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A British Christian activist facing fresh criminal charges over silent prayer near an abortion clinic is warning that her country is becoming increasingly “Orwellian,” telling Fox News Digital that ordinary citizens are growing afraid to pray in public as her legal battle heads toward trial.
“It certainly seems very Orwellian and a lot of people have mentioned that particular word to me,” Isabel Vaughan-Spruce told Fox News Digital in an interview Monday. “It seems that we’re really fostering a sense of intolerance in our communities.”
Vaughan-Spruce, co-director of March for Life UK, spoke to Fox News Digital after pleading not guilty in January to new charges in Birmingham, England, in a case that her attorneys argue tests the limits of religious freedom and the government’s authority to regulate conduct near abortion facilities.
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Isabel Vaughan-Spruce silently praying. (Alliance Defending Freedom)
She previously received a 13,000 British pounds out-of-court settlement from police after pursuing claims of wrongful arrest and false imprisonment stemming from her earlier arrests for silently praying near an abortion clinic.
Now, Vaughan-Spruce says she is facing another charge after returning to pray silently near the same facility following the introduction of nationwide abortion clinic buffer zones in October 2024.
Vaughan-Spruce told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview that the controversy has fostered intolerance toward people with differing religious and moral beliefs.
“I don’t believe that those who are pro-life or Christian should be treated as some kind of social pariah,” she added.
“A lot of people are just worried about what might happen to them as well because of this,” Vaughan-Spruce added. “And I’ve heard that from a lot of people, you know, just concerned simply about something as simple as praying when they’re in a public space.”
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Isabel Vaughan-Spruce and Jeremiah Igunnubole, barrister and legal counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom in London. (Alliance Defending Freedom)
She said she is concerned about the longstanding implications of what policies like buffer zones will have on free speech.
“I think we need to know our rights and to exercise our rights, and not to be intimidated by other people with [sic] this regard, and particularly our rights under God as Christians to be able to pray wherever we want to pray, certainly if it’s something internal in our heads, and not to kind of end up self-censoring because of that prayer is a very, very important part of our life of Christian life,” Vaughan-Spruce said. “And we certainly need more of that on the streets, prayer, not less.”
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Demonstrators hold an ‘abortion clinic buffer zone’ protest outside the Scottish parliament on Sept. 24, 2024, in Edinburgh, Scotland. A new law in Scotland bans protesters from gathering within 200 meters of clinics where abortions are carried out. (Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)
Her attorney, Jeremiah Igunnubole, described the prosecution as the first of its kind in Britain and argued that the case raises a fundamental question about whether the government can punish someone for thoughts and private prayer rather than outward conduct.
“To be clear, standing within the buffer zone is not a crime,” Igunnubole told Fox News Digital. “So the question exactly, the precise question is exactly what has Isabel been charged for? We can only say it’s been for her thoughts and the fact that she lifted up her heart and mind to God in prayer.”
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Headshot of Isabel Vaughan-Spruce. (Alliance Defending Freedom)
Asked where the line should be drawn when it comes to freedom of speech, Igunnubole argued that the government should never have the power to regulate an individual’s private thoughts.
“It certainly is not when the state purports to regulate the thoughts of any individual, and we think that that is a red line that cannot be crossed in the UK under the Human Rights Act,” Igunnubole said. “There’s an absolute right to freedom of thought and that means that there’s no qualifications allowed or permitted.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the Home Office and the Crown Prosecution Service for comment, who declined to comment due to the pending case.
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Rachel del Guidice is a culture reporter for Fox News covering the intersection of politics, faith, family, and American culture.
