Damian Barr

[AbsintheFriends]

I know there's loads going on at the moment, and Damian Barr is just one bearded misogynist in an increasingly dystopian world, but he's the one who kicked up a huge self-righteous fuss about Baroness Nicholson and got her ousted from her position at the Booker Prize on the grounds of homophobia and transphobia. Who would have imagined that such a zealous icon of ideological purity would turn out to have said things like this??

twitter.com/MLagouste/status/1278345389150662658

(Oh yes. Any one of the several million of us on FWR who has seen a bearded misogynist hiding behind a trans-rights banner...)

[ScrimpshawTheSecond]

Am I the only person who feels Mr Barr's 'response' is being v carefully managed? Focus on the use of the word 'T', mention absolutely nothing about the cruelty of mocking someone who attempted suicide, DO NOT bother with the misogynistic slurs because who gives a toss, it's only women/racism, etc?

[justanotherneighinparadise]

If he thinks he’s going to slide out of his protected Twitter account at some point and carry on as normal he is very much mistaken. The internet has an extremely long memory. He had damaged his career and it will take years for this to subside.

[CuriousaboutSamphire]

@BusterBluth You are back, and gaining likes

[wellbehavedwomen]

@NearlyGranny

Framing the sharing of his own transphobic tweets as being aimed at hurting the trans community is him trying to be Teflon, isn't it?

"Don't blame the source, blame the messenger!"

And nobody seems to be addressing the virulent misogyny and ageism in those tweets.

Abuse of women doesn't count. They regard that as perfectly acceptable and normal.

Unfortunately for Mr Barr, the internet is forever, and this will follow him permanently. Women have seen him, and so have the many sane, reasonable members of the trans community. Who will not forget what and who he really is, any more than we will.

[nauticant]

You're not the only one ScrimpshawTheSecond and the depressing thing is how the media are largely falling for it. He got the BBC to turn his non-apology into this:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-53276425

He has now apologised for using derogatory terms to refer to transsexuals on social media.

and from now on if he's challenged he can simply point to the BBC's "authoritative" version and say, it was all out in the open, all handled, it's now a closed matter.

[SerenityNowwwww]

You could even call it ‘career suicide’ and titter a little.

[Divoc2020]

@justanotherneighinparadise - ABSOLUTELY! For some reason, this who affair has incensed me more than any of the many other similar ones recently. I will be looking for every opportunity to post the 'Misogynist of the Year' link beneath anything to do with Damian Barr for a long time to come.

I think it's because of the sheer nastiness of going for an elderly, disabled woman who has devoted so much of her life to doing good for others. It's pure playground bullying with sniggering behind the bike sheds.

I don't agree with Baroness Nicholson's politics on gay marriage, but I respect her difference of opinion.

Someone posted this picture of her on Twitter and it just summed it up for me.
What exactly has bloody Damian Barr ever done for anyone??

[ScrimpshawTheSecond]

Well, he was never going to be 'cancelled', because the 'cancelling' only works in one direction, in case you hadn't noticed.

What Barr will serve as is a small footnote, yet another little disappointing cautionary tale in the long and wearisome struggle of women's rights.

And if some of the well-learned women who have been happy to cheer on the trite mantra-chants so far, and who have only seen the argument in very much the prescribed pastel shades of pink and blue, are given just a little pause, then that will be a good thing.

If people who were happy to chant the self-righteous nonsense they like to chant will falter slightly, just for a second, and wonder ... why the virtuous rage? Why the anger right now, at this particular person? Could there perhaps be something else behind this desire to topple people, cancel them, erase them from history? Could the topic be perhaps nuanced or complicated?

Chances are, they might even start asking questions. And we know what happens when they do that.

[AbsintheFriends]

Divoc the whole affair has incensed me too. I think it's because the misogyny is so blatant, and so sanctioned by big organisations that supposedly represent liberal values and intelligent thinking. The injustice is breathtaking.

It has also revealed the cowardice, hypocrisy and chummy closed ranks of the media/publishing world. These are the people who are supposed to reflect the voice of society, provide insightful analysis of people and relationships and power structures, and use their skill with words to say things other people can't articulate. And all of them are acting like it nothing has happened, because he's positioned himself at the centre of that world and is at the parties, involved in the prizes, sought after for blurb quotes and reviews and endorsements. It's sickening.

