to state funded denominational education is inimical to this and should be urgently reconsidered."
Finally, the NSS said any process to review and update Scottish legislation should include a commitment to repeal the criminal offences of blasphemy and heresy from Scottish law.
It said the fact that these laws are seldom used only "serve to highlight their inapplicability and provides no justification for keeping these archaic offences in statute."
Commenting on the response, NSS chief executive Stephen Evans said: "Hate crime has a corrosive impact on communities as well as broader society, and we welcome effort to tackle it. We believe that a secularist approach to policy and law has a key role to play in countering hate crime and minimising the harm that it can inflict upon individuals and society.
"Any serious attempt to ensure legislation is fit for 21st century Scotland must also entail the abolition of blasphemy. The existence of Scotland's blasphemy laws seriously undermines its ability to speak out against human rights abuses under the guise of blasphemy elsewhere in the world.
"Abolition would be a strong signal of the government's willingness to fully protect free expression and comply with international human rights norms."
You can respond to the government's proposed changes to the Scottish Hate Crime legislation here. The consultation closes on 24th February 2019.
Image: © John Morton, via Flickr [CC BY-SA 2.0]
