JK Rowling Challenges Scotland Police After Hate Crime Law Comments
In a string of online posts, J.K. Rowling has questioned the constitutionality of Scotland's new hate crime legislation, thus urging the authorities to arrest her in the event that they find her guilty.
Several transgender women, including convicted prisoners, trans activists, and other public figures, were misidentified by the Edinburgh-based author of Harry Potter Her position was that "freedom of speech and belief" would be severely curtailed if it became illegal to accurately describe biological sex.
Previous remarks by First Minister Humza Yousaf of Scotland addressed a "rising tide of hatred" and indicated that the new legislation will address this issue.
new offence of "stirring up hatred" based on age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, transgender identity, or intersex is established by the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021.
This law does not protect women as a group from hate. The Scottish government is anticipated to include this into a distinct misogyny law at a later date.The day the new law went into effect, Ms. Rowling—who has been critical of certain trans movements for a long time—posted on X.
"Scottish lawmakers seem to have placed higher value on the feelings of men performing their idea of femaleness, however misogynistically or opportunistically, than on the rights and freedoms of actual women and girls," She added: "It is impossible to accurately describe or tackle the reality of violence and sexual violence committed against women and girls, or address the current assault on women’s and girls’ rights, unless we are allowed to call a man a man."
"Freedom of speech and belief are at an end in Scotland if the accurate description of biological sex is deemed criminal."
Andrew Miller, who kidnapped and brutally attacked a teenager in the Scottish Borders, and transgender rapist Isla Bryson were among the criminal instances brought to light by Ms. Rowling.
In a string of posts, she referred to them as men and also listed transgender activists among them. The author stated: "I'm currently out of the country, but if what I've written here qualifies as an offence under the terms of the new act, I look forward to being arrested when I return to the birthplace of the Scottish Enlightenment."
No complaints have been received over the posts, according to Police Scotland.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said people should not be criminalised for stating "simple facts on biology". He pledged his party's commitment to "always protect" free expression in an interview with The Daily Telegraph. A maximum of seven years in prison is the punishment that can be imposed in Scotland according to the new statute.
A person commits an offence if they communicate material, or behave in a manner, "that a reasonable person would consider to be threatening or abusive," with the intention of stirring up hatred based on protected characteristics.
While the Public Order Act of 1986 made it unlawful to incite racial, sexual orientation, or religious hate across the United Kingdom, the new statute in Scotland will make it even more so.
Being inclusive of "insulting" behaviour lowers the threshold for this violation compared to the other protected features. Crimes "aggravated by prejudice" against a protected trait are similarly consolidated under the new statute in Scotland.
Judgement from the court may reflect this in the form of a lengthier sentence or a heavier fine. Protesters numbering in the hundreds gathered outside Edinburgh's Scottish Parliament on the morning of the new law's implementation.
Without limiting free speech, the Scottish government said that the Hate Crime Act would safeguard citizens from bigotry and hatred. First Minister Humza Yousaf said it was designed to deal with what he called a "rising tide of hatred" in society.
He responded to widespread criticism of the act by saying, "Unless your behaviour is threatening or abusive and intends to stir up hatred, then you have nothing to worry about in terms of the new offences being created."