[Roseburn]

Lovely, lovely picture of the Baroness.

[NearlyGranny]

Good question: what charities has DB set up or which existing ones does he support or act as patron for?

Of course, he might be following biblical guidance and giving in secret (..let not your left hand know what your right hand is doing, Matthew 6:3) but this might be a good time to come out and be open about something positive. His reputation and career could do with it round about now.

[NearlyGranny]

www.damianbarr.com/activism

Here he is talking about the time he gives. No mention of funding anything. I note that he is a Stonewall Schools Ambassador. You'd think they'd have a trawl back through someone's Twitter history before accepting them. I hope schools think twice and three times about who they invite.

[seadreaming2020]

Another person incensed here - I won’t be forgetting this in a hurry when he eventually climbs out of his hole and tries to pretend none of this happened. He comes across as a misogynistic nasty man from his own words. The double standards are galling.

[Floisme]

I will forget about it when Barr apologises, firstly to Baroness Nicholson, and secondly to women. Until then I will be thinking of those tweets every single time he opens his mouth.

[AbsintheFriends]

That's an interesting link NearlyGranny. It would definitely be worth us all contacting Gladstones Library, which is already taking a long hard look at its ethics in the wake of BLM, and probably won't want to be associated with any more negativity.

www.gladstoneslibrary.org/news/volume/a-statement-from-gladstones-library-black-lives-matter

I haven't seen anyone tagging them in on twitter as they have with the Savoy and Cheltenham lit fest etc. And I would think Gladstones would have a natural affinity and sympathy with Baroness Nicholson as the library has (I think) religious connections, and hosts a lot of religious groups, conferences etc. Many of its supporters will hold the same religiously-influenced views as the Baroness.

[gardenbird48]

I see Mx La B is tweeting full support for Mr Barr and praising his 'remorse'. Maybe it is a tit for tat situation though considering La Burg's blatant misogynist homophobia?

[nauticant]

Like ScrimpshawTheSecond says, we need to look at the indirect benefits:

• Barr knows he's been shown up to be a hateful hypocrite and he knows that loads of other people know it. From now on, whenever he publicly puts himself on the moral high ground, he'll be looking around to see if his tweets appear and get seen by even more people.
  
• The trans activists who came to his support did it knowing they were supporting someone who has been willing to spread really nasty transphobia. They probably had to do this with gritted teeth knowing that anyone watching could see how they were discrediting their campaigning.
  
• His friends and acquaintances are in a better position in that at least they were able to do the 3 Monkeys routine. But now they know they're associated with a nasty bigot. A real one. Who says things that really are bigoted and phobic.
  
• It's been made crystal clear that the campaign against Baroness Nicholson was strongly motivated by misogyny. A lot of people have seen this.
  
• The Booker Prize know they've been manipulated and even worse have had to pretend nothing that bad has gone on. While a lot of people watched and sadly shook their heads.
  
• The other charities, groups, entities, etc that give Barr status know that if they're going to remain associated with him, and they probably will, this is a tarnish to their brands.
  
• A lot of people have seen the curtain pulled back and the mind-bending double standards in operation. This is depressing but will motivate many.
  
• The right side of history looks a bit grubby as a result of this.

[NearlyGranny]

Well, that's something Twitter account holders can usefully do: politely let these organisations know who they're aligned to. Not that I hold with the cancel culture generally, but it's up to an organisation who they allow within the fold, and DB is looking more and more like a wolf in sheep's clothing.


Alternately, there's Shakespeare:

"Meet it is I set it down, that one may smile and smile, and be a villain -"

[AnneOfQueenSables]

I feel really conflicted about this. I don't agree with cancel culture and I don't agree with trawling old Tweets for wrong-think. Yy the TRAs and Mr Barr do both but I think both positions threaten freedom of speech and don't allow for growth. I'd feel like a hypocrite if I suddenly acted as though it's ok to get people cancelled as long as I don't agree with the person involved.

