JOANNA Cherry was called a “transphobic b****” by a passerby in Edinburgh as she joined First Minister John Swinney on the campaign trail on Wednesday.
Cherry, who represented Edinburgh South West at Westminster since 2015, was campaigning in her constituency alongside the SNP leader when the abuse incident took place.
Scottish Sun reporter Conor Matchett posted a video to social media showing Cherry with a group of SNP campaigners and the heckler, although it is difficult to hear what is being said.
At the end of the video, someone from the SNP campaign approaches the person who has been shouting in an apparent effort to de-escalate the situation.
Matchett wrote on Twitter/X: “Joanna Cherry abused in the street as a ‘transphobic b****’ by a passing protestor at an SNP event in Edinburgh this morning.”
Joanna Cherry abused in the street as a "transphobic bitch" by a passing protestor at an SNP event in Edinburgh this morning pic.twitter.com/MSddARYjzO
— Conor Matchett (@conor_matchett) June 12, 2024
Responding to the video, Observer columnist and former Labour adviser Sonia Sodha said it was “disgustingly misogynistic”.
“Solidarity with @joannaccherry in the face of this abuse,” she added on Twitter/X.
Gender critical lobbyist Lucy Hunter Blackburn also condemned the heckler in the incident, and referenced the recently published The Women Who Wouldn't Wheesht book to which Cherry contributed.
Hunter Blackburn wrote: “Solidarity with @joannacherry who wrote powerfully in #WomenWhoWouldntWheesht about the abuse she has received, including a man being convicted for rape and death threats.
“When we called the afterword ‘It Isn't Over Yet’, this is part of what we meant.”
Ahead of the campaign event in Edinburgh on Wednesday, Swinney said he was offering Scots a “cast-iron guarantee” that SNP MPs would protect their values at Westminster.
The First Minister said: “While Labour and the Tories take their orders from bosses in London, the SNP will always lead for Scotland, not be led by Westminster.
“Today, I am reiterating that commitment to the people of Scotland – our cast-iron guarantee that SNP MPs will always fight to protect Scotland’s values in the face of further cuts at Westminster.”
