On 5 April, a 40 Days for Life silent prayer vigil began outside the Buffer Zone surrounding Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.
The Buffer Zones bill had been introduced by Gillian Mackay MSP to prohibit pro-life protestors within two hundred meters of an abortion clinic. This could include anti-abortion posters in the windows of houses within the buffer zone.
Having visited the vigil a week after it began, I found it a distinctly eerie and oddly intimidating atmosphere. The protestors held signs reading “Don’t be coerced into an abortion,” and “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you,” accompanied by images of the Virgin Mary.
A group of five elderly people held rosaries and muttered prayers under their breath whilst staring at me from across the road. The road that they stand on is one of the main routes to the maternity clinic.
The weekend before, I spoke to the MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, John Mason, regarding the Buffer Zones. Mason was the only MSP to vote against Gillian Mackay’s bill.
In response to my concerns about the judgemental and intimidating nature of these protests, Mason says that people can simply ignore them. “You don’t have to go past them, so I’d say it’s quite passive, and I wouldn’t say they are targeting anyone.” I reflected on this as I watched protestors stop an old man who had been the only one to walk directly by them and pull him into conversation.
Mason, who was expelled from the SNP last year for tweeting that there was “no genocide” in Gaza, believes that “from conception, we are dealing with two people here. We’ve got the mother, and we’ve got the baby”. Coming from a religious background, he believes faith “gives [him] the courage to speak up for those who don’t have a voice.”
Despite having visited the 40 Days for Life vigil outside the hospital twice in recent years, Mason hasn’t made any plans to attend this year. When asked why he felt that it was appropriate to protest outside the Buffer Zone despite the wishes of hospital staff and local residents, he responded that “this is a free democratic society – we are allowed to disagree.
“If we’re in a society where you’re not allowed to express an alternative opinion, even on something sensitive like abortion, I think that is quite concerning. I wonder where it would go from there – what other subjects are we not allowed to protest against?”
This echoes the sentiment expressed in JD Vance’s controversial speech at the Munich Security Conference in February. He referenced the Buffer Zones, stating that they “criminalise silent prayer and other actions that could influence a person’s decision within 200 meters of an abortion facility.”
Vance reiterated that, in the UK, the “backslide away from conscience rights has placed the basic liberties of religious Britons, in particular, in the crosshairs” and that “free speech is in retreat”.
Upon drawing similarities between his stance and that of JD Vance, Mason replied he felt Vance was inaccurate in what he was saying: “I do not have a lot of time for Mr Vance, and he was exaggerating and has a more extreme opinion.”
40 Days for Life is an organisation founded in Texas, but now has worldwide locations. A similar organisation, the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, is also active in Glasgow, organising events and visiting universities.
Mason claims to “work very closely” with the SPUC, an American-funded organisation, having attended many of their events. The SPUC received £73,000 in anonymous US donations from 2020-2022.
When asked if he thought it was appropriate for America to have such an outward interest in Scotland’s abortion laws, Mason said that “everyone is entitled to comment on everything.”
Mason believes the buffer zones were “introduced in Scotland to deal with an American problem.” There was actual violence in America, and there has never been any violence in Scotland. I think Gillian MacKay failed to show that there had been a problem in Scotland – they were more concerned if there would be an issue in the future.”
The prevalence of American-founded and funded organisations such as 40 Days for Life and the SPUC, as well as JD Vance’s comments on such a global stage, show how the abortion issue in Scotland is becoming an alarming cause for debate.
The protestors outside the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital continue their vigils and are expected to continue until the end of Lent, 17 April.
She/Her
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