Dominic Raab has faced criticism this morning after saying that both men and women could be the victims of misogyny.
Appearing on BBC Breakfast the Conservative Justice Secretary was being questioned about his government’s response to the murder of Sarah Everard by a serving Met Police officer.
He had rejected calls for misogyny to be designated as a hate crime before making the slip-up.
Speaking to the programme he said: “I think we have often seen in the criminal justice system over decades people trying to legislate away what is an enforcement problem.
Justice Secretary Dominic Raab MP was asked on #BBCBreakfast whether he believed misogyny should be treated as a hate crime.
— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) October 6, 2021
He said “misogyny is absolutely wrong whether it’s a man against a woman, or a woman against a man”https://t.co/RIWo6f2kXN pic.twitter.com/8RGrwhlnnF
"So I think insults – and misogyny is of course absolutely wrong, whether it’s a man against a woman or a woman against a man – but I don’t think that [making misogyny a hate crime] will tackle the problem in the cases like either the Sarah Everard case … or the wider challenges of getting more prosecutions through to a successful conviction for violence against women and girls.”
Misogyny is hatred aimed specifically against women.
When questioned on this Raab said: “What I meant was, if we are talking about things below the level of public order offences of harassment, intimidation, which are rightly criminalised – if we are talking about, effectively, insults with a sexist basis, I don’t think that criminalising those sorts of things will deal with the problem that we have got at the heart of the Sarah Everard case.”
What was Twitter's reaction of Raab's mistake?
Those on social media were quite derisory of Raab's slip-up.
TV critic and broadcaster Toby Earle tweeted out: "Reassuring scenes on #BBCBreakfast as Justice Secretary Dominic Raab has the dictionary definition of misogyny read out to him."
Another joked: "I’m not surprised Dominic Raab doesn’t know the meaning of the word ‘Misogyny’. I am surprised that he didn’t think Misogyny was a place just south of Calais."
I’m not surprised Dominic Raab doesn’t know the meaning of the word ‘Misogyny’.
— Wolfie. Cult member 1312. 💙🧡💚 (@Tpopularfront) October 6, 2021
I am surprised that he didn’t think Misogyny was a place just south of Calais. pic.twitter.com/GtQcch5Io9
Some people were more critical, with one posting a picture of the politican from the interview saying: "Dominic Raab desperately trying to work out how to mansplain that misogyny can be directed at men.
Dr Charlotte Lydia Riley wrote: "Of course Dominic Raab wants to claim that misogyny can be directed against men, this is a government full of people who desperately, desperately want to be victims despite the inconvenient fact of their position in power for over a decade."
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