CREDIT BLACK FOR FIGHTING BACK
MHAIRI Black used a speech at Westminster to share her experiences of online abuse.
MPs listened in horror as she reeled off a litany of hateful messages sent her way by social media trolls.
Most are simply unrepeatable in this newspaper but they included homophobic slurs and liberal use of the C-word. In some instances, Black was assured she was ‘too ugly’ to rape.
There are those who say the MP should have sugar-coated her experiences and censored the more obscene language for Parliament. In fact, by reading these profane, hatefilled comments into Hansard, Black shamed the bigots who often hide behind anonymous profiles and the social media companies that permit them to get away with it.
We have allowed a culture to breed in which disagreeing with someone’s politics is seen as legitimate grounds for drenching them in abusive and violent language. Black deserves credit for standing up to the bullies and refusing to be silenced.
CHINA has changed its constitutional provisions to allow incumbent Xi Jinping to remain president for life. Mr Xi can now rule the country as he pleases, steamroller dissent and cannot be held accountable for his policy failures. Reports that Nicola Sturgeon has dispatched a delegation of lawyers to Beijing on a factfinding mission are as yet unconfirmed.