Government ban on Islamophobia would prevent gospel proclamation
by Julian Mann, Christian Today:
With the strong likelihood that the Labour government will outlaw Islamophobia, could Christians who deny that Islam is a saving faith fall foul of the law? Labour’s Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner, also Communities Secretary, confirmed in the House of Commons on Monday September 2 that the government is actively considering a definition of Islamophobia.
She said: “A new definition must be given careful consideration so that it comprehensively reflects multiple perspectives and considers potential implications for different communities.
“And we’re actively considering our approach to Islamophobia, including definitions, and we’ll provide further updates on this in due course.”
Reporting on Rayner’s comments in Parliament, London’s evening paper, The Standard, reminded readers that in 2019 the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on British Muslims devised a definition of Islamophobia as “rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness”.
The paper reported that the Labour MP for Manchester Rusholme, Afzal Khan, had previously written to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer “urging him to host meetings with Muslim community leaders and to formally adopt a definition of anti-Muslim prejudice put forward by the APPG”.
In the Commons on Monday, Khan said the riots in August had caused “fear and distress” amongst his constituents and members of the Muslim community across the UK.
In March, ahead of the General Election, the Free Speech Union published an essay by Christian Concern’s Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe, with a foreword by the atheist biologist Richard Dawkins, arguing that any attempt to define Islamophobia would have “a chilling effect on free speech”.
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