The UK Opens the Door to Blasphemy Laws

Blasphemy laws do not protect people, they protects ideas. And that is why blasphemy laws are evil.

It’s Islamophobia Awareness Month in the UK.

And to celebrate, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has opened the door to introducing a blasphemy law.

Starmer was asked in Parliament yesterday - by one of his own Muslim MPs - if he would commit to criminalising the desecration “of all religious texts and the prophets of the Abrahamic religions”.

The British PM didn’t say yes. But nor did he say no, which was hardly comforting to those who like their heads remaining attached to their shoulders.

Starmer answered …

“Desecration is awful and I think it should be condemned.

“We are committed to tackling all forms of hatred and division including, of course, Islamophobia in all of its forms.”

Let’s deal first with the way in which Labor MP Tahir Ali framed his request.

Ali is a second generation Pakistani immigrant who has integrated into the UK just enough to make it into parliament, but not quite enough to believe in the freedoms parliament is supposed to uphold.

He wants all the luxury of England, with all the Allah-Akbar of Pakistan.

It was cute - others would say ‘sly’ - how he asked for the “Abrahamic” religions - to be protected from disrespect …