U.K. Police Urge Citizens To Report Neighbors For ‘Offensive Or Insulting’ Speech

The Federalist ^ | 09/13/2018 | By Benjamin R. Dierker

[SeekAndFind]

English police are now calling on citizens to report hate incidents. Reporting friends and neighbors to the police has terrible historical connotation, and for good reason. It is legitimate fascism. Timid citizenries are easy to control — fear that even a coworker could file a report to the police can keep people in check.

The latest call for action in England is from the South Yorkshire Police on Twitter. Similar reporting requests are posted on the United Kingdom government website. Two tweets from the South Yorkshire Police over the weekend requesting citizens to report hate matters to police should grab our attention.

The first calls out any hate “incident or crime.” There is a meaningful distinction there. The tweet defines hate incidents as “motivated by prejudice or hostility (or perceived to be so)…” The tweet ends with, “Report it and put a stop to it.”

Hate can be any incident or crime, motivated by prejudice or hostility (or perceived to be so) against a person’s race, religion, sexual orientation, transgender identity or disability. Hate hurts and nobody should have to tolerate it. Report it and put a stop to it #HateHurts pic.twitter.com/xoMH8KhE9n

— SouthYorkshirePolice (@syptweet) September 9, 2018

To be clear, reportable incidents under this scheme have as low a bar as non-crime incidents merely perceived to be hostile. This would be hilarious if it was not so serious. Law enforcement is now soliciting people to turn others in for being offensive. Freedom from criminal investigation and arrest may now be subject to someone else’s feelings or perceptions in England.

The second tweet explicitly calls on citizens to “please report non-crime hate incidents, which can include things like offensive or insulting comments, online, in person, or in writing.” Reporting non-crimes to the police already seems like a waste of time and resources, but reporting people to the police for being offensive crosses the line into fascist territory.

In addition to reporting hate crime, please report non-crime hate incidents, which can include things like offensive or insulting comments, online, in person or in writing. Hate will not be tolerated in South Yorkshire. Report it and put a stop to it #HateHurtsSY pic.twitter.com/p2xf6OLoQZ

— SouthYorkshirePolice (@syptweet) September 9, 2018

Of course, hate crimes and legitimate hate incidents are wrong, and the perpetrators should face justice. But there can be no freedom when perceived victims’ subjective feelings can bring down the power of the state on citizens. Jokes, comments taken out of context, or simple misunderstandings can easily be conflated with legitimate hate.

The overbroad definition of hate incidents virtually guarantees that people will report frivolous complaints, which could drown real problems. It could also lead to government invasion of privacy for regular law-abiding citizens.

There is also no sense of proportionality here. A dumb comment online is subject to arrest by force because someone’s feelings are hurt? The over-broad definition also means there is likely no consequence for bad faith and frivolous reports. No limiting principle exists to discourage false or careless reports, further damaging the reputation of innocent people and wasting law enforcement time and resources.

England is once again validating the American Revolution. This grotesque power dynamic and attack on personal freedom should be condemned and rejected. Calling on citizens to report one another is unnecessary. Certainly a free people should be able to report crimes to the police, but police encouraging such a low bar for reporting will gin up controversy, suppress free speech and expression, and damage trust between the people.

When people say they want to make America like the rest of the world, keep this in mind. America stands alone in the preservation of individual liberty. Hate speech laws that give false empowerment to illegitimate, self-declared victims have no place in America. England has not only embraced this, but advanced it, and now calls on its citizens to act on it.

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Benjamin Dierker is a law student at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University. He holds a master's degree in public administration and a bachelor's degree in economics, both from Texas A&M University. He is a Christian and a Texan and loves to talk about both.

[Bonemaker]

“...please report non-crime hate incidents, which can include things like offensive or insulting comments, online, in person, or in writing.”

But never mind acid in the face, stabbings, car run-overs, etc...we don’t care about that.

[KarlInOhio]

Report all hatecrime to the Ministry of Love.

[SpaceBar]

England deserves itself. If they don’t give a shit about their county, why should I?

[Bulwyf]

My first thought as well.

It’s a textbook communist move.

[Bulwyf]

I’ve heard rumours they are there, but I haven’t seen any.

[Truth29]

"I predict cops in Britain are about to be very very very very very very very very busy."

Yes, but this system is a set up for everybody is guilty of something and the police can target only those they choose and want to oppress.

[RushIsMyTeddyBear]

Yep. I’ve been saying that for quite a few years now.

[RushIsMyTeddyBear]

😁

[BenLurkin]

Big Brother is Watching: White House Website Urges Citizens to Report People Who Oppose Healthcare Reform
August 5, 2009

https://americaswatchtower.com/2009/08/05/big-brother-is-watching-white-house-website-urges-citizens-to-report-people-who-oppose-healthcare-reform/

[robowombat]

‘There will always be an England’, Hmmm, we will see.

[Mark17]

“...please report non-crime hate incidents, which can include things like offensive or insulting comments, online, in person, or in writing.”

But never mind acid in the face, stabbings, car run-overs, etc...we don’t care about that.

I saw this on one of the sites I read a lot, possibly Breitbart. Some female radio person, interviewed this particular police dude, and she was on him like white on rice. She made him look like the idiot he is.

[Billthedrill]

The tweet defines hate incidents as “motivated by prejudice or hostility (or perceived to be so)…”

"Or perceived to be so"? You mean call the cops if some protected-class jerk or SJW decides that putting up that "Remember 9/11" poster is hate speech? Or if your mere existence "offends" them?

[Mathews]

Well, they might want to start showing up in numbers before they loose their country all together. Unleash the footie hoodlums!!!

[FLT-bird]

Where did these statist busybodies get the ridiculous notion that anybody has a right to not be offended?

[LostPassword]

The mayor of London is offended whenever someone repeats a fact like “the killer yelled aloha snackbar before stabbing 10 people.” He alone can keep the police very busy by reporting “offensive speech”.

[alexander_busek]

It's been awhile since I've read it, but my recollection is that in "1984" the government had such a high level of surveillance that they didn't NEED people snitching on their neighbors.

You recollect wrong.

Tom Parsons - Smith's neighbor - is reported to the Thought Police by his daughter - for "talking in his sleep" and mumbling "I hate Big Brother." After being arrested by the Thought Police, Parsons tells Winston - with no little pride - that that at least shows that he had reared his children in the "right spirit."

Regards,

[alexander_busek]

"I predict cops in Britain are about to be very very very very very very very very busy."

Yes, but this system is a set up for everybody is guilty of something and the police can target only those they choose and want to oppress.

No, they'll simply discontinue all felony investigations so that they can concentrate on all the "really" important offenses like "thought crime."

Regards,

[SunkenCiv]

So, when will the British authorities be arresting every mullah and imam in the country? Didn't think so.

[Mark17]

I found it on you tube. It was Julia Hartley Brewer She got all over that idiot in South Yorkshire.

[seowulf]

It's been awhile since I've read it, but my recollection is that in "1984" the government had such a high level of surveillance that they didn't NEED people snitching on their neighbors.

They may have not needed it, but they encouraged it.

There is an episode in the book where a child of Winston's neighbors turned in his parents for thought crimes and they were disappeared.