Why Justine Roberts should not give in to demanding celebrities

I find it chilling that MN is actively aiding the Reform publicity machine but nobody seems particularly bothered about that.

Exactly this.

It would have been entirely appropriate to contact her privately to ask her if this is an issue she would like to engage users of the site on.
But none of the political parties she worked with got her engagement by publishing an open letter in the newspaper. And rightly so.
It's a dreadful precedent to set. And I find it a bit chilling that people can't grasp that.

That sums things up pretty well.

Justine has been contacted in her capacity as the founder of the largest UK parenting forum, and in acknowledgement that she is already a political figure, having interviewed 4 prime ministers.

It is entirely apposite to write a letter to her, as she is clearly willing to put herself out there, and the well-being of mothers and children is her realm of influence.

She is no shrinking violet, she can make up her own mind about how she responds or not.

The reason people object to it is because it puts JR in an impossible position. Either she agrees to support it (but inevitably achieves nothing because mn has no unified view or power here) and is forever inundated with similar requests OR she ignores/refuses and people call her heartless or start attacking her for ‘supporting Israel’.

I have said multiple times that I am appalled by what is going on in the middle East and further afield. But this is a thread about the appropriateness of that letter and no amount of emotional manipulation changes the fact that we do not want to live in a country where private individuals can be singled out on any issue in this manner. It's an awful precedent to set.

"defending the indefensible"? I mean some might say a better fit for that would be hindering the ability of mothers and children to gain access to life-saving maternity and neonatal care in warzones, rather than writing a letter.

Exactly!!

It's astonishing anyone thinks that what these celebrities did is acceptable.
It's quite possible to say that you agree with the sentiment but feel it was alarmingly misdirected.

Recipient if the letter is private, yes. But when it is an open letter sent to the press that is something quite different and target is absolutely the correct word to use here.

The sooner people stop defending The indefensible the sooner that we can get on with actual sensible nuanced discussions and a campaign that targets UK politicians and the international political community

You are surely being disingenuous here? This is obviously not a precedent we want to set, where random private individuals can be called upon publicly to take responsibility for issues they have no direct control over.

If Justine does respond to it in any way she is paving the way for this type of mob rule to be the way that all sorts of politics is conducted and that's not a route I think any of us would want to go down. These issues are complex and nuanced and should not be laid at an individuals door unless they have an actual role to play in fixing them

Open letters of historically being used to address the prime minister or a senior government minister not private individuals. Sometimes they might be used to target a company where that company is directly itself doing something problematic but no one can say that that is the case here.

I still don't see the problem. Justine can reply to the letter or ignore it, or she can meet with the writers to discuss the situation, which is what she's chosen to do. I'm going to leave the thread now because nobody will be clear about what they mean. If I'm supposed to pick up some hint, it hasn't worked.

A private letter has a recipient. An open letter has a target.

Are there similar open letters asking Elon Musk to act, as the voice of all Twitrer X users? Richard Branson as the voice of everyone who takes Virgin flights? Duncan Bannatyne on behalf of the members of his gyms?

There’s always a motivation behind actions.. subjective mindset before objective thinking.. etc

Target of a letter? Recipient surely? If nobody can explain why they are so wound about it, this discussion will go nowhere!

Who else has been the target of an open letter?

Reasonable open letters

• Dear Foreign Secretary. Please apply international sanctions to Israeli until they allow in aid agencies.
• Dear CEO of Unilever. Please stop selling your products in Russia until they withdraw from Ukraine.

Not reasonable open letters.

• Dear Justine. Please make Mumsnetters fix the potholes in my road.
• Dear Dame Judy. Please get Holywood to sort out the imequality of the 11 plus exams.

Judy Dench doesn't control the opinions of the entire Holywood industry, and if she did they don't have the power to reform the UK education system.

Justice doesn't control the opinion of Mumsnetters, and if she did we still don't have the power to compel the actions of foreign governments. As the MN maternity campaign shows we can't even compel our own government.

Re the letter - I think whatever the cause is, and whatever her own feelings, JRoberts should refuse to sign. She started and facilitated Mumsnet, she doesn't represent it - no one does.

OK, thanks, got it. The letter is just for Justine and they are asking her to speak out in support of the women of Gaza. Why is this a problem? No doubt they are also speaking out on their own account. I genuinely can't see any issue with this. Not saying there isn't an issue.

Nicely done. It politely puts the ball back in their court.

@BlossomToes I can't believe you interpret a letter to JR/Mumsnet asking if people who've changed to Reform would be in touch to be interviewed, as "signing people up to Reform". It's just a standard journalist's reach-out.

And the point is they are mot asking her to join them they are asking her to act for them.

They don't want her to sign the letter - she is the target of the letter.

According to the Independent on 9 Jan, 'Mumsnet told The Independent that it has received the letter and are arranging for a meeting with Dame Judi and other signatories to discuss the issue.' I can't see what the problem is. Please be clearer about why you are objecting.

Please post a link to their other open letters to anyone other than a politician or someone with actual power to act.

These ladies clearly haven’t realised how JKR has been a beacon of light and validation, perhaps influence, to millions of women and girls in the UK (at the very least), who thought the world was going mad.

But then, JKR doesn’t suit them does she.