UK police arrest veteran because anti-LGBTQ post 'caused anxiety'
A British free speech activist captured video showing a police officer admitting a veteran was arrested because an anti-LGBTQ social media post "caused anxiety."
Shocking cell phone video purportedly shows a police officer in the United Kingdom explaining how an army veteran was arrested over an anti-LGBTQ post he reshared online that had caused someone "anxiety."
The video was recorded by actor and leader of the British Reclaim Party Laurence Fox, who shared a meme on social media showing Pride flags altered into the shape of a swastika. He said the meme was meant as a commentary on the authoritarian nature of LGBTQ and transgender activists.
Fox began recording after Hampshire police arrived at the home of 51-year-old British army veteran Darren Brady, who reshared the meme of the Pride flag swastika online.
"I wish Hampshire police would realize how ridiculous this is," Fox is heard saying from behind the camera. A uniformed Hampshire police officer says, "Why did it have to come to this?"
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Hampshire police with Army veteran Darren Brady in handcuffs outside his home. (@thereclaimparty)
"What did it need to come to?" Fox added, before the handcuffed veteran chimes in.
"I don’t understand. I posted something that he posted," Brady said. "You come to arrest me. You don’t arrest him. Why has it come to this? Why am I in cuffs over something he shared, then I shared?"
"Because someone has been caused obviously anxiety based on your social media posts," the officer responded. "That’s why you’ve been arrested."
In an appearance on Fox News' "Tucker Carlson Tonight," Fox denied that the video was missing any critical context to understand what happened and said, "the great tragedy here is that a British army veteran with a long service record who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, proudly served our flag, has now been arrested for not worshipping at the altar of the holy Pride flag."
"It’s an appalling arrest by the British Gestapo, which is what the British police force has become," he added. "Alas, the British police have fallen. They’re much too interested in virtue signaling and bowing at the altar of wokery."
Harry Miller, a former police officer himself, reportedly said he was also arrested during the incident after attempting to prevent the arrest of the former serviceman. The Daily Mail reported that Miller won an appeals challenge in December after challenging police guidance on "hate incidents."
Hampshire police arrived at Brady’s home to inform him that he could pay to attend an "educational course" instead of the complaint escalating to a crime. Brady said he needed time to think it over and then proceeded to contact Fox and Miller, who run the Bad Law project, which aims to challenge and depoliticize policing practices in the U.K. Fox and Miller were present at Brady’s home when police returned and placed him under arrest.
Hampshire officer lectures veteran under arrest on how social media post caused "anxiety." (@thereclaimparty)
In a statement to MailOnline, the Hampshire Constabulary said, "When officers arrived, they were prevented from entering the address to discuss a potential resolution to the matter."
"As a result, officers felt it was necessary to arrest a man at the scene, so they could interview him in relation to the alleged offence," the statement added.
After the incident, Brady wrote to his Twitter followers on Sunday, "It's nice to be able to enjoy a Sunday morning in peace without being harassed by Hampshire Police trying to extort money from me, or have me ‘re-educated’ for sharing a meme on the Internet."
In a separate statement reported by Epoch Times, Hampshire Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones seemed to condemn her own officers after video of the arrest went viral, writing, "I am concerned about both the proportionality and necessity of the police’s response to this incident."
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"When incidents on social media receive not one but two visits from police officers, but burglaries and non-domestic break-ins don’t always get a police response, something is wrong," she added. "This incident has highlighted a really topical issue which Hampshire Constabulary and other police forces need to learn from."