since when was rape a freedom of speech issue?

Freedom of speech is used to justify all sorts of things which are antipathetic to reason. Ricky Gervaise used it to justify jokes about paedophilia, Jimmy Carr made a disgusting insinuation about women liking rape, and Frankie Boyle demanded he be free to apply the n-word to non-white people if used "ironically".

The latest use, as the Cambridge News’ Lizzy Buchan writes, is by comedian (why are they do high in the abuse stakes?) Mitch Fatel (right) making cracks about "spiking drinks to facilitate sex and scenarios of sexual assault".

Is it a coincidence that the butts of these abusive "jokes" are, in order, abused children, violated women, ethnic minorities and, again, abused women?

When exactly did abuse, especially of a sexual sort, become laughable?

In an enlightening case earlier this year, comic Reginald D Hunter was admonished by the Professional Footballers’ Association for telling jokes featuring the n-word at its annual awards ceremony. This might seem reasonable, but it’s less open-and-shut if you know that Hunter uses the epithet in context, to describe the experience of being a black American. But Daily Mail columnist Martin Samuel blew the whole thing apart when he revealed that in the previous year’s ceremony nobody protested when white player Ched Evans was honoured, despite having been imprisoned for rape two days previously.

Now come back to Cambridge, this February. Forty members of the English Defence League demonstrated against the Islamisation of society (and note not against Muslims); in doing so they railed against abuses of womens’ rights such as female genital mutilation, forced marriage, and corporal or even capital punishment for being raped.

Five hundred self-proclaimed and predominantly white "antifascists" turned out to try and drown out our message.

Samuel’s conclusion about football holds true for society: we are "no longer in a moral maze but a moral cul-de-sac".

Gerry Dorrian
300 words

Resources

Apology over crude comedy show at Lakenheath - Cambridge News

Stumbling through a moral minefield... football condemns the comedian but applauds the rapist - Daily Mail