Censorship law

From the beginning of 2009 it has been illegal for anyone in England and Wales to possess an “extreme” image, even if the activity it depicts is legal.

This site monitors implementation of the law, provides sources of advice for many otherwise law abiding citizens inadvertently caught up in this “crime”, and explains how the law came about.

The full text of the relevant part of the Act is available here,
government advice here and Backlash’s legal section starts here.

Dangerous Cartoons Act

From April 6th 2010 it has been illegal to possess “non-photographic visual depictions of child sexual abuse”.

While Backlash are firmly opposed to the production and possession of photographic child pornography, the addition of cartoons to the remit of illegal child pornography in Chapter 2, Coroners and Justice Act 2009 once again promotes the proliferation of victimless thought crime.

We have more details here.

Protection of Freedoms Bill

Backlash supports the right to consensual adult human pornography, and the repeal of section 63 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008. More details of our case for repeal can be read here.

Despite being in the top 10 proposals in the civil liberties section of the Government’s Your Freedom online consultation, Repeal of s63 was not included in the Bill.

We do not condone all the forms or means of production of pornography. Backlash encourages a broader debate on the nature and role of pornography.

Legal advice

Backlash can help some of those accused of a section 63 offence, by putting them in contact with expert legal advice. We can also provide useful information to defence solicitors if requested. In 2010, we rescued one person by having some poorly founded charges dropped, and another individual charged on the basis of  poor evidence. In January 2011, we helped form the defence of another person, accused of possessing extreme images, who was acquitted at trial.