Humza Yousaf is a radical leftist who heads the Scottish government. In recent years, he has defended controversial “hate crime” laws and claim The approval “sent a strong and clear message to victims, perpetrators, communities and wider society that crimes motivated by bias will be treated seriously and will not be tolerated.”
The Hate Crime and Policing (Scotland) Act came into force on Monday, but it quickly backfired on Yousaf.
according to The BBC was inundated with thousands of “hate crime” reports this week, many relating to speeches made in 2020 by left-wing leaders lamenting the lack of diversity in the Scottish Parliament.
Minister for Community Safety Siobhan Brown claimed these were “false and persistent complaints”. True or not, the charges seem to prove how the law can be used as a weapon against the kinds of speech the government ultimately has no intention of cracking down on.
simple background
Blaze News previously reported that the new law, enacted in 2021, expands on existing laws that prohibit “incitement to hatred.”
While the previous law prohibited acts that incited “racial hatred,” the new law led by Yousaf would include “threatening acts aimed at inciting hatred based on prejudice against characteristics such as age, disability, or religion.” or introduce new offenses for abusive conduct, sexual orientation, transgender identity or sexual characteristic diversity.” According to the Scottish Government.
The maximum penalty under the “hate crime” law is seven years in prison.
Yousaf and other defenders of the law appeared unfazed by concerns expressed by religious groups, artists, journalists and freedom activists about its potential impact on freedom of expression.
Rowan Atkinson, a British actor who starred in Mr. Bean and Blackadder, wrote a letter in 2020 stressing that “the unintended consequences of this well-intentioned bill risk stifling freedom of expression.” He was one of the famous co-signers. and the ability to articulate and criticize religious and other beliefs. ” report Scottish.
The letter said intent under the law does not matter. The idea is that just something perceived as offensive is enough for shallow people to demand that the state crack down on an individual’s speech, actions, or artwork.
The Catholic Church in Scotland was similarly critical of the bill ahead of its passage.
Catholic Parliamentary Secretariat established by the Scottish Bishops; said“For example, the belief that there are only two sexes or genders, that a man cannot be a woman or vice versa, or that marriage is only possible between one man and one woman. There should be no threat of prosecution for expressing a person’s real name or pronouns.” Furthermore, “no one should be criminalized for using a person’s real name or pronouns.”
backlash
Numerous complaints about Yusaf June 10, 2020, Lecture This week has reportedly seen an influx of false claims, including one made in the name of Regional Safety Minister Siobhan Brown, according to the BBC.
“I was surprised to receive a call from Police Scotland regarding my complaint on Monday,” Ms Brown said. “This was a fake complaint made by someone anonymously in my name and giving my office number.”
Weeks after George Floyd’s death, Yousaf said, “In 2020, we are still dealing with overt racism, subtle racism, systemic racism, and structural racism.” “I’m angry about what we’re dealing with. It’s still racism no matter what form it takes.”
“Forget about the racism and slurs we still have to put up with. As we have all seen, and as all members have said today, racism literally undermines minorities. We are killing them,” Yousaf said. “Scotland has a problem of structural racism. As members have said, you can use Parliament as an example.”
Mr Yousaf complained that in Scotland, where 96% of the population is located: population The population is white, with a total of 4% of the population being Asian, black, mixed race, or other ethnic groups. “To our shame, there are no black MPs in the Scottish Parliament, and not a single female NSP.” Shamefully, only four of our ethnic minority MSPs were all Scottish-Asian men. . ”
Yusaf continued: List and highlight races Names of individuals in various political positions in Scotland. After realizing they were white, he said, “That’s not good enough.”
The future first minister also complained in his speech that the conferences he attended were largely reflective of the demographics of the country his parents freely chose to move to, saying, “I’m 99 years old on social media.” “Some people were surprised or taken aback by what he said.” Percent of the meetings I attend, I am the only non-white person in the room. ”
Years later, when his speech went viral again, Yousaf tweeted, “Racists are foaming at the mouth at my very existence.”
daily mail report A Police Scotland spokesperson said they could confirm that the complaint specifically referred to Mr Yousaf’s 2020 speech.
“We have received a number of complaints in relation to a speech in the Scottish Parliament on 10 June 2020,” a spokesperson said. “Previous complaints regarding this matter were assessed at the time and it was determined that no crime had been committed and no further action was necessary.”
Minister for Community Safety Siobhan Brown Said BBC Radio Scotland: “There’s a lot of misinformation and hysteria surrounding this bill.”
“I think this is indicative of the publicity and misinformation that is being spread about this law and people filing false and persistent complaints,” Brown added.
Yousaf told the BBC that complaints must meet high standards before police take action. report Scottish Daily Express.
“The new criminal acts created by this law have a very high standard of criminality. The act must be threatening or abusive and must have the purpose of inciting hatred. Therefore, this law simply It does not deal with people who are offended, upset or insulted,” Yousaf said.
Many of the complaints filed this week also flagged JK Rowling’s comments criticizing gender ideology and LGBT activism.
rolling tweeted On Monday, he said: “I am currently abroad, but if what I have written here constitutes a crime under the terms of the new law, I look forward to being arrested when I return to the birthplace of the Scottish Enlightenment.” ” and added the hashtag #ArrestMe.
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