The arrest in one English town falls under a local law — but a bill currently in Parliament would make it national.
The arrest in one English town falls under a local law -- but a bill currently in Parliament would make it national.
J ust in time for Christmas, an English woman has been arrested for directing her thoughts to God in public. Isabel Vaughan-Spruce was interrogated, searched, and jailed for praying in silence on a public street in Birmingham, England. Her crime? She is alleged to have violated a local law establishing a so-called “buffer zone” banning prayer, even silent prayer, in the vicinity of an abortion facility.
“Buffer zones” would more appropriately be described as censorship zones. More befitting a totalitarian state, they are an extreme violation of fundamental freedoms.
Isabel’s arrest happened at the same time that a bill is being hotly debated in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that would roll out nationwide censorship zones. Where these zones are already in place, such as in Birmingham, the abuses have been egregious. Their existence indicates a rapidly escalating trend to criminalize the freedoms of expression and religion in the U.K. — essentially, the policing of inner thoughts.
On December 15, Isabel, the director of March for Life U.K., was charged with four counts of failing to comply with Birmingham’s Public Space Protection Order, which came into effect in September of this year. The order is based on the eerily titled Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act of 2014. It prohibits “protesting, namely engaging in any act of approval or disapproval or attempted act of approval or disapproval, with respect to issues related to abortion services, by any means” in a restricted zone encompassing several streets around an abortion facility. And as Isabel’s arrest shows, its definition of “protesting” includes: “graphic, verbal or written means, prayer or counselling.”
Video footage of the arrest provides irrefutable evidence of the draconian reality of policing thought crimes. It shows Isabel being searched, including through her hair, then arrested after admitting that she “might be” praying inside her head, while noting that she decidedly was not protesting. The interaction proceeded as follows:
Police: “What are you here for today?”
Isabel: “Physically, I’m just standing here.”
Police: “Are you praying?”
Isabel: “I might be praying in my head, not out loud.”
[…] Police: “You’re under arrest…”
Make no mistake about it: The U.K. is now jailing people for thought crimes. Isabel was arrested for directing her thoughts to God. Legally, she was allowed to stand where she was. If she had been thinking about anything else, it would have been lawful. She was arrested for the contents of her mind.
Defenders of “buffer zones” are quick to invoke harassment as justification for censorship. The harassment of any person, including of a woman in a vulnerable situation, is an abomination. It is also already prohibited under U.K. law. British authorities have full legal power to protect women from legitimate crimes. As what has happened to Isabel shows, however, censorship zones are unrelated to preventing harassment. Instead, they outlaw the basic exercise of fundamental human rights.
Anyone, whether pro-life or pro-choice or somewhere in between, should be horrified by what is happening in the U.K. Everyone stands to lose when the essential characteristics of a free society are in jeopardy. Furthermore, those who really stand to lose are women. Women facing abortion deserve to hear offers of help and support. And the U.K. is well on its way to making these offers illegal across the country.
Apart from all this, these laws are simply unnecessary. A 2018 U.K. government review found that harassment is rare outside abortion facilities. The most common activities are silent or quiet prayer, or offers of support for women who would like to have their babies with financial or other help. Isabel has dedicated her life to supporting women in this way. Now, for standing still and silently, she could be branded a criminal for life.
The story has gone viral — a reaction commensurate with the absurdity of Isabel’s arrest. One hopes this will serve as a wakeup call as Parliament debates making “buffer zones” a national reality. No democratic country should prohibit the peaceful exercise of the freedoms of expression and religion. And nobody should be criminalized for her thoughts.