Civil Liberties

Brickbat: And You're Ugly, Too

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paukrus / photo on flickr

British police investigated Tim Loughton, a Conservative member of parliament, for six months after he described a constituent as "unkempt." Kieran Francis had written Loughton about some problems he was having with his local council. Loughton wrote him back, siding with the council. Francis said the term "unkempt" was obviously a racist insult, since he claims to be of Romany descent. Police ultimately decided not to file charges of malicious communication against Loughton.