[AbsintheFriends]

I feel the same Anne, except here it's not cancel culture in isolation, it's in the context of what happened to Baroness Nicholson as a direct result of Damian Barr's efforts.

She had her position stripped from her - a position that must have meant a great deal to her, as it was in an organisation founded by her late husband. I feel that if Barr isn't called to account, if he keeps all the positions he has worked (or networked) to achieve, when his misdemeanours have been so much more serious, and reveal evidence of a truly unpleasant streak, it just not just double standards but something even more unjust.

I believe the relentlessness of his campaign against Baroness Nicholson left a slightly nasty taste in collective mouths because underneath everyone knows she is an honourable and admirable person. But, you know - must support the oppressed, don't want to be seen to be secretly on the side of homophobia etc etc. But then, when his unsavoury history comes to light, lots of media people can cower behind the line that they don't like cancel culture and we should just move on. In other words, he got to make the last move in the game of cancelling, and it was such an unpleasant one that it kind of changed the rules, meaning that he himself can't be cancelled.

I don't know - I haven't expressed it very well and I hope it doesn't sound like I'm disagreeing with you. I just feel that he should be more accountable than he has been for a crusade that he started. (And was so roundly and loudly applauded by the great and the good for seeing through to its conclusion.)

[nauticant]

I don't agree with cancel culture but there are situations when the witch finder getting burned in lighting the pyre is something I can be pleased about.

Barr led a witch hunt against a woman for "criminal statements" when he'd said far worse. Hypocrisy like that is deeply offensive.
It's clear Barr has misogyny running through him like words through a stick of rock. So in hindisight him targeting a woman looks very predictable.
When found out Barr didn't apologise. He firstly ran away. Then he issued an apology that was hidden from his critics. The apology was a non-apology and used DARVO. There is no sign whatsoever of him taking responsibility and being properly contrite.
He's getting rewarded for this shitty behaviour and given half the chance we can expect more targeting of women from him in the future.

[NoSquirrels]

I agree with you, Anne, but where I have found this whole Damian Barr vs Baroness Nicholson objectionable in particular is the seeming dishonesty with which DB acted to get BN discredited.

Yes, she voted against gay marriage years ago. Yes, she appeared rude & very dismissive - potentially even aggressive - in her recent tweets to MB.

But the fact is, her real crime was to stand with JKR. They couldn’t get JKR - she’s said absolutely nothing wrong, and they know it. The Baroness got targeted and drawn into the tweets to MB precisely because of JKR. The ‘Baroness Nicholson is so homophobic she’d have the wedding ring off my finger’ was so emotive, so calculated when DB - who is an intelligent man - MUST HAVE KNOWN that her voting record was historic and nothing to do with the real issue at hand. There was 1 tweet where she tried to explain her reasoning for her historic voting record - but Twitter is no place for nuance and it was not well worded or received - and was then cynically spun into ‘see, she’s ACTIVELY homophobic’.

Then everyone lauded him for ‘being so perceptive’ as to ‘notice’ the heinous situation and flocked in droves to support his campaign - and it really was a campaign, not just his expressed personal opinion. He also played victim by saying HE was being viciously attacked even though he escalated it x100.

And now the non-apology for mocking a suicidal person.

I couldn’t give a shiny shit about the use of the slang word he’s apologising for- it’s totally irrelevant. He mocked for laughs someone who attempted to end their life. Who does that? No one with the empathy, sensitivity and compassion he’s spent years making his living from - his reputation is based on being a sensitive interviewer and critical thinker.

So it’s piss poor, frankly. He’ll come out of it just fine in the end - but with some added victimhood and woke points for all the vicious bullying he’s received.

Bloody shitshow, frankly.

[AbsintheFriends]

nauticant and squirrels said it much better

[Ereshkigalangcleg]

^When found out Barr didn't apologise. He firstly ran away. Then he issued an apology that was hidden from his critics. The apology was a non-apology and used DARVO. There is no sign whatsoever of him taking responsibility and being properly contrite.
He's getting rewarded for this shitty behaviour and given half the chance we can expect more targeting of women from him in the future.^

Exactly.

[ScrimpshawTheSecond]

Just leaving this here. 'Saying nothing says everything', from Mr Barr's facebook feed, recently.