Parliamentary committee Joanna Cherry SNP MP & QC challenge to Twitter representative about abuse of women / 'terf' / why sex is not protected characteristic

[R0wantrees]

Human Rights Committee - EXTRACT
Wednesday 1 May 2019 Meeting started at 3.16pm, ended 4.52pm

parliamentlive.tv/event/index/0364bfc3-5adc-4aef-99bd-48c68daacc38?in=15:27:30&out=15:50:30

I really don’t feel sorry for the Twitter woman.
I suspect she’s a highly
paid person and she will have agreed to say “I’m not sure about that, I will get back to you”. It’s what all big corps do, in front of these committees. She was just doing her job.
I’ll bet she left there thinking she’d done a great job and would have been pats on the back from those in the Twitter offices.

Katy Minshall, Twitter representative "Head of UK Government, Public Policy and Philanthropy, Twitter"

I'm sure she is highly paid, Lizzie but her title sounds to me like a bollocks title for upper middle management PR.

It was a clever move on Twitter's part to put someone in the chair who had no real insight or authority regarding moderation decision-making and could only say 'I'll look into that'. As you point out, it keeps the discussion one step removed. It's known as a good negotiation tactic.

But it is also highly cynical and manipulative on Twitter's part. eg I'm sure it was also quite deliberate that in a discussion about online abuse against women, the person representing the big evil corporation was a young, pretty woman. More easy to look like the big meanie questioning her, isn't it? I'd have had more respect for them if they'd had a scintilla of moral fibre and put a senior (male) exec up there to defend their shitty moderation.

Oh I dunno, I know I'm ranting. It makes me really bloomin' cross. Pathetic, cowardly, big business.

She was simply superb. Evicerated the Twitter lady.

Am only gutted that she is a Yes supporter, but found her hugely impressive both in the panel and also her responses on twitter.

LatinforTelly, I don’t agree that Joanna came across as a big meanie at all - calm and factual, against which there was no defence possible.

You'd think that someone with the job title 'Head of UK Government and Public Policy' might at least have basic knowledge of those things.

Apparently not.

Isn't it called "plausible deniability"?

So twitter bod can sit in the room and truthfully say she does not know xyz because she has previously deliberately absented herself from any discussions that may have informed her of it.

Joanna Cherry is amazing.

Yep, I have sent her a thank you card

crumpet I completely agree! Sorry I'm not very good at expressing myself on this board which is why I mainly lurk and read! I'm saying I thought Twitter sending in a young woman rather than a senior male (or female, but particularly male given the subject matter) exec was a ploy through which it would be easier to make any MP look like a 'meanie'. I agree Joanna Cherry was calm, clever, logical and dispassionate. Sorry, I'll shut up now and go back to reading.

No please don't Latin I got what you meant by it and I completely agree! That's the look twitter were aiming for sending her. It would have been a very different tactic of they sent a white middle-aged man like most of their execs probably are, which twitter knew. So they sent her to sit there and say "I don't know about anything" instead. But Joanna very calmly and clearly made her points anyway. Great that she cgot her to concede that TERF is a "gendered" slur.

Very good article by Eleanor Scott.
It seems to me as though the calibre of MPs just gets lower by the year. Where are the clever, decent, brave and true men and women ? There are only ego-driven idiots who patronise women in particular , but also the electorate as a whole.

Very good article by Eleanor Scott.

A new article here by @EleanorScott

eleanorscottarchaeology.com/els-blog/2019/5/2/penny-mordaunt-defence-secretary-has-theresa-may-replaced-one-liar-with-another

Eleanor Scott writes very well, so clear and intelligent.

<a class="break-all" href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/746107/Intimidation_follow_up_Twitter.docx&ved=2ahUKEwiIgJrD2_3hAhXzThUIHTifBJ8QFjASegQICRAB&usg=AOvVaw1KWc110cdO3hKuKEdtZaJD" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/746107/Intimidation_follow_up_Twitter.docx&ved=2ahUKEwiIgJrD2_3hAhXzThUIHTifBJ8QFjASegQICRAB&usg=AOvVaw1KWc110cdO3hKuKEdtZaJD
What Katy did last year in response to an enquiry.

Twitter are breaking the law in offering a different service to females as to males on the platform. Wish someone would take them to court over it!

Tbh I thought sending in that young woman was just another act of misogyny on Twitter's behalf. Make one of your big male, moderator bully-boys take the flak, you absolute bunch of moral cowards.

Yes.

Thank you for sharing OP. It fills me with hope that people like Joanne Cherry are MPs. I have no doubt she is on MN . I hope the Twitter lady pops in to this board, too

Claire/MRKH is back on twitter. I wonder if Joanne's questions did that.

The video wont play for me but will watch on my better computer tomorrow. Her twitter feed seems mainly support, peppered by a few misogynist asshats who are still attempting to claim that terf is not a slur and is simply an acronym that refers to both males and females equally Would think they would drop that one really given the amount of proof of its usage. Meanwhile other misogynist asshats just yelling 'shut the fuck up terf bitch!' and such. Because that doesn't rather prove her point.

Aww Katy Minshall done up like a kipper by Joanna Cherry - was awesome.

Buzz interested typo considering the fig leaf comments.... thrown under the boss

AnyOld I don’t have a twitter account, and can’t see how to report a tweet but this account is still sharing that meme:
mobile.twitter.com/daisybanaisy/status/1123664661927354368

Dunno how worth while reporting is tho, as that tweet has been retweeted 1.1k times, so feels a bit finger in a dyke.

The challenge & complaint is with twitter & those who have used/abused power within the organisation to silence and enable harrassment of women.

They will be male.

Mhari Hunter is subtweeting (and then said she's not "entering into further correspondence upon this matter" )

Mhairi Hunter
‏*@MhairiHunter*
Just a wee reminder of the SNP 2016 manifesto which every SNP candidate was elected on. Call me old fashioned, but if you want to change party policy you should ask the party first.

twitter.com/MhairiHunter/status/1124207315719213061

Joanna Cherry QC MP
‏*@joannaccherry*
More Joanna Cherry QC MP Retweeted Mhairi Hunter
The SNP manifesto also supports equality for women & lesbians & condemns abuse against women. Where rights may compete there should be respectful debate not an attempt to shut down debate & #freespeech by stigmatisation. I’m sure @SASomerville would agree

I liked this response:

Naebody who wants to change it seems keen tae be gaun roon the doors wi leaflets stating what the change is, why, and having a chat wi voters on the doorstep

Shall we bet on the reason why that seems to be the case?

Because they know what sunlight will do their their fragile "reasons".

She's following up!

Joanna Cherry QC MP
@joannaccherry
Meantime here’s what @twitter think about some of the abuse I have received since I elicited evidence about issues with their moderation policy at @HumanRightsCtte. It’s not good enough & contradicts the evidence of @katyminshall #onlineabuse

So @twitter @katyminshall what is it about the context of this @theSNP campaign tweet which means the response of “Shut the fuck up. Terf.” With a hand pointing a gun is not abusive behaviour? I can’t wait to hear. #onlineabuse

twitter.com/joannaccherry/status/1124353563734544387

Joanna and Joan McAlpine are doing an amazing job. MH is being a bit of a numpty as always, the post about standing by election promises - Joan and Joanna are, women by law are a protected characterist and deserve equality, the vast majority of AGPs do not come under any protected characteristic as they are predominately fully intact white males!