When “Freedom of Religion” Becomes a Shield for Abuse

If any group objects to the Victorian Inquiry into cults and fringe groups by crying “freedom of religion,” I’d honestly bet money that whoever is saying it is either a cult leader or a member of a high-control group.

I say this because I’ve seen it pop up in several submissions already, and in my opinion, it’s one of the weakest arguments you could possibly lean on to avoid scrutiny of group-based coercive control. It sounds emotionally powerful, sure, but once you look even slightly deeper, the logic collapses.

Let’s start with the basics.

Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states:

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

Religious freedom absolutely matters. It’s a precious right. But it is also legally complex, and it cannot be pulled out as a rhetorical shield to cover for violations of other people’s rights. That’s not how human rights work. None of them get to sit at the top of a hierarchy. They balance one another.

And cults—over and over again—ignore that balance.

Below is a quick refresher on the other rights that high-control groups routinely trample.

1. The Right to Life, Safety, and Protection From Harm

Violations include:– medical neglect– forced labour– high-control, fear-based environments– psychological abuse– discouraging mental health care

2. The Right to Bodily Autonomy

Breached through:– forced fasting– sleep deprivation– corporal punishment– reproductive coercion– forced confessions or rituals

3. Children’s Rights

Often ignored through:– educational restrictions– isolation– indoctrination– unsafe living conditions– denial of medical care

4. Freedom of Association

Undermined by:– mandated isolation– shunning– controlling friendships, relationships, and contact with family

5. Freedom of Thought and Expression

Violated through:– thought reform– information control– banning dissent– punishing questions

6. The Right to Privacy

Routinely abused with:– surveillance– forced confessions– monitoring communications

7. The Right to Work and Fair Conditions

Breached through:– unpaid labour– unsafe work– economic exploitation– confiscating wages or assets

8. The Right to Equality and Non-Discrimination

Cults often rely on:– sexism– racism– homophobia– ableism– rigid “spiritual” hierarchies

The hypocrisy is staggering.

So yes—when people try to elevate “freedom of religion” above every other human right, I don’t think they have a leg to stand on. Protecting people from coercive control is entirely consistent with human rights. And honestly, if a group can’t grasp the broader context of Article 18, I don’t hold much hope that they’re interpreting their own scriptures fairly either.

And unfortunately, I’ve seen the real-world version of this up close.

My Daughter’s Cult Leader Is a Perfect Example

David McKay didn’t lodge a submission to the Victorian Inquiry. But he did publish a blog post on his group’s website that cherry-picks Article 18 and frames it as a blanket justification for practising whatever he wants. It’s manipulative. It’s coercive. And it completely ignores the long list of other human rights his group violates.

Take Article 12, for example:

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

And yet McKay has a long, documented history of interfering in the private communications of his followers and their families. For decades. He has used private messages to attack people—my own experience being a particularly grotesque example, where he publicly accused me of being a Satanist.

How dare this man cry “freedom of religion” while refusing to allow me basic freedom of private communication with my own daughter. It makes my blood boil.

And this is just one article he infringes upon. There are several more. It would take a whole separate post to do them justice.

The point is simple: cult leaders demanding religious freedom while breaking almost every other human right is absurd.

Missing the Entire Point of Freedom of Religion

Groups with rigid “us versus them” thinking desperately need to understand this: the moment your religious freedom requires dehumanising people who think differently, you’ve missed the entire point of human rights altogether.

Freedom of religion means tolerance across the spectrum—from Indigenous spiritualities to Islam, to Christianity, to atheism, to witchcraft and wizardry. It is not a loophole to justify abuse.

Honestly, I’m still shocked that the rhetoric of “religious freedom” has protected these harmful groups for so long. When you look at it closely, it’s a completely illogical argument that—just like I said in my last video—misses the mark of what human rights were designed for.

Protecting vulnerable people isn’t an attack on religion.

It’s the very heart of human rights themselves.