In the Media

Articles That Mention the Free Speech Union

Landmark victory for free speech after Court of Appeal rules police’s definition of a ‘hate incident’ is unlawful and had “chilling effect” on ex-cop’s freedom of expression after he was visited over trans tweets

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In a statement following, Free Speech Union general secretary Toby Young praised Mr Miller’s “courage and tenacity”. He said, “The Free Speech Union is proud to have played a part in winning this landmark victory, but the lion’s share of the credit must go to Harry Miller. Thanks to his courage and tenacity, we can all rest a little easier in our beds tonight, knowing the police are not about to knock on our doors because we’ve made an inappropriate joke on Twitter. They should be policing our streets, not our tweets.”

Jamie Phillips, MailOnline, 20th December 2021.

Academics seeking promotion at UCL told to overhaul courses to limit the number of “dead white men”

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The Free Speech Union (FSU) has written to UCL’s vice-chancellor, Dr Michael Spence, urging him to remove this stipulation immediately from its guidance. Toby Young, general secretary of the FSU, said: “Insisting that anyone in a grade 8 job at UCL, or applying for one, has to remove ‘dead white able-bodied European men’ from reading lists, ‘check their privilege’ and ‘acknowledge the prejudice baked into their field’ is an infringement of their right to free speech and almost certainly unlawful.”

Camilla Turner, The Telegraph, 19th December 2021.

Engage with views you do not agree with, university students told amid Durham free speech row

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The row escalated on Saturday as the Free Speech Union, which is representing Prof Luckhurst, wrote to Durham University’s acting vice-chancellor to remind him of his legal duty to uphold free speech on campus. Toby Young, the general secretary of the FSU, said: “Durham says it believes in upholding academic free speech, but if so why has it placed Professor Luckhurst under investigation for describing the decision of students to walk out of the speech as ‘pathetic’? In expressing that perfectly lawful view, Professor Luckhurst was exercising his right to free speech and penalising him for doing so could well be a breach of the law that requires universities to uphold free speech on campus.”

Camilla Turner, The Telegraph, 11th December 2021.

Nicola Sturgeon named as Britain’s greatest foe to freedom of speech

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SCOTTISH First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has been named as one of the greatest foes of freedom of expression by members of the Free Speech Union (FSU). The SNP leader was voted the top “free speech zero” at the organisation’s Christmas review with her government’s backing of a fiercely controversial hate crime law coming under the spotlight.

David Williamson, Sunday Express, 11th December 2021.

“A*se, a*se, a*se”: Durham student union demands professor RESIGNS over Rod Liddle talk – as video shows the educator’s wife confronting woke students as they walked out

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The Free Speech Union said: “The vilification and abuse of Professor Luckhurst for inviting Rod Liddle to give an after-dinner speech is an absolute disgrace. If students cannot cope with hearing opinions they find disagreeable they shouldn’t be at university. Professor Luckhurst is a member of the Free Speech Union and we are supporting him in full.”

James Gant, MailOnline, 8th December 2021.

“Secular atheist” train conductor who celebrated pubs reopening by declaring he didn’t want to live in an “alcohol-free caliphate” wins unfair dismissal claim

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General Secretary of the Free Speech Union Toby Young said last night: “Jeremy should never have been sacked for saying he didn’t want to live in an alcohol free caliphate. I’m glad the Free Speech Union was able to help him take West Midlands Trains to court. Employers have got to learn that a worker expressing a robust but lawful point of view is not a sackable offence, even if some of their colleagues find that opinion disagreeable or even offensive. That goes double if the view is expressed on a personal Facebook account outside office hours. What’s next? Will people be sacked for having said something inappropriate in the pub 20 years ago? A line has to be drawn and it takes people with courage and determination like Jeremy to draw that line. Anyone concerned about finding themselves in the same situation should join the Free Speech Union.”

Mario Ledwith and Neil Sears, Daily Mail, 26th November 2021.

Downfall of Britain’s WOKEST head: She makes £400k a year at a school loved by the rich but is leaving after a revolt by parents who said pupils are indoctrinated about “white privilege” – as we reveal how a staff meeting sparked claims of anti-Semitism

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The apparent politicisation of education is also the subject of a dossier sent to Mr Zahawi last month by the Free Speech Union [FSU], which campaigns against “cancel culture”. It contained a collection of teaching materials obtained from the parents of children at 15 English schools where, the FSU alleges, teachers have “failed to comply with their duties to forbid the promotion of partisan political views”.

Guy Adams. Daily Mail, 26th November 2021.