Journalist and author Sarah Helm has faced severe backlash in the wake of her pro-Palestine Action tweet. Support and membership of the group have been banned since July 2025 and punishable with up to 14 years in prison. Despite her clear statement: “God help us authors who support Palestine and Palestine Action”, she has faced no penalties. This same luxury has not been extended to the 3,700 arrested since the ban began. Are we observing a hierarchical structure emerge in the scrutiny of free speech, and thus a disintegration of the integrity of democracy in the UK?
I find it deeply disturbing that Helm faces a parallel set of rules to the common man. A new criterion seems to have emerged for whether our opinion matters or deserves to be voiced. The leading factor being power. Helm is an influential literary figure, but an intrinsic aspect of this case is her preferential treatment as wife of Andy Burnham’s national security advisor, Jonathan Powell. Though the government has frantically attempted to distance itself from the incident, releasing a statement that she does not “represent the government in any capacity,” the damage has already been done. If found guilty she would have jeopardised Powell’s position as well as the government’s steadfast stance on the ban. Her exemption from repercussions was a form of self-preservation.
Impunity should not be contingent on social standing; Helm is far better equipped to face the consequences of a criminal record tarnishing her profile than some of the far more vulnerable arrested. 36 people have been reportedly subject to home invasions and arrests for expressing their support for Palestine Action on social media. This has left those prosecuted under the terror legislation with a lifetime criminal record, visa and immigration issues, and even loss of employment. Are we shocked that an affluent middle-aged white woman has not faced any consequences? Sadly not.
Crucially the tweet itself is extremely mild. No outrageous language, no great attacks towards Israel. This calls attention to the absurdity of the ban. A spokesperson from the activist group Defend Our Juries remarked that this ban is akin to the initial signs of “authoritarian” regimes. The idea that such a harmless tweet should face criminal consequences is ludicrous. This exposes the alarming truth: our freedom of speech is being threatened. Our brownnosing politicians continue to prize spineless diplomacy, pandering to big dogs on the world stage, above taking concrete action. Instead of taking a clear stance on the situation in Gaza, they tiptoe around the issue. One of the only concrete stands they have taken is banning Palestine Action whose stated goal is to halt the sale and export of military equipment to Israel. Surely their priorities are misplaced. By no means am I condoning PA’s violence; however, it is rooted in a noble cause. The real danger is politicians’ weaponisation of such violence to create stigma, ultimately silencing this pivotal branch of support for Palestine.
Photo by Dovydas Žilinskas on Unsplash,
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Sarah Helm’s exemption from the law: Anomaly or precedent?
Journalist and author Sarah Helm has faced severe backlash in the wake of her pro-Palestine Action tweet. Support and membership of the group have been banned since July 2025 and punishable with up to 14 years in prison. Despite her clear statement: “God help us authors who support Palestine and Palestine Action”, she has faced no penalties. This same luxury has not been extended to the 3,700 arrested since the ban began. Are we observing a hierarchical structure emerge in the scrutiny of free speech, and thus a disintegration of the integrity of democracy in the UK?
I find it deeply disturbing that Helm faces a parallel set of rules to the common man. A new criterion seems to have emerged for whether our opinion matters or deserves to be voiced. The leading factor being power. Helm is an influential literary figure, but an intrinsic aspect of this case is her preferential treatment as wife of Andy Burnham’s national security advisor, Jonathan Powell. Though the government has frantically attempted to distance itself from the incident, releasing a statement that she does not “represent the government in any capacity,” the damage has already been done. If found guilty she would have jeopardised Powell’s position as well as the government’s steadfast stance on the ban. Her exemption from repercussions was a form of self-preservation.
Impunity should not be contingent on social standing; Helm is far better equipped to face the consequences of a criminal record tarnishing her profile than some of the far more vulnerable arrested. 36 people have been reportedly subject to home invasions and arrests for expressing their support for Palestine Action on social media. This has left those prosecuted under the terror legislation with a lifetime criminal record, visa and immigration issues, and even loss of employment. Are we shocked that an affluent middle-aged white woman has not faced any consequences? Sadly not.
Crucially the tweet itself is extremely mild. No outrageous language, no great attacks towards Israel. This calls attention to the absurdity of the ban. A spokesperson from the activist group Defend Our Juries remarked that this ban is akin to the initial signs of “authoritarian” regimes. The idea that such a harmless tweet should face criminal consequences is ludicrous. This exposes the alarming truth: our freedom of speech is being threatened. Our brownnosing politicians continue to prize spineless diplomacy, pandering to big dogs on the world stage, above taking concrete action. Instead of taking a clear stance on the situation in Gaza, they tiptoe around the issue. One of the only concrete stands they have taken is banning Palestine Action whose stated goal is to halt the sale and export of military equipment to Israel. Surely their priorities are misplaced. By no means am I condoning PA’s violence; however, it is rooted in a noble cause. The real danger is politicians’ weaponisation of such violence to create stigma, ultimately silencing this pivotal branch of support for Palestine.
The international student experience: At the crossroads between two worlds
Photo by Dovydas Žilinskas on Unsplash,
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