London, England - Government plans to outlaw incitement to religious hatred have provoked some of the biggest demonstrations since the row over fox hunting.
And, as ministers attempted for the third time since 2001 to push legislation through parliament, they were facing opposition from a wide range of religious groups, politicians, secularists and entertainers.
At the centre of the row is a clash between the government's manifesto pledge to come down hard on anyone stirring up religious hatred - as is already the case with racial hatred - and protesters claiming the laws amount to a fundamental attack on freedom of expression.
Their fears were echoed by peers who have amended the government proposal by limiting the new offence of inciting religious hatred to threatening words and behaviour instead of the government's wider definition also covering insults and abuse and recklessness.
The Lords' changes would also require the offence to be intentional and exclude proselytising, discussion, criticism, insult, abuse and ridicule of religion, belief or religious practice.
But ministers seem determined to overturn the changes despite the rising tide of opposition which has seen groups including the National Secular Society, the Christian Institute, the Muslim Parliament and the Muslim Forum asking for a compromise that would only ban threatening words or behaviour.
Those groups have signed a letter to the Daily Telegraph, declaring: "We recognise that a free society must have the scope to debate, criticise, proselytise, insult and even to ridicule belief and religious practices in order to ensure that there is full scope - short of violence, or inciting violence, or other criminal offences - to tackle these issues".
And comic Rowan Atkinson has claimed it should be everyone's right to: "cause trouble, or create discomfort, or offence, as long as your words or behaviour are not threatening".
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Critics claim the proposed laws go too far, are too badly drawn and can only succeed in limiting legitimate freedom of speech.
But Home Office Minister Paul Goggins said: "It is where people set out with the intention of stirring up hatred at people because of their religious beliefs - that has no place in a modern civilised society.
"We always have accepted there are fine balances to be drawn here - but religious belief is an important part of identity, and the expression of that religious belief is important to many people.
"So, for all the difficulty in getting the balance right, we think it is right to press ahead with this legislation."
All this coincides with the escalating international row over a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad in a Danish newspaper which has seen a boycott of Danish goods, diplomatic sanctions, and Islamic militant threats.
The critics of the proposed laws claim governments should stand firm against such attacks which represent an assault of the very basic right of freedom of speech and not, as they see it, cave in with draconian laws.
But, at the moment, the opponents' greatest hope is a rebellion by enough Labour MPs to defeat the government, forcing ministers back to the drawing board.