How naughty and tactless it was
POLICE Scotland has launched a probe after complaints about a sign at a pro-trans rally reading “Decapitate Terfs.”
The placard – which also included a drawing of a guillotine – came to prominence on social media yesterday after it featured in images and video of SNP politicians attending the rally, including MSP Kaukab Stewart, and MPs Stewart McDonald, Alison Thewliss and Kirsten Oswald.
Especially after JK Rowling shared the image.
Tory MSP Murdo Fraser said he had reported the sign to the police, saying carrying it was “clearly a hate crime and a public order offence”.
He added: “Good grief [Nicola Sturgeon], should your MP and MSP [Kirsten Oswald] and [Kaukab Stewart] really be standing under a banner with a guillotine and this the slogan ‘Decapitate Terfs’? And this is meant to be ‘progressive’?”
Sturgeon could retort that of course it’s not meant to be progressive, but the trouble with that is that violent threatening images and verbal abuse didn’t just crop up this minute with this one banner, it’s been a conspicuous part of trans “activism” for years.
Ms Oswald tweeted: “That’s a horrific sign, and it wasn’t there when I joined the demo. It most certainly doesn’t represent my views, and isn’t language I would ever use. Violent hateful language, of any kind, is unacceptable and has no place in the peaceful movement for LGBT equality and democracy.”
There you go, that’s what I’m saying. It’s absurd for her to say that, because the violent hateful language is pervasive, and it’s not possible that she doesn’t know it.
Ms Thewliss said she had not seen the sign and that if she had she would “have told the person involved how inappropriate and offensive it was, and to get rid of it.”
Yyyyyeah it’s not just “inappropriate and offensive.” It’s threatening. Granted the sign-haver didn’t have a guillotine with her, but the point is that the meaning of the sign is “we want to see you brutally executed.” Calling it inappropriate and offensive minimizes what’s so vile about it.
I just hate that “offensive”. Most things are “offensive” to someone, and it’s inevitable that we will offend someone sometime unless we wrap ourselves in cellophane and remain in a bubble…and someone will offend us. Adults just deal with it.
The problem isn’t offensive, as you pointed out, it’s threatening. For some reason we’ve gotten into a situation where being “offensive” is equated with being wrong, and being evil. If you are on the “right” side, of course, you can commit not only offense but threats of violence, and people will brush it off.
I find Christian speech “offensive” in many cases, especially when it is assumed I should agree with them. I only challenge it when it becomes a threat – either a physical threat, or a threat to a secular democracy.
“You’re saying the quiet bit out loud! It makes us look bad!! Keep thinking that thought, but for god’s sake, put the sign down, I’d like to retain some semblance of plausible deniability!”
“Offensive” is one of the buzzwords of our time, along with (and all too similar to) “community.”
So this is where it leads.
“Your community offends me!”
I’m really struck by the similarities in rhetoric with the original elevator-gate episode, which was about the time I first started reading your blog. It seems to me that within any group of men there is a subgroup of men who like to fantasize and/or talk about violence against women they think are deserving of it. It also seems like it’s only the other men in their larger group who can enforce a standard of not allowing that kind of talk. They won’t listen to women who complain other than, if we’re lucky, stop talking that way in front of us. If it’s wrong when incel’s talk that way and it’s wrong for the patriarchy to talk that way, it’s also wrong when transwomen and their supporters talk that way.
Beth, I think that’s basically correct, sadly. It’s certainly been my experience that in any mixed group of men of any size there are some that when given the slightest opportunity will display some pretty awful attitudes. I can’t speak for ALL men of course :-|