Humza Yousaf says JK Rowling's tweets are a 'perfect example'

[ArabellaScott]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-68725547

Wasn't sure which thread to put this on, so ...

'Humza Yousaf said he was "not surprised" police had assessed JK Rowling's online posts challenging the new hate crime law to be non-criminal.
The Harry Potter author described several transgender women as men, including convicted prisoners, trans activists and other public figures.
The legislation creates a crime of "stirring up hatred" relating to protected characteristics.
But Police Scotland said no action would be taken against Ms Rowling.
The first minister said the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 "protects the most vulnerable and marginalised in our in society" while also safeguarding "freedom of expression and freedom of speech".

Mr Yousaf told BBC Scotland News: "Those new offenses that have been created by the act have a very high threshold for criminality.
"The behaviour has to be threatening or abusive and intends to stir up hatred.
"So it doesn't deal with people just being offended or upset or insulted."
He said Ms Rowling's posts on X were a "perfect example of that".
The first minister added: "Anybody who read the act will not have been surprised at all that there's no arrests made.
"JK Rowling's tweets may well be offensive, upsetting and insulting to trans people.
"But it doesn't mean that they meet a threshold of criminality of being threatening or abusive and intending to stir up hatred."
Mr Yousaf said it was up to Police Scotland to decide how to deal with hate incidents.'

https://wingsoverscotland.com/the-rules-for-the-rich-and-famous/#more-142234

Police Scotland have said that neither Humza nor JKR are going to have NCHIs recorded against them.

'According to Police Scotland’s official Hate Crime National Guidance, if someone’s actions are assessed not to be a crime, but the victim perceives them to be hate-motivated, the incident WILL be recorded as a non-crime hate incident.There’s no wiggle room at all. No evidence is required other than the complainer’s perception. It’s one of the few aspects of the law that is clear and unambiguous. Even as we write these words, the Police Scotland website remains steadfastly unequivocal on the subject''...it’s being applied to opposition politicians but not to those in the government, which is pure banana-republic stuff. Somehow, incredibly, the SNP have just contrived to hand the moral high ground to MURDO FRASER.'

I suspect that it’s because JKR tweeted what she did that means this is now the exemplar of what is deemed not criminal. If it had been anyone else, it would have reached someone’s criminal threshold. Because she got in early they have no choice but to go along with that. JKR did this.

Alternatively, what I’m saying is JKR is in charge of Scotland now😉.

Telegraph: Tory MSP recorded for hate incident furious as police refuse to record NCHI against Humza Yousaf

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/04/03/police-scotland-hate-incidents-humza-yousaf-jk-rowling/

Archive version: https://archive.is/oJ4OR

Glorious!

If you look at the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021, there are two "Offences of stirring up hatred", with the first requiring "threatening, abusive or insulting", when applied to stirring up racial hatred, and the second requiring "threatening or abusive" when applied to 6 characteristics, including "transgender identity".

The "insulting" nature of behaviours or communications is not applicable to "transgender identity".

There's another key difference where for the 6 characteristics it must be shown that "the person intends to stir up hatred" while for stirring up racial hatred it must be shown either that "the person intends to stir up hatred" or "a reasonable person would consider the behaviour or the communication of the material to be likely to result in hatred being stirred up against such a group".

It looks a bit like they are applying the law unevenly.

Yes. I think this is a legacy from the 'racial hatred' laws being already existing. I'm not quite clear why it's being applied differently across pcs, though.

And then we'll have 'women' added. I wonder what else? It's going to be a Mexican stand-off eventually. If we're allowed to say that anymore.

'being already existing', sorry, it's late, my words blaughghgh.

As it should be! She could probably afford to buy most of it!

https://twitter.com/JNHanvey/status/1775613411872620733

'So my office got a call from@PoliceScotland
today advising me that I had been reported for a Hate Crime based on an undisclosed tweet. They had assessed the complaint and were notifying me that they were taking no further action as they did not deem it necessary. Police officers are already under enormous pressure, but now they are having to spend their precious time assessing the perceptions of how offended someone feels over others lawfully expressed opinions. This is utterly ridiculous, illiberal, wasteful and unacceptable in a supposedly liberal democracy where political discourse should be free and open. Whatever your political views are and whether they align with mine or not I defend your right to form, hold and discuss lawfully held views freely and openly without interference from the state.'

Neale Hanvey.

There's a petition there to repeal the Act.

This man is an imbecile and not fit for his job. Failed upwards his entire career.

As I've implied up thread.. meanwhile Rome burns.

And the Guardian:

https://amp.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/apr/03/jk-rowling-comments-scotland-non-crime-hate-incident

Murdo Fraser has a NCHI recorded against him for tweeting that IDing as non-binaries is like IDing as a cat.

This seems pretty tame in comparison to JKR and Humsa's non crimes.

I wonder if it's cos he's a Tory?

https://archive.is/wvjxn

Do you think we could get all politicians north and south of the border done for a NCHI? At least they’d all be equal then.

I'm pretty sure Boris would be eligible for several

Oh the irony of the begging note at the bottom of this Grauniad article

And the guardians verbal gymnastics... She listed sex offenders who had described themselves as transgender alongside well-known trans women activists, describing them as “men, every last one of them”.

Note that in the article the sex offenders describe themselves as transgender rather than who everyone must accept as women, including the media, police, courts and you and me...

When it suits them...

That was my take, too.

(Your first para. Second clearly also true.)

'So my office got a call from@PoliceScotland
today advising me that I had been reported for a Hate Crime based on an undisclosed tweet. They had assessed the complaint and were notifying me that they were taking no further action as they did not deem it necessary.'

So are the police phoning up every single person who has been reported? All thousand + of them?

They don’t have a clue what they’ve done do they. It’s just likely the self ID law all over again. They should be bloody ashamed.

Well, Humza Yousef would say that, wouldn't he? It's his law. But in every picture he looks more hunted.

<slow hand clap>

I’m not Scottish, don’t live in Scotland and JKR standing up for women is brilliant and have followed the threads.

I understand there is a lot of rivalry between the fans. Idk what this means exactly. Do people shout religious insults at one another?

Secondly, can any resident of the uk sign the petition? It reads like that…