FROM FAITH TO FAITHLESS: WHY FREE SPEECH IS ESSENTIAL FOR APOSTATES

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Wednesday 19th March, 2025 Free Speech Union in partnership with Faith to Faithless Speakers Terri O'Sullivan , Apostate Services Development Officer for Faith to Faithless, a service of Humanists UK which supports people who have left high-control religious groups Khadija Khan is a journalist and broadcaster. She is an editor at Canadian Magazine A Further Inquiry and a co-host of A Further Inquiry podcast. Dr Benjamin Jones is the Director of Case Management at the Free Speech Union and completed his PhD on the experiences of ex-Muslims in Britain. This event focused on the experiences of individuals who leave high-control religions or cults — whether they are ex-Muslims, ex-Jehovah’s Witnesses, ex-Evangelicals, ex-Mormons, ex-Scientologists, or have left an Ultra Orthodox Jewish sect. Leaving a religion can be a complicated, challenging and dangerous process. Apostates can be shunned and sometimes completely disowned from immediate family, relatives, and the community at large. The right to not believe is a fundamental human right and yet apostates can often experience real threats to their rights of freedom of speech, belief and association, and some will be subject to violence. The protections needed by apostates are under threat in myriad ways: the proliferation of loosely drafted hate speech laws in western countries, calls to end online anonymity — a much-needed protection for apostates to communicate with others outside their community, and unthinking algorithmic censorship of social media platforms. The Free Speech Union is especially concerned by the most dangerous threat on the horizon for ex-Muslims (and many other people besides) in the definition of 'Islamophobia' being advanced by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on British Muslims. This definition, among other things, brands as Islamophobic anyone who makes "mendacious, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Muslims". This could lead to apostates being even less free to tell their stories. The Free Speech Union hosted this event in partnership with *Faith to Faithless*, a groundbreaking support service run by Humanists UK that includes a helpline dedicated to supporting people who have left high-control religious groups. The helpline, operating three days a week and staffed by trained volunteers, offers bespoke assistance, resources, and empathetic support to a diverse group, including ex-Muslims, ex-Jehovah’s Witnesses, ex-evangelicals, and ex-Mormons. It aims to bridge the gap in understanding and support for apostates, providing a crucial lifeline for those navigating the complexities of leaving high-control religious environments.