AIBU to stop buyng The Independant because of this ad?

[NowThenWreck]

The one from Fathers4Justice, where they accuse MN of:

"carrying abusive and distressing anti-male content which promotes gender hatred against men and boys"
and, apparently, labels "men and boys as rapist, peados and wife beaters."

The ad has a lovely picture of a sad little boy with words like "rioter" and "homeless" and "sperm bank" written on his skin.

I am confused, as I have never come across a thread on here where people routinely call men paedophiles and rapists. In fact, usually, if someone implies that a man being left alone with a child is dodgy, posters will pile in and say "God, don't you know not all men are paedos.?"

As I understand it, this is a forum for discussion, not a political movement with a manifesto. There are many and varied opinions on MN, and the minute one opinion is aired, another will be along to refute it.

Or should I just laugh at F4J? The ad is quite gruesomely funny.

I don't. Your average Independent reader is inlikey to be an avid F4J supporter

But them the ad itself doesnt coherent so its no surprise

Christ - my post isn't exactly coherent either

you get my gist (hopefully)

Maybe the independent is the cheapest to put an advert in? Probably all they could afford.

This has been brewing for a while.

It is the result of F4J members posting on the MN Facebook page because a director of a group they were already targeting has links with MN.

A thread was started about it on here and the F4J posters followed.

They don't like anyone disagreeing with them. At all. They are annoyed with Justine for not deleting posts they don't like and took comments about specific men to = posters saying all men are eg violent. She deleted posts that break the MN code, but left ones that didn't.

Posts on their Facebook page, by there organisers, have insulted Justine's IQ and stated that this site 'promotes gender hatred towards men and boys.' They also left this comment up (from a contributor) for at least 24 hours:

Remo Balboa: is this a dyke men haters site!
23 hours ago.*

It may still be there.

Good point heliumballoon I read the Indie, am probably an average reader in many ways and, though I haven't seen the ad yet, from what I've read here would not be impressed or much interested, especially as I already have an opinion on F4J's efficacy as campaigners.

YANBU but boycotting the Independent (or any other product you boycott) is pretty useless unless you write and inform them, explaining why.

They are currently targeting a Barrister's Chamber's!, Gingerbread (the charity that supports single parents) and a firm of solicitors. In fact, they were so busy targeting other groups that they forgot about the solicitors for a while!

They have targeted M&S as it advertises on MN and announced their intention to target all other MN advertisers.

As Marks refused to pull advertising from MN they posted all over the M&S Facebook page, have announced that they will protest outside M&S stores on Saturday and that they'll leaflet other stores.

They encouraged their supporters to phone Gingerbread - a charity- blocking it's helplines. Then they threatened legal action when someone suggested that they should make clear to their supporters that offensive behaviour to Gingerbread staff was unacceptable.

I remember the first thread I ever read on here (only about a month ago) about strip clubs, posted in feminism. People were posting about how men had a view that their need for sex was more important than the strippers. They didn't qualify "men" with "certain men": it was obvious that they didn't mean all men, but they didn't spell that out.

If this was a site for men, women would be referred to as whiny, needy, too emotional, wonderful mothers, sexy, great in bed and caring, just as men are described as lazy, jerks, grumpy, uncooth, uncaring, stingy, great fathers, helpful, funny, caring and sexy.

Perhaps someone more internet savvy than me can start a petition expressing unhappiness at this and make the Independent aware of it?

Yes they have a right to. But those of us unhappy about it alos have avright to say to the independent that we are unhappy they accepted the advert.

M&s should just ignore them. Seems to me that F4j have a problem with freedom of speech.

I think p'rhaps they should really hit MN where it hurts, and go and protest Boden. (joke)

But seriously, there might be a minority of posters who are anti-men, but meh. It's a site with hundreds of thousands of members. You'll have a minority of posters who are anti-cat, anti-tea, anti-driving .... basically, MN is a diverse bunch, you get a range of views and they should grow up.

Petition the Indie if you want but I doubt F4J could afford to run the advert for another day.

Yes Boden would have much more impact

I'll be totally honest if I wasn't already on this site, this would make me want to come and see what the fuss was all about.

It's how as a childless person I ended up here anyway, MN was mentioned and ridiculed about, well actually I can't even remember, thought I have a nosy, started reading a few threads on chat, then the book one, then TV and then I found AIBU and I was hooked.

A forum where I could have a name that did hint that I was female and I did get mutiple invites for sleazy 'chats' weeheee

I think they may find that this will back fire on them.

anti-cat Abs?

Errr sorry abs that's completely wrong.

Being anti men,anti women,anti gay etc etc is completely wrong.

Nobody should have views that are anti gender,sexuality,race.You can't just say it's a forum and anybody can post whatever wrong shit they feel like.

the other way it will backfire is that if you just glance at it and don't bother reading, you see 'Say it with hate this Mother's Day' 'Fathers 4 Justice'. And since most people won't bother reading, this will just associate F4J with promoting hatred.

They're not awfully good at this, are they?

mrsheffley you can't tell people what to think

Of course there are posters on here who are anti-anything you care to think of

If they post those thoughts and they break talk guidelines then MNHQ delete

?We believe that the sexist labeling of all men and boys as ?rapists?, ?paedophiles? and ?wife beaters? on Mumsnet is as unacceptable and offensive as racism and homophobia.

That was never said.

Never said.

NEVER SAID!

Perhaps interpretative dance would work?

They want to stir up publicity and have something to protest about.

They didn't really understand what people were saying on the thread that started all this iirc.

They took "all rapists are men", since in this country rape has to involve a penis, to mean that 'all men are rapists'. Saying Border Collies are dogs does not equal saying that all dogs are border collies.

They seemed to take the statement that SOME of the men who have been denied access to thir children must be abusive/violent, to be saying that they all are. Which is not what was being said.