Tweets by a candidate in the upcoming Isle of Wight council election have been deleted after being labelled misogynistic.
Update: Candidate steps down
Stuart Brown, who announced earlier in the year that he intended to stand as a Conservative in the Ryde West ward in the May election, has now hidden all his tweets from public view.
He responded to News OnTheWight questions and said he intends to adopt “a more measured tone to my social media activity”.
‘Hateful’ tweets
Mr Brown tweeted “Vile women” in response to a tweet by Labour MP Dawn Butler last summer and then last month tweeted “You really are vile” to another Labour MP, Zarah Sultana.
Blocked
Mr Brown’s tweets were picked up by several people on Twitter on Monday evening, resulting in him blocking one resident who had challenged Brown’s stance on the Sarah Everard vigil.
The same resident says he was simultaneously blocked by the Island Conservatives on Twitter.
Gwinnett: Tell their own tale of disrespect towards women
Fiona Gwinnett, Chief Executive of Wight DASH (a domestic abuse hub for women and men on the Isle of Wight), told News OnTheWight,
“Mr Brown’s references to ‘vile women’ and his tweet to Zarah Sultana MP of ‘You are vile’ may be regarded by some as comparatively minor but, in my view, they tell their own tale of disrespect towards women, particularly women of colour it would seem.
“I can find no evidence that these attitudes have been challenged by IW Conservatives – the posts date from June of last year to as recently as 13th February of this year. This would appear to indicate tacit approval of such behaviour.
“Those seeking public office must be held to account for their attitudes and comments. The IW deserves better, the women of Ryde West certainly deserve better.”
Brown: Claims MP’s tweets “sought to create divisions in our society”
Following a number of people getting in touch who were very concerned and described Brown’s tweets as “hateful and misogynist”, News OnTheWight asked Mr Brown to explain his tweets. He replied,
“I often have strong opinions on remarks made by politicians I disagree with, and sometimes I express these views on social media. I felt that the two tweets in question, from serving MPs, were unnecessarily inflammatory and sought to create divisions in our society.
“I have previously used the same word in response to a tweet from the SNP Parliamentary Leader, Ian Blackford.
“On reflection, use of the word “vile” in these three comments is too strong and was – like the original tweets from the MPs – unnecessarily inflammatory.”
Divisive?
One of the tweets that Mr Brown had sent to Dawn Butler (9th Aug 2020) was in response to her tweeting about being stopped by the police.
It’s not immediately obvious how Butler’s tweet could be considered divisive.
Response from Chair of IW Conservatives
News OnTheWight wrote to David Pugh – Chairman of the Island Conservatives and former IWC leader – on Tuesday to ask whether candidates are welcome within the IW Conservatives if they hold or express misogynistic views.
Mr Pugh told News OnTheWight,
“I have discussed this matter with Stuart. The tweets in question clearly are unacceptable and it is right that he now recognises this. Everyone in politics and public life has a responsibility to choose their words carefully and not use words which may be – as Stuart has acknowledged – inflammatory.
“Whilst I do not routinely monitor twitter posts, from what I have seen the vast majority of social media output from Stuart has been of a nature that I would consider to be acceptable and is respectful, including posts which recognise the contribution of women and men to society as a whole. On this basis I do not consider that Stuart is a misogynist.
“It appears that he has directed comments to both female and male MPs with whom he has disagreed. These comments do not appear to be based on misogyny, but are using unnecessarily provocative words to express criticism of opposition politicians of different genders. I have asked Stuart to take a more measured approach to his comments on social media in order to avoid concerns of this nature being raised in the future, and he has agreed.
“There is no room for misogyny in the Conservative Party and it is important that our candidates refrain from using pejorative language which could be interpreted as such.”
Brown: I will choose my words more carefully
Following the incident, Mr Brown told News OnTheWight,
“In future I will choose my words more carefully, not least as I recognise that MPs and councillors of all parties have strongly held beliefs which they are entitled to hold (however much I may disagree with some of them).”
Women MPs facing abuse
According to Amnesty International, women MPs face extraordinary levels of abuse online.
They found during analysis of tweets in the run up to the 2017 election that Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) women MPs were abused far more than their white colleagues online. See their findings,
Brown: “Committed to adopting a more measured tone”
Mr Brown has since deleted the three tweets and told News OnTheWight,
“My deletion of tweets reflects the fact that I am committed to adopting a more measured tone to my social media activity.
“From time to time I take a social media break, particularly with Twitter, and this is reflected in my recent decision to lock my account and concentrate my energies elsewhere.”
It’s unclear why, as Mr Brown is taking a break from Twitter, why he has chosen to lock his account.
Gwinnett: Misogyny must be challenged
The CEO of Wight DASH, added,
“Women’s safety, increasing levels of domestic abuse and the online abuse of women have been in the national headlines recently. The government has pledged to make changes to protect women.
“In recent days we have heard of an attempted abduction and sexual assault of a woman in Newport, a revenge porn site targeting Island women and girls and court reports detailing horrifying levels of violence and abuse that a local woman has been subjected to by her former male partner.
“If as a society we are to make any progress in challenging misogyny and the associated violence against women and girls, we need strong leadership at every level of public office. “
No apology
News OnTheWight were asked to see whether Mr Brown planned to apologise to Dawn Butler and Zarah Sultana. He told us,
“On the basis that I have deleted the tweets there is no need to draw to their attention something that is no longer published.
“My position, I believe is clear based on what I have said in my response to you and the action I have taken.”
Article edit
8.30am Comment from Pugh added
Image: freestocks under CC BY 2.0
