Bournemouth Police Hate Christians!

Bournemouth Beach in the sunshine.  Beautiful, isn't it?  What a glorious place to live!  Or to visit! And the tourist office here - quite understandably - is promoting Bournemouth as a great place to spend the Queen's Jubilee Weekend.  And it is - but do be careful if you're a Christian.  Because  

Bournemouth Police hate Christians.

Last week-end an open-air preacher in Bournemouth was threatened with arrest.  I wasn't there - but my source is reliable.  The preacher mentioned hell, and a conversation with a passer-by went like this:


PB: Well, I'm going to hell anyway.


Preacher:  Why's that?


PB: Because I'm gay.


Preacher: There's no need for you to go to hell.




At which point, the passer-by walked off and made a complaint at the police station.  The police turned up, warned the preacher that Dorset Police had three priorities - homophobia, racism and domestic violence, in that order (NOT what it says on their website!) - and told him that if there were any more complaints he'd be arrested.

Bournemouth Police hate Christians.

Note: the preacher hadn't mentioned homosexuality.  If he had, he would still be within the law - but he hadn't.  He hadn't criticised gays.  If he had, he would still be within the law - but he hadn't.  He hadn't said that gays go to hell.  If he had, he would still be within the law - but he hadn't.

Bournemouth Police hate Christians.

Some few years ago now I went into Bournemouth Police Station (which advertises outside that it has a gay and lesbian liaison officer) to complain about the infamous advert suggesting that Bible-believers were shedding the blood of gays.  I'd complained by post that the advert was a religious hate-crime and been told to come in and complain in person - and a gay policeman was waiting for me.  Now, I'm almost six feet tall (if I wear two-inch heels), weigh close (too close) to fifteen stone and am not easily intimidated.  But he intimidated me.  He told me I didn't know the law (I did, on this point), that Anne Widdecombe (former minister in the Home Office) didn't know the law, told me unequivocally that most violence against gays was religiously motivated - and so on.  And he did it in a way that made it a somewhat frightening experience.  It's odd, really - I'm WASP, Tory (mildly) and middle-class, the very sort that's supposed to support the police.  But they don't support me.  But then...

Bournemouth Police hate Christians.

Some years prior to that - do you remember? - 69-year-old Harry Hammond help up a sign in Bournemouth that said 'Jesus Gives Peace, Jesus is Alive, Stop Immorality, Stop Homosexuality, Stop Lesbianism, Jesus is Lord'.  When a crowd attacked 69-year-old Harry and pushed him to the ground, the police were called and arrested - Harry.  He was tried and convicted for a public-order offence, and died shortly afterwards.  Even gay activist Peter Tatchell called the trial 'an outrageous assault on civil liberties'.  Good old Peter.  Can you imagine the outrage if a gay man had been attacked by a crowd, and he'd been arrested?  And tried?  And died shortly afterwards?  How many 'Bloody Sunday' enquiries would we have had about that?  But then:

Bournemouth Police hate Christians.

Please note: I haven't said a word against gays in this entry, or anywhere else on the blog - OK?  I've said a few against the police, and Bournemouth Police in particular, whom I no longer trust.  But that's because  

Bournemouth Police hate Christians.

Disclaimer: by 'Police' I mean the Force Policy, not individual policemen and women.  I'm sure there are some fine folks in Bournemouth Police.  I'm sure some of them will be Christians.  But I bet they're keeping their heads down...

As far as I know, copyright does not exist in any of the photos used.  I'll gladly remove any where I am wrong.