An Unprecedented Threat to Civil Liberties

Human rights. Equality. Free speech. Privacy. The rule of law. These five ideas are vitally important to the way of life we enjoy today, and the battle to establish them in law was long and difficult. Today, however, our civil liberties are under threat like never before.

Leading human rights lawyer Anthony Lester was at the heart of both the 30-year campaign that resulted in the UK’s Human Rights Act and the struggle for race and gender equality that culminated in the Equality Act of 2010.

At a recent event, Lester presented his new book Five Ideas to Fight For: How Our Freedom Is Under Threat and Why It Matters. This work gives an insider account of how important political and legal reforms were achieved and presents a fierce argument for why we must act now to ensure the survival of the ideals that enable us to live freely.

Watch the entire event above, or listen to audio below.