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Original poster

I'm so upset - I've been Facebook shamed!

240 replies

Whatsthis1515 · 21/04/2020 19:31

We don't have much outside space, so I took my 3 youngest (8, 6 and 5) to the park to ride their bikes. The park is about a 10 minute walk away but we had to drive because my 8 year old has a broken leg (in a cast). We parked in the park's car park. There was no one there apart from us. The kids started biking on the grass but then they decided to bike round the carpark - smooth tarmac, so great to get their confidence up.

Anyway, after 30 mins we put the bikes back in the car and drove home.

I have just seen on our local Facebook group that someone has posted a short video clip of us (filmed from a distance, assuming from someone's bedroom window) and said 'Due to covidiots like his continuing to drive to our village to use our park, we are locking the gates to discourage it. If anyone knows these people please let them know we've got them on film!'.

I am mortified. The post has had about 20 likes, but a few people are saying that parks are open so they don't see the problem and that the government have specifically told councils to leave parks open.

Did I do anything wrong? I'm really shy so don't plan on responding to the post but I only drove there due to my daughter's broken leg, and secondly, we didn't see anyone and thirdly, now the park is not accessable to us because there is nowhere safe to park near it. We have now lost the use of our local park Sad I just don't understand

OP posts:
Chickpeees · 21/04/2020 21:59

What’s the offence please? I understood it to be a civil issue rather than a criminal one?

I think it’s a low thing to do btw.

Weregoingonanadventure · 21/04/2020 22:01

@CallMeRachel
No it isnt.

If the photo is taken in a public place then you can do what you like with it. The copyright of the photo or film belongs to the person who took it; not the subject as long as they were in a public place.

Unless you want to link to this new legislation?

Original poster
Whatsthis1515 · 21/04/2020 22:01

With regards to the police, is there a way to report these things to a PCSO or whatever they are called? To have a word Angry

OP posts:
Weregoingonanadventure · 21/04/2020 22:03

@HavenDilemma
No. Because schools and leisure centres dont allow photography. Privately owned places can have ruled. But outdoors, or in a public place with no "expectation of privacy" it is not illegal.

KeepWashingThoseHands · 21/04/2020 22:03

Not read the full thread OP but filming someone without consent (or context) and posting it online is dickish behaviour of the highest order in my book.

I can't wait for lockdown to be over so these curtain-twitchers have jobs to do instead of haranguing other people.

Hope your daughters leg gets better.

mumwon · 21/04/2020 22:05

@eveoha it was pointed out yesterday that the only people on planes arriving now are uk citizens being brought back from overseas trapped because airlines had halted. from what I gather the disease was mostly spread into the country by our citizens who were visiting other countries. We are a global community economically, financially, socially, industrially, family connectivity & tourism. Its multi dimensional & no country is isolated from this including N Korea. We need trade & parts for our industry & business, As has been proven by access to PPE & support for our scientific, medical & farming communities. As stated by a famous virologist diseases do not need visas & don't have passports or nationalities. I would point out that people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones nb foot & mouth & mad cow disease both originated in the UK caused by bad farming practice & disgusting feed production methods.

Weregoingonanadventure · 21/04/2020 22:05

@HavenDilemma
Photo journalism of the gossip variety would not exist if the law you have made up actually existed.

In a public area, with no expectation of privacy, anyone can film or take photos and use the end product however they want (unless they end up inviting violence against someone or something that touches on an actual law).

CrazyTimesAreOccurring · 21/04/2020 22:06

@AllForAnEasyLife no way!!! Has he been identified Grin our fb usually takes posts down if the car reg is shown. Annoying as obviously the whole point of showing it is to shame them.

OP am so pleased you stood up for yourself and were supported. I wonder who has closed the car park gates though?

Weregoingonanadventure · 21/04/2020 22:07

*With regards to showing video footage of you without your permission and there is no intent to cause distress, if you are over 18, the footage needs to be classed as obscene (the legal threshold of what is obscene is quite high and would not normally cover what could be classed as merely offensive).

