Laurence Fox lashes out at critics following short-lived Twitter ban

2022-06-27

Laurence Fox is allowed back on Twitter and immediately hits out at Kathy Burke, London politicians and others who slammed him for posting a swastika made out of Pride flags

Laurence Fox, 44, had his Twitter account temporarily locked over the weekend
The actor turned campaigner posted a swastika made out of LGBT pride flags
Mr Fox said LGBT Pride month is enforced with ‘hectoring authoritarianism’
His account was subsequently locked for the ‘hateful imagery’, said Twitter
Unrepentant, Mr Fox has returned to the platform gunning for his critics
A London Assembly member said he should be investigated the Met Police
The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust called Fox’s tweet ‘vile’ and ‘abhorrent’

Laurence Fox has returned to Twitter unrepentant after being suspended for posting a swastika made from LGBT flags, lashing out at actress Kathy Burke and other critics.

Mr Fox, a 44-year-old actor turned campaigner, posted the picture of a swastika made out of four LGBT pride flags, saying the image reflected his belief that LGBT pride month is ‘enforced with a sense of hectoring authoritarianism’.

The tweet resulted in a sharp backlash, with Twitter temporarily freezing his account for violating their ‘hateful imagery’ policy, and a London Assembly member calling on the Met Police to investigate Mr Fox.

Caroline Russell, who is also a member of the Police and Crime Committee in the Greater London Authority, wrote on Twitter: ‘I hope the Met Police will look into Laurence Fox using pride flags to create nazi imagery and posting the images on a public platform.

‘This is a hate crime,’ Ms Russell wrote.

Laurence Fox, 44, an actor turned campaigner, was banned from Twitter over the weekend for posting a picture of a swastika made out of four LGBT pride flags

The tweet showed four LGBT pride flags positioned to make a swastika, captioned with the words, ‘Oh blessed and most holy month’

A London Assembly Member called on Mr Fox to be investigated by the Met Police over his tweet

Mr Fox accused Ms Russell of employing tactics reminiscent of those used by the Communist Chinese Party

The actress Kathy Burke also waded into the social media spat

Andrew Doyle, a playwright and journalist, earned himself a re-tweet from Mr Fox after posting something that resonated with his line of thinking

Mr Fox hit back at the London Assembly member’s intervention, however, accusing her of employing tactics reminiscent of those exercised by the Chinese Communist Party.

He wrote: ‘This is the UK, not China. Good to know you would like to see your political opponents prosecuted for “hate”, locked up and probably worse.

‘So thanks for proving my point for me,’ Mr Fox said.

The actress and comedian Kathy Burke wrote in a tweet: ‘The existence of Lawrence [sic] Fox is another reason to be pro abortion’.

Mr Fox responded to Ms Burke’s barbed comment, writing: ‘You used to be funny.’

In another tweet, Mr Fox shared a link to a satirical article entitled, ‘Scientists Discover Remote Island Untouched By Pride Month’.

Mr Fox captioned the tweet with the words: ‘Don’t cave in to the mob. Laugh instead.’

Access to Mr Fox’s Twitter account was restored this morning, with the polemicist and founder of The Reclaim Party telling his 310,500 followers that the LGBT pride flag has become a ‘holy flag’ that ‘cannot be criticised’.

The Campaign Against Antisemitism hit out at Mr Fox for his ‘insulting’ post.

Mr Fox shared a satirical article about LGBT Pride Month from the website Babylon Bee

Mr Fox’s tweet was strongly condemned by the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust on Twitter

And the Campaign Against Antisemitism criticised Mr Fox’s ‘insulting’ tweet

In a tweet, the campaign group wrote: ‘Displaying pride flags in the shape of a swastika is not the edgy statement that you think it is.

‘It is possible to express a view without the hate, and without insulting those murdered by the Nazis, which included Jews and LGBT people.’

The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust added: ‘We are appalled to see Laurence Fox’s vile tweet this morning with abhorrent use of the swastika.

‘Gay men experienced untold suffering under the Nazis, including murder, castration, and medical experimentation.’

Twitter said Mr Fox’s account was locked on Sunday evening for violating the site’s rules, specifically their ‘abusive profile information’ and ‘hateful imagery’ clauses

Mr Fox’s political colleague Martin Daubney, deputy leader of the Reclaim Party, rushed to back him up on the social media site, posting his own picture of a swastika – this time compiled from Union Jack flags.

‘So is this worthy of a ban?’, Mr Daubney, a former Brexit Party MEP, asked in a tweet of his red-white-and-blue swastika.

Seizing on Mr Daubney’s now-deleted tweet, Mr Fox wrote: ‘You can openly call [the Union Jack] a symbol of fascism and totalitarianism [on this site].

‘You cannot criticise the holy [LGBT pride] flags.’

Mr Fox told MailOnline: ‘While I’m pleased that my account has been reinstated, this temporary ban only served to reinforce the rank hypocrisy which Twitter is engaged in.

‘Over the Jubilee weekend, I lost count of the number of posts comparing the prominence of Union Jack flags around the country to Nazi Germany.

‘The prominence of the various pride flags and symbols throughout the month of June however not only goes unquestioned, but its acceptance and celebration are enforced with a sense of hectoring authoritarianism.

‘My post was clearly meant to highlight this double standard – and the temporary ban which resulted from it effectively proved my point.’

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