Rep. Roy urges United Kingdom to stop harassment of Christians

WASHINGTON, DC — Yesterday, Rep. Roy (TX-21) led seven other members of congress in alerting the US Ambassador for International Religious Freedom, Rashad Hussain, to the United Kingdom’s infringement on religious liberty and freedom of speech, while also pressing the ambassador to speak out against it.

“It has long been a goal of the United States to serve as a beacon of liberty and stand up for religious freedom throughout the world,” the legislators wrote in a joint letter.The effort comes in response to the unjust harassment and arrests of pro-life Brits including Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, Sean Gough, Smith-Connor, and others for simply voicing support for the sanctity of life. “The U.K. is now on an unsettling path that could potentially result in existential threats to freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and even freedom of thought,” the letter adds.

Multiple local U.K. municipalities have passed discriminatory “Public Spaces Protection Orders” (PSPOs); these have empowered the government to target Christians and other people of faith for simply expressing their pro-life or religious views. Reportedly, Parliament is now considering legislation to implement these zones across the U.K. The letter urges Ambassador Rashad Hussain to address the unjust nature of these laws with his U.K. counterparts.

The lawmakers conclude,“As the United States and the United Kingdom share a special and uniquely close relationship, it is imperative that the U.S. speak boldly and clearly to its friend when the U.K. has failed to protect unalienable rights. A free people do not face legal persecution for exercising a natural right. We strongly condemn the actions of the municipalities and the potential legislation before Parliament to persecute Christians and other pro-life citizens for thought crimes.”

Full text of the letter is available here.

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