If you are under 18 then the footage needs to be classed as indecent before the police can become involved.*

Member869894 · 21/04/2020 22:09

That's horrible. Poor you. You did nothing wrong. I would just ignore it though as you'll be yesterday's news tomorrow

CrazyTimesAreOccurring · 21/04/2020 22:11

Too late to ignore it @Member869894, it's been dealt with

atenthofaclue · 21/04/2020 22:11

In normal times someone can beat his wife and people will use social media to defend his character and shame the victim, whilst if the victim dares to comment publicly on what was done to them the perpetrator can drag them through the courts. So no shaming of perpetrators occurs, and therefore it remains socially tolerated to be an abuser.

But suddenly we tolerate public shaming of people for sitting on benches or riding bikes in parks? And that is so widely endorsed that people are changing their behaviour (being the point of shaming).

Our society is fucked up.

Original poster
Whatsthis1515 · 21/04/2020 22:11

It's the twat himself that has locked the carpark gate. He also has the keys for the village hall. This clearly makes him feel very important

OP posts:
CrazyTimesAreOccurring · 21/04/2020 22:15

Well I reckon he will have got himself in trouble by locking a public space. What a shame if someone reports him to the council....

RLGGG · 21/04/2020 22:15

Please reply OP, privately perhaps?. The privacy of you and your children had been violated, this is cruel and slanderous. A similar thing happened to a member of my family who does not use Facebook. I privately messaged the poster calmly correcting their comments and explaining the impact of their words, they replied and were mortified, apologised for any offence they had caused.

Hiding behind a screen some people don't think about the impact their actions have, private message calmly them and it may stop them hurting someone else the same way as well as give you some closure. X

atenthofaclue · 21/04/2020 22:15

*Photo journalism of the gossip variety would not exist if the law you have made up actually existed.

In a public area, with no expectation of privacy...*

GDPR? It affects people with CCTV so I don't see why it wouldn't apply to this. It's an ICO matter though not a police one, I think.

"Celebrities" can't say they have an expectation of privacy when it comes to crappy so-called journalism, but ordinarily the rest of us can and do.

KeepWashingThoseHands · 21/04/2020 22:15

I agree @atenthofaclue

Smileyoriley · 21/04/2020 22:16

@atenthofaclue it surely is!

AntiHop · 21/04/2020 22:16

Well done for standing up for yourself op.

Weregoingonanadventure · 21/04/2020 22:21

@atenthofaclue
Bloody hell. Gdpr gets dragged our for everything on mumsnet.

GDPR only applies to organisations within the EU. It does not apply to individuals. We dont all have to follow it or we could never pass on a phone number or email address without explicitly gaining permissions first.

Even before GDPR you were entitled to any CCTV which contained your image. But that has aboalutely nothing to do with this. An individual can film or photograph anyone in a public place and publish it.

If the subject decides to go to court to have it removed then they'd need to have one hell of a case for why it should be removed.

Chickpeees · 21/04/2020 22:21

It’s not a criminal offence though. While I don’t agree at all with Facebook shaming, it is not correct for posters to say it’s a police matter. It’s not.

Chickpeees · 21/04/2020 22:23

@Weregoingonanadventure you are correct.

Schoolchoicesucks · 21/04/2020 22:23

My council have closed the car parks to green spaces. They did this just before the Easter weekend to prevent people from congregating.

They also closed all the entrances to the (huge expanse of) parkland and woodland except for the main entrance.

This has meant that people are parking like idiots in the surrounding streets, and anyone walking or cycling there is now funnelled along the narrow pavement to the one entrance so difficult to maintain distance and drivers and cyclists are getting road rage as cars cannot pass both ways with all the parked cars.

Once in, there's space for everyone there to have half a football pitch of space per family group. But the pinch points mean my family and I having to avoid this green space 10 min walk from home and sticking to walking around the residential roads, walking into the road around parked cars to avoid other walkers.

It's crazy.

BrooHaHa · 21/04/2020 22:26

Well done, OP! A great result. Hopefully he'll unlock it again now.

AllForAnEasyLife · 21/04/2020 22:29

Crazy

There were loads of comments on it (about 70) and not one person said they knew him. I ve just tried to look for it and I can’t find it so maybe it was deleted

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