As part of our drive to keep our comment section the best in New Zealand we showcase each week an example of a top-notch comment that adds value to The BFD.
Today’s comment was written by Rebecca . Thank you Rebecca for taking the time to craft such an interesting comment.
In Stuff’s version of this, I can’t help but notice (my emphasis):
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has bested Judith Collins during a debate at Parliament, calling her a “Karen” who won’t be protected from such insults by hate speech law reforms.
Bested?
From the same article:
“Karen” is a pejorative term generally used on social media to describe a white woman who is pushy, entitled, and demanding.
Pejorative? White woman?
So this is justified because Collins asked the Prime Minister to comment on what a prominent political journalist had to say?
Who does Collins think she is – the leader of the opposition using allocated question time to question/hold the government to account? No, she’s just a pesky “Karen” whose put down appears to be enjoyed by this journalist and others in the Team of $55M.
In terms of hate speech, what was the intent of Ardern’s slur? If it was to derail the opposition’s attempt to hold her to account, then it’s not hate speech, it’s merely an undemocratic subversion of NZ’s unicameral convention that ought to be called out by a competent speaker. Ardern’s obligation is to cooperate with polite opposition attempts to hold her to account, even if it’s inconvenient for her carefully crafted persona. So where was Mallard? And where is the Team of $55M calling out this problematic behaviour?
Alternatively, was the slur intended to insult, ridicule, depersonalize and “other” not just Collins, but white women given pejorative labels and now specifically identified by the PM as a legal target for abuse? Why is this not hate speech? This one has all the elements; immutable personal characteristic attacked, reasonable behaviour misrepresented for attack, intention to cause ridicule and/or harm, incitement of the Labour caucus and online bullies to join in and maximize the hurt.
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