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RichardCoulter · 23-01-2019, 14:36

The trouble is that most of these types of people are savvy enough not to directly bring the subject of disability into their harrassment.

It's also generally regarded as socially unacceptable to openly insult and belittle disabled people (and other groups), so they tend to try and claim either that their behaviour is the normal way that they speak to people or that it's down to a personal dislike and nothing to do with their protected group status. The courts are well aware of this tactic and various tests have been used to demonstrate that the underlying cause of their behaviour is indeed disability discrimination.

This is not to say that there can never be any disagreement with someone from a protected group, as long as their circumstances are fully taken into consideration. For example, I doubt any right thinking person would pursue a political argument as someone lay in bed dying of a terminal illness. To do so would constitute harrassment, as would someone repeatedly criticising someone for something that they could not help e.g. stuttering during verbal communication or for the way that they express themselves in the written word.

23-01-2019, 14:36	#471
RichardCoulter cf.mega poster Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 10,070	Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls. The trouble is that most of these types of people are savvy enough not to directly bring the subject of disability into their harrassment. It's also generally regarded as socially unacceptable to openly insult and belittle disabled people (and other groups), so they tend to try and claim either that their behaviour is the normal way that they speak to people or that it's down to a personal dislike and nothing to do with their protected group status. The courts are well aware of this tactic and various tests have been used to demonstrate that the underlying cause of their behaviour is indeed disability discrimination. This is not to say that there can never be any disagreement with someone from a protected group, as long as their circumstances are fully taken into consideration. For example, I doubt any right thinking person would pursue a political argument as someone lay in bed dying of a terminal illness. To do so would constitute harrassment, as would someone repeatedly criticising someone for something that they could not help e.g. stuttering during verbal communication or for the way that they express themselves in the written word.