Just a little bit of sanity is returning to our politically correct society.Anthony Rollins, a Christian street preacher who suffers from Asperger's syndrome, quoted from a Bible verse on the subject of homosexuality while preaching in Birmingham city centre.
He was arrested by police, handcuffed, held in a police cell and charged under Section 5 of the Public Order Act. The charge was later dropped. A complaint to the Independent Police Complaints Commission about his treatment was rejected.
When he sued the police at Birmingham County Court, his complaints of wrongful arrest, unlawful imprisonment, assault and battery and infringements of his human rights were upheld. He was awarded £4,250 damages.
Dale Mcalpine, who preaches in the shopping precinct at Workington in Cumbria - I wrote about him here and here - didn't mention homosexuality while preaching, but said in conversation that the Bible says homosexual behaviour is a sin.
He was arrested, placed in a police cell for seven hours and charged under the Public Order Act. The case was later dropped.
Mr Mcalpine sued the police for wrongful arrest, unlawful imprisonment and breach of his human rights. He was awarded £7,000 damages. Police were ordered to pay costs.
Section 5 of the Public Order Act criminalises "threatening, abusive or insulting" words or behaviour which are likely to cause "harassment, alarm or distress." There is now a move afoot to have Parliament remove the word "insulting" from the act.
"We may have gone too far when the act was introduced," said one MP.
A survey of 1,000 adults sponsored by Christian Concern showed that
* 87 per cent felt it was wrong for healthcare workers to be punished for offering to pray for a patient;
* 72 per cent felt Christians should be free to follow their conscience at work without fear of disciplinary action;
* 73 per cent believed the right to wear a Christian symbol in the workplace should be protected by law.
The way courts have interpreted the law on these issues in recent times has hardly been in line with public opinion.
