A senior woman in the United Kingdom was visited by police after being caught taking a photograph of a sticker critical of gender ideology. Eve, whose identity is being protected at her request, was questioned at her home for over 30 minutes by officers of the West Yorkshire Police.
Speaking to Reduxx, Eve explained that the ordeal began in March after she spotted a sticker she thought was interesting while on a walk. The small sticker, which read “Keep Males Out Of Women-Only Spaces” had been placed on top of a large trans pride poster outside of Happy Valley Pride, a Hebden Bridge pride organization. Finding it interesting, Eve says she snapped a photo before continuing on her walk.
Four weeks later, on April 30, Eve says West Yorkshire Police showed up at her home to question her on the photo she had taken.
Eve, who is in her 70s, explained to Reduxx that she was home with her partner when the two male police officers knocked at the door.
Upon seeing the officers, Eve says she had at first thought they could have been bringing news of a death in the family and became distressed.
“I could only think they must be bringing dreadful and tragic news about a family member. I could not think why else they would come. I was extremely shocked and upset,” she said.
But Eve explained that after she opened the door to them, their opening remark was: “We have received a complaint so we have a duty to investigate it.”
After inviting the officers into her home, Eve says they “gave a sermon” and explained that her personal information “had been given to them by Happy Valley Pride.”
The police commented that they had no previous information on Eve in their systems which made it difficult for them to trace her. They told her they were investigating the complaint on behalf of Happy Valley Pride because of “the sensitivity … for members of the LGBT community.”
While still expressing confusion as to how Happy Valley Pride ascertained her identity, Eve speculates that the organization obtained CCTV footage of her from Town Hall. She further says that Happy Valley Pride may have “stalked” her Facebook page where she sometimes expresses pro-woman views.
“Of course, this has been denied,” Eve said. “So there has been no explanation of who gave my full name, address, and post code to the police.”
Police questioned Eve for 30 minutes, apparently attempting to determine if she had been the individual responsible for placing the pro-woman sticker on the trans pride poster.
After the interrogation, the police advised Eve that “no crime had taken place.” But, through a Freedom of Information Request she later submitted, Eve says that the investigation into her was catalogued as a “non-crime hate incident” by West Yorkshire Police. According to the force’s website, a non-crime hate incident is defined as “any non-crime incident which is perceived by the victim or any other person to be motivated by hostility or prejudice.”
Speaking to Reduxx, Eve questioned how police decided to proceed in “investigating” her for “taking a photograph of an inanimate object on the pavement outside a building,” and said she submitted a complaint to police following the ordeal.
“No crime or potential was committed, even with a suspicion of a sticker being put on a poster. At most this should have been dealt with as a council matter,” Eve wrote.
“Due to clear investigations having been launched despite no evidence of crime, it is clear a crime was recorded on police systems and resources dedicated to requesting CCTV and supervisory decision making in sending out a resource by way of a doorstep police visit. Who is responsible for the decision making on this case and what is their recorded rationale for pursuing the matter as a police issue?”
She concluded that the police pursued “a politicized matter on behalf of the complainant” and expressed that their response was “overreach” and is part of a larger pattern of treatment towards those who hold views critical of gender ideology.
“I see this as police intimidation to censor my thoughts and to try and gag any voice of dissent,” Eve said, noting that most burglaries in her area do not result in an in-person police visit.
In addition to her complaint, Eve also made a Freedom of Information request to the police who sent her their police entry log in response and shared both her request and the police response with Reduxx.
In the response, an officer confirmed the visit to Eve’s residence, and wrote: “She denied placing the sticker there and stated she was merely taking a photo of it. Words of advice were given regards the harassment and alarm that this sticker could potentially cause the community.”
Reduxx reached out to West Yorkshire Police but did not receive a response.
This is not the first time West Yorkshire Police have been accused of having misplaced, politicized motivations.
On August 7, a 16-year-old autistic girl in Leeds was brutally arrested by West Yorkshire Police after one of the officers accused her of making a “homophobic” remark. The incident occurred after police had been called to provide a safe escort home for the vulnerable girl.
The mother of the child, who was interviewed by Reduxx, said her daughter had made a would-be innocent remark about one of the female officers who had assisted in bringing her home.
“She said ‘I think she’s a lesbian like nanna Julie,’” the mother recounted, noting that the female officer had short blonde hair. Police then “launched” themselves into her home and tried grabbing the 16-year-old girl, who ran into a cupboard under the stairs and began crying and self-harming in stress.
In shocking footage recorded by the girl’s mother, the officer is heard saying that she “doesn’t care” that the girl has autism, and that additional units were being called to have her arrested.
The child was ultimately arrested and spent 20 hours in custody.
After international backlash, West Yorkshire Police announced that “no further action” would be taken against the girl, and that the Professional Standards Directorate was “continuing to carry out a review of the circumstances after receiving a complaint in relation to the incident.”
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