The Free Speech Union (FSU), a British organization advocating for freedom of expression founded by Lord Young of Acton, has fallen victim to a cyberattack by the radical pro-transgender group Bash Back. The hackers accessed and publicly released a list of the FSU’s donors, prompting the group to secure an emergency high court injunction to remove the information, enforced by threats of contempt charges and imprisonment.
Lord Young described Bash Back as a “dangerous anti-democratic organisation” that promotes law-breaking and “direct action,” including against politicians, despite claims of nonviolence. He referenced a recent assault on the Health Secretary and vowed that neither the FSU nor its members would be intimidated. Young criticized the lack of police response to the hack.The FSU highlighted Bash Back’s history of illegal activities and announced a fundraising campaign to pursue legal action for damages.
In their statement, Bash Back accused the FSU of using free speech as a cover to oppose transgender “rights”, asserting that their targets “have blood on their hands.” The group has previously claimed responsibility for vandalizing a government minister’s office with graffiti labeling them a “child killer”—a reference to claims that denying transgender demands leads to suicides—and smashing windows at a feminist conference center billed as a major grassroots event.
Feminist organizations have long reported violence from transgender activists.The FSU had identified Bash Back as a threat last year after discovering plans for “cells” to target politicians, the FSU, and feminist groups, leading to enhanced private security measures.One of the FSU’s notable recent cases involved Irish comedian Graham Linehan, who faced repeated police reports from transgender activists over his jokes. Despite being non-British and posting from the U.S., Linehan was detained at a UK airport for questioning. The backlash prompted a policy shift, with UK police announcing they would cease investigating “non-crime hate incidents” to prioritize actual crimes.