Judge orders 21-year-old Briton to read classic literature like Dickens or 'suffer' after downloading far-right material

A British judge has ordered a 21-year-old man who downloaded “white supremacist” documents about bombing and vionry to read classic literature by Charles Dickens, Jane Austen and William Shakespeare to avoid jail.

Judge Timothy Spencer QC allowed former Leicester student Ben John to read classic works of literature until January 4, warning that he would have the young man “like” if he did not show sufficient knowledge of the books when he returned to court. John was also warned to stay away from right-wing material, as he promised to do, the Leicester Mercury reported.

Judge Spencer ruled that John’s decision to download extreme documents was “An act of teenage folly” and called him a “Lonely individual with few if any true friends” Who is “Extremely receptive” to negative influences.

“Have you read Dickens? Austen? Start with Pride and Prejudice and Dickens A Tale of Two Cities. Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night … Think of Hardy. Think of Trollope, ” he said, adding that he would ask him about the books in January.

I will test you and if I think you are [lying to] me you will like … I will keep an eye on you, Ben John, every step of the way. If you fail me, you know what will happen.

The judge also said John had “At the teeth of the skin, imprisonment is avoided” for the non-violent crime, but was still sentenced to a two-year suspended sentence, a five-year ordinance on the prevention of serious crime, which requires him to let the police monitor his activity and other punishments.

The judge’s ruling was criticized by some on social media, who said that John was given jail time due to “White privilege” and protested against Spencer’s decision to award literature by “Dead white men." Some also argued that Charles Dickens included several anti-Semitic tropes in his books.

Nick Lowles, CEO of the left-wing organization Hope Not Hate, called the sentence “A disgrace” and accused the judge of “Sends a message that violent right-wing extremists can be treated mildly by the courts."

“This kind of light punishment risks encouraging other young people to access and share terrorist and extremist content because they do not want to fear the consequences of their actions," Lowles argued and concluded, “The Attorney General’s Office shall immediately review this sentence."

Do you think your friends would be interested? Share this story!