A court victory for free speech – but it should never have come to this

Jul 4, 2019 by

by Tim Dieppe, The Conservative Woman:

FELIX Ngole was expelled from his social work course at Sheffield University for posts on Facebook expressing Biblical views on same-sex marriage and sexual ethics. Three Court of Appeal judges ruled yesterday that the university was wrong to expel him for expressing his views. 

This is a landmark judgment for free speech and it will have important implications on many current and future cases on the rights of individuals to express their views.

The court ruled that ‘the mere expression of views on theological grounds (e.g. that “homosexuality is a sin”) does not necessarily connote that the person expressing such views will discriminate on such grounds.’

[…]  It should never have come to this. The university should never have taken an anonymous complaint about personal expression of views to such lengths. Neither should it have fought this claim in the courts, wasting valuable resources in an effort to restrict free speech.

If it were not for Christian Concern and the Christian Legal Centre, Felix Ngole would be barred from his chosen career for life merely for expressing his views on social media. This ruling should send shockwaves through universities and employers throughout the land. Free speech is a precious right. No university or employer should seek to punish people merely for expressing what the Bible says. We need a cultural change of attitudes. I hope this judgment acts as a catalyst for such change.

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