The term “Orwellian,” meaning reminiscent of the author George Orwell’s dystopian novels, gets thrown around loosely in modern politics. But a disturbing incident that just took place in the United Kingdom really does deserve Orwell’s famous label of a “thought crime.”
A 51-year-old British man and army veteran named Adam Smith-Connor was just convicted of a crime for a 2022 incident where he silently prayed outside of an abortion clinic. Yes, seriously, that’s his “crime”: praying silently.
A judge ruled on Oct. 16 that, even though Smith-Connor was not on the abortion clinic’s property, his actions violated the “buffer zone” the government had created around the clinic, the Telegraph reports.
“He was given the opportunity to leave and chose not to comply with that,” the judge said.
For his part, Smith-Connor says that this verdict “criminalise[s] thought,” and his lawyers say they plan to appeal the conviction.
“A man has been convicted today because of the content of his thoughts — his prayers to God — on the public streets of England,” Alliance Defending Freedom UK legal counsel Jeremiah Igunnubole lamented in a statement. “We can hardly sink any lower in our neglect of basic fundamental freedoms of free speech and thought.”
This isn’t the only case where pro-life Brits have been arrested for prayer; this has happened multiple times now, and it’s downright dystopian.
This man didn’t hurt anyone. He didn’t steal from anyone or trespass on the clinic’s property. He didn’t even shout at women entering the abortion clinic or try to convince them not to go through with their decision. He silently bowed his head in prayer, and the British government treated that as a “crime.”
In reality, freedom of religion is a basic human right, and the real criminals here are the people violating the rights of Smith-Connor and his ilk. But Americans need to do more than simply sympathize with our friends across the pond who are living under increasingly Orwellian censorship regimes. We need to realize that if we’re not careful, the same kind of thing could eventually happen here.
Heck, we have a vice presidential nominee of one party, Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN), who incorrectly claims that “hate speech” and “misinformation” aren’t protected free speech. Meanwhile, the guy at the top of the Republican ticket, former President Donald Trump, is open in his disdain for press freedom and wants the government to punish news outlets for their coverage.
Is it really that big a stretch to think that, if you’re willing to cross those basic boundaries, criminalizing thought crimes is next?
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Of course, the First Amendment would result in any similar sort of censorious law or conviction for prayer in the U.S. being eventually struck down or overturned by the courts. As a result, it prevents us from ever descending into this kind of dystopian madness, but only so long as it is upheld by both a constitutionally faithful judicial branch and by widespread cultural support for free speech. If we lose either of these two crucial pillars, the First Amendment could become like other provisions of our Constitution, little more than a dead letter.
So, the dystopia unfolding across the pond isn’t just of concern to supporters of the pro-life cause. It’s an ugly reminder to all Americans of the fate that could await us if we ever allow our First Amendment rights to be eroded.
Brad Polumbo is an independent journalist and host of the Brad vs Everyone podcast.