The hate crime ambassador
A comment in which a transgender Tory councillor was called “he” by a Labour rival is being treated as a hate incident by police.
Zoe Kirk-Robinson, 35, said Guy Harkin, 69, referred to her twice as a man in a debate at a Bolton Council meeting.
The hate crime ambassador, who transitioned 10 years ago, said the comments on 24 August “hurt a lot” and she reported them to police.
Mr Harkin has apologised. Police said “hate incidents are not tolerated”.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said it will resolve the incident, which was reported on 25 August, using restorative justice.
Mr Harkin said he “inadvertently referred to her as a he” during a debate about pensions at the meeting where more than 60 councillors, press, council officers and the public attended.
Hate incidents are not tolerated. Really? You could have fooled me. There’s certainly a hell of a lot of tolerance for men calling women cunts and twats and bitches.
Ms Kirk-Robinson, who has stood as Conservative councillor for a year, said: “All I’m looking for is an apology and a chance to say why this is inappropriate.
“To have someone attack me, for being me, it’s deeply upsetting.”
Interesting…Here’s Kirk-Robinson on Twitter a couple of years ago:
@MAMelby @auntysarah She's a sick, twisted old bitch who needs to shut the fuck up and get out of the way of progress.
— Zoë Kirk-Robinson (@ZoeKirkRobinson) August 26, 2014
Note that the BBC referred to Kirk-Robinson as “the hate crime ambassador.” She seems a tad misogynist for a hate crime ambassador.
Ah, yes. MA Melby. That explains much.
Ambassador FOR hate crime.
Do we know who she was talking about in that Tweet? I couldn’t make the link work. There’s another one on Feminist Current.
Doesn’t an action need to be a crime before it can be considered a hate crime? While I agree that the comment was probably deliberately offensive (and careless if it was accidental), and should warrant an apology either way, this strikes me as a mere toolbag moment rather than anything criminal. Unless this is part of a sustained habit of his and therefore harassment… But I got the impression that this was a single meeting.
And yes that tweet contains a clear signal. Insulting trans = bad, insulting femaleness and age = no worries.
Myrhinne @ 3 – I think it was Janice Raymond.
It looks as if the ambassador took that tweet down.
Meghan Murphy at Feminist Current has more:
I’m sure the police love taking reports about shouted abuse in the streets, which they can do nothing about and which tells them nothing about actual actionable crimes.
I spent most of my life being vulnerable to verbal abuse in the street (and elsewhere.) It hurts, I get it. It’s very bad for people. But the cops can’t do much about it.
And yes Ms Ambassador left the sort of abuse I experienced regularly right off her list.
These days the public transport racists often get into trouble when someone films them.