Woke Cops in UK Apologize After 'Making Up the Law' and Using 'North Korean' Style Tactics to Stifle Free Speech
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will land you in jail.
That’s the message that was sent to members of the public when police officers in Merseyside, England — a metropolitan county of nearly 1.4 million people near Liverpool — trucked around a mobile billboard stating that “being offensive” is a crime, according to the U.K.’s Daily Mail.
The article, partially titled “Cops apologise for making up the law as they go along,” reported that the digital message was juxtaposed with a large rainbow flag and accompanied by text that read, “Merseyside Police stand with and support the LGBTQ+ community.”
Rainbow flag decals bearing the words “Police With Pride” also were affixed to Merseyside Police Department vehicles.
How about catching some real criminals, Merseyside Police? pic.twitter.com/39YtwMtd5J
— David Kurten (@davidkurten) February 22, 2021
In their desire to virtue-signal to the left, the Merseyside Police Department ignored the fact that, in England, hurting someone’s feelings is not against the law.
Fortunately, several people who knew better spoke out online.
Utterly chilling. In a free society the right to be offensive is fundamental. This isn’t North Korea! pic.twitter.com/FJgTn3OLsc
— CJ (@CJ_liberte) February 21, 2021
Is it really? It’s usually unnecessary to be offensive, and it’s might be considered unpleasant, but I wasn’t aware that it’s actually against the law. Still, on the plus side, the crisis in Police numbers must be over, if they have time for this.
— Stephen Jenkins (@StephenJenkins1) February 21, 2021
Merseyside Police are hawking a sign around saying being offensive is an offence. It isn’t. https://t.co/USglZZRb8b
— Kevin Core (@KevinCore) February 21, 2021
Once the truth came out, the public outcry forced the Merseyside Police Department to issue a tepid public apology for having tried to intimidate those who didn’t share its liberal ideals.
“We would like to clarify that ‘being offensive’ is not itself an offence,” Police Superintendent Martin Earl said in a statement. He explained that the digital message “although well intentioned was incorrect.”
Statement from Superintendent Martin Earl regarding a message on an advan and our social media channels this weekend. pic.twitter.com/oyHs9eVtJM
— MerPol Wirral (@MerPolWirral) February 22, 2021
If the police, who are charged with enforcing the law, created the text on this billboard out of ignorance of the law, that’s concerning. After all, if they were unfamiliar with the boundaries between permissible and criminal conduct, that means they were prepared to arrest people for engaging in the former.
It’s much more troubling, however, if they knew the law but were indifferent to it because they were acting as agents of the left. That doesn’t augur well for the future of free speech.
Even if the Merseyside police had no intention of making arrests for offensive words, their pronouncement that such conduct was punishable as a crime undoubtedly intimidated others into keeping their mouths shut.
While all of this happened across the pond, it’s a chilling harbinger of where “woke” culture is taking us when it comes to freedom of expression.
The First Amendment is under unprecedented attack. Tech giants are purging conservative voices from their platforms. Large corporations like Bed, Bath & Beyond, Simon & Schuster, Disney, Amazon and Bank of America are turning on clients and customers who espouse conservative views.
The establishment media has called for a government “reality czar” to suppress “disinformation.”
Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York has suggested that a House “truth and reconciliation” committee be created to “rein in our media environment.”
And two House Democrats recently penned a letter to 12 cable, satellite and streaming companies to urge them to cease carrying right-leaning news channels.
To get American police departments to genuflect to woke ideology as well, leftists have engaged in a pattern of bullying and intimidation in which they have pilloried officers, defunded police departments, accused cops of systemic racism and baldly lied. These efforts have been deadly to police, which of course helps to cow them into obedience.
If the left is successful in its thought control of law enforcement — as it apparently was in Merseyside — we will eventually see the police cracking down on those who express viewpoints that don’t conform to progressive doctrine.
Should that come to pass, we’ll be no better than these authoritarian and tyrannical regimes.
I’m rubber, you’re glue; beware of the woke police, they’re coming for you.
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