Opinion writers shouldn’t let abuse stop them from sharing what they believe in

When you’re lucky enough to have a platform to share your opinions on a regular basis, you’re bound to run into some criticism. Sometimes it’s valid: after writing a comment piece on the recent allegations of sexual assault against R Kelly, journalist Lorna Cooper rightfully pointed out that I’d used the term “child pornography” in my article as opposed to “images of child sex abuse”, a more fitting term which does a better job of calling attention to the magnitude of the alleged crime.

On other occasions, I’ve received comments that feel much closer to abuse than considered responses. A very kind man based in San Francisco took time out of his day to call me “fatso” via both my personal and work email addresses not too long ago, because he wasn’t too pleased that I, a self-proclaimed fat person, wasn’t so keen on the idea that fat people should be subjected to ridicule for being who they are.

Current, ex- and posing police officers have also flooded my direct mentions with alarmingly vitriolic messages (usually about “black on black crime”) when I’ve written about the keeping the cultural relic of Notting Hill Carnival alive.

And I still receive message requests from men who seem to sincerely feel like it’s their job to inform me that, actually, black men are all rapists, or that, rather randomly, Dave Chappelle “is hilarious” but also represents “the black superiority attitude”, whatever that is. And that’s ignoring the comment sections under most of the pieces I write – even if they aren’t remotely about race.

It may present itself in different forms, and in more intense and immediately harmful ways depending on who’s behind the piece, but this is the reality for many opinion writers. The Independent’s associate editor Sean O’Grady, for example, wrote yesterday about being attacked by Remainers for having voted to leave the EU, despite sharing the common goal of securing a Final Say referendum.

Dealing with unsolicited takedowns is hard. Dealing with abuse is even harder. We may not all be able to (and really, shouldn’t have to, but that’s a bigger issue) withstand both, but I sincerely hope that in this age of being bombarded with everyone and their uncle’s thoughts and feelings, opinion writers won’t let the prospect of being trolled hold them back from sharing what they truly believe in.

Yours,

Kuba Shand-Baptiste

Commissioning editor