Episode 123: Hatun Tash on Free Speech, Two-Tier Policing, and Getting Stabbed For Jesus

Hatun Tash is a Turkish ex-Muslim turned Christian evangelist who, in September 2024, “won £10,000 in damages and costs from the Metropolitan Police after being arrested, strip searched and unlawfully imprisoned for wearing a Charlie Hebdo t-shirt and having her property stolen at Speakers’ Corner in London”. Here’s a video of the incident, which happened in 2022. The stolen property in question was her personal copy of the Quran, which had multiple holes drilled through it in reference to Islamic theologian Dr Yasir Qadhi’s contemporaneous remark that the story of the preservation of the Quran “has holes in it.”The 2024 settlement was the second payment made to her by the Met. In 2022, she was awarded £10,000 for two wrongful arrests, one of which was caught on camera. In both cases, she donated the money to charity.Hatun is the founder of Defend Christ Critique Islam (DCCI) Ministries. She is well-known worldwide for denouncing Muhammad as a false prophet, and speaking out against what she perceives as serious issues with the Muslim faith, often drawing on Islamic sources. Her unabashed anti-Islamic evangelism is not everyone’s cup of tea. The result is not just mistreatment by the British police, but vociferous and violent attacks and threats by Muslims who object to what she says.She has been surrounded and jostled by jeering mobs, hit in the face while holding up a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad, stabbed in the face and arm in Hyde Park, and hunted by an assassin intending to shoot her in public.She has received multiple Osman warnings, which are issued in the UK “if police have intelligence of a real and immediate threat to the life of an individual.” She is unable to live in ordinary accommodation because of the risk the threats against her pose to potential housemates. Even holding down a regular job or maintaining a normal social life are nearly impossible.All of this happened in 21st century Britain, because of violent reactions by ideologues to what Hatun says online and in public, reactions that have mostly gone unpunished by the same police that frequently arrest her. To some observers, this “dogmatic hounding of those who commit the ‘sin’ of giving offence” is tantamount to a back-door blasphemy law. Brendan O’Neill put it succinctly in the headline of a piece for The Spectator: The plight of Hatun Tash shames Britain.Hatun spoke with me from an undisclosed location, showing resolve and good humour about the difficulties she faces on a daily basis. Regardless of whether one shares her beliefs or opinions, her unwavering commitment to free speech is inspiring and her refusal to be intimidated should be a shot in the arm for all those who self-censor out of fear.I’ll give her the last word:“People should have the right to criticise anything and anyone. None of us is untouchable.”Find Hatun Tash’s DCCI Ministries on YouTube.https://1984today.substack.comhttps://www.1984.todayX: @1984TodayPod This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 1984today.substack.com