"Being offensive is an offence"

[hallouminatus]

AIBU to find this image offensive?

Given that 33 other police forces have had to send reinforcements to Kent, how come Merseyside has police left over for this nonsense ?

www.thelondoneconomic.com/news/brexit-list-of-33-police-forces-deployed-to-kent-to-help-manage-traffic-chaos/18/02/

@Ponoka7

As someone who lives in Liverpool and friends/family all over Merseyside, we'd love to know were the time is being found for stuff like this (and the Covid policing) because we've lost most of our working police stations and the Police phone you back, rather than attend, even for violent crimes, they largely ignore DV until forced to take notice. Parts of the city are lawless.

It wouldn't surprise anyone on Merseyside that the Police don't know what is and isn't an offence.

@Ponoka7 This! It’s not just in Merseyside I live in the Midlands and it’s the same here. Unlimited funds for vague messages and arresting people for having a coffee, but no money for actually solving crimes.

I can understand why people are concerned about this approach by the police.

We’re in a situation where violent crimes are committed against women every second of every day and the police seem slow to react and often don’t react at all. Successful prosecutions are tiny and often even when they are successful the sentence isn’t adequate.

Nice "They also randomly decided to bung 'sex workers' in at the beginning of their list of groups covered by hate crime law "

Yes. So I guess accountants aren't on the list.

@BobbitWormNightmares

Happy to be enlightened, but I just take this as, verbal or other such attacks against anyone in the LGBTQI+ community is a hate crime and illegal - the police will support victims, and I can't see it as anything other than positive?

I’m happy for that message to be put out there but it’s interesting how these establishments are very keen to be seen to wave their rainbow flag but not so keen to deal with actual nasty, dirty, physically violent crime that’s happening right under their noses.

Next they’ll be putting us all in scolds bridles (I think about the handmaids tale a lot these days).

What an absolute waste of taxpayers money - and in this financial climate ffs!

Everyone's aware I assume that sex is not covered by the hate crime law?

It's the notable difference between this and the protected characteristics list.

I assume it's because

-if it were included the police would be overwhelmed as women and girls get so much shit

Or

-not seen as a problem (for a variety of reasons)

Probably a combination of both those reasons tbh

I was just thinking about some of the other protected characteristics in the Equality Act and how being offensive would apply to them.

So religion/religious belief for example is a protected characteristic. Posters on here often refer to Gods as "sky fairies".Does that mean that if someone religious felt this was offensive, the poster has committed a hate crime and can be reported to the police?

It is just a headline. They are trying to show they are taking hate crime seriously and protecting the rights of the LGBTQ+ community aren't they? Surely that's a good thing?

It's very reassuring to know that police in the Wirral have no crime to sort out and so can spare the time to stand in a threatening pose in front of a highly inaccurate poster (offending someone is not an offence, though it probably soon will be in Scotland under the Hate Crime Bill).

@BiggerBoat1

It is just a headline. They are trying to show they are taking hate crime seriously and protecting the rights of the LGBTQ+ community aren't they? Surely that's a good thing?

If they printed a poster about hate crime, sure.

That is not what they have done.

*If they printed a poster about hate crime, sure.

That is not what they have done.*

That's exactly what they've done and I think its very positive. Can't please all of the people all of the time though I suppose.

Why does that policeman have a big stick?

That's exactly what they've done and I think its very positive. Can't please all of the people all of the time though I suppose

No it isn't. That's what they thought they did, then had to pull it as it was pointed out that they had fucked it up.

Merseyside police put up a massive ad saying "being offensive is an offence", then had to take it down and clarify that actually (and obviously) being offensive is NOT an offence.

And you still think "good job"?

"£350 A WEEK TO THE NHS AFTER BREXIT" was just a headline too.
It's called lying, to manipulate people and get what you want.
It's these tactics that are totally fucking up our country. We can no longer trust anyone to even tell the truth. The police are paid to uphold the law. Causing offence is not illegal.
Stop standing in front of a lying poster and do something about the rape statistics - rape is in practice practically legal now.

Here's the apology posted on twitter:
twitter.com/MerPolWirral/status/1363802799054684164
Not apologising for the waste of resources, and no apology for the other poster, with the incorrect definition of hate crime as a crime against sex workers, etc, which is still shown on their twitter.
twitter.com/MerPolWirral/status/1363113610298408964

The UK: where as a man you can strangle your wife to death and only get 5 years, but a woman can be prosecuted for saying a transwoman is not biologically a woman.

How progressive and impressive.

£350 million, obv.

To be doing this in Birkenhead of all places... No wonder he's got a big stick.

Are you thereby
-a homophobe
-a racist
-a transphobe
-a Tory
-a Karen/ Gammon/ Pearl clutcher
All of the above, or some other kind of bigot?

It’s badly worded they should have stuck to hate crime is an offence. I wouldn’t be offended by poor PR/marketing though you have every right onobvs.

This sadly sums up the understanding of the police of some of the more nuanced aspects of the law. They could have picked any number of things that were an offence, but they picked one that wasn’t. Don’t know whether to laugh or cry.

@SheCannaeTakeNoMoreCapt

The UK: where as a man you can strangle your wife to death and only get 5 years, but a woman can be prosecuted for saying a transwoman is not biologically a woman.

How progressive and impressive.

Yup.

So just to clarify, next time I'm out running and some male twat leans out of his car window and requests that I display my breasts for him (not in quite such a charming way), can I expect the police to hunt him down and do something about it? Or is misogyny still fine and dandy?

Sacred castes and all that.

‘ So religion/religious belief for example is a protected characteristic. Posters on here often refer to Gods as "sky fairies".Does that mean that if someone religious felt this was offensive, the poster has committed a hate crime and can be reported to the police?
My hats not a hate crime though is is?
Some one can come in here and say they don’t believe homosexuality is right, and they’d hate their kids to be gay. Or that actually they don’t even believe gay people exists. Not a hate crime.
But harassing me in the street, calling me a ‘fucking Dyke’ which has happened - I could now report. Not that I would cos the police still wouldn’t do much harm less it was sustained and witnessed.