Chief Constable owes FWS apology over ‘nothing to do with us, hen’ attitude
I was one of several hundred women who attended the rally outside the Scottish Parliament building last week to call on the First Minister to comply with the law and update Scottish Government guidance in line with the recent Supreme Court ruling on sex and gender.
It was a glorious event, organised as usual with great professionalism and verve by campaign group For Women Scotland (FWS). The sun shone, I met Tracy Edwards, the first female skipper of an all-women crew to sail round the world non-stop, and all the speakers spoke with passion.
The day was marred somewhat by the antics of male stripper Tom Harlow. Thankfully he didn’t treat us to his “boylesque” stage act. Instead, he brought along his portable disco, draped in trans pride flag and tried to drown out the women’s rally.
His sound system blasted out music that hit over 100 decibels at some points, which can risk permanent ear damage. I was not the only person with hearing difficulties who found the noise intolerable. And his one-man “protest” meant that many of the audience struggled to hear the speakers.
The police shrugged off complaints with a “nothing to do with us, hen” attitude, but it had everything to do with them. The land outside Holyrood is private property and you need permission to demonstrate there. As always, FWS had secured authorisation but Tom Harlow did not, and the parliament’s security team had advised the police that he didn’t have permission. Yet the police allowed him to drown out a legitimate rally, risking public health at the same time. There are also laws against loud music and anti-social behaviour which the police chose to ignore.
Harlow is entitled to his beliefs. He is not entitled however to a heckler’s veto, to breach a peaceful, lawful demonstration with his adolescent antics. Chief Constable Jo Farrell owes FWS an apology and must ensure that such a blatant breach of the law is not allowed to happen again.