JK Rowling, Elon Musk Named in Olympic Boxer's Online Harassment Lawsuit
JK Rowling and Elon Musk are among those mentioned in a criminal complaint that Algerian Olympic champion boxer Imane Khelif filed last week in Paris over alleged 'acts of aggravated cyber harassment,' her lawyer, Nabil Boudi, has confirmed to Variety....
Facts
- JK Rowling and Elon Musk are among those mentioned in a criminal complaint that Algerian Olympic champion boxer Imane Khelif filed last week in Paris over alleged 'acts of aggravated cyber harassment,' her lawyer, Nabil Boudi, has confirmed to Variety.[1][2]
- Both the tech billionaire and Harry Potter author appeared to engage in discourse suggesting the welterweight fighter was either a man or transgender in the wake of her opening bout at the Paris Olympics, after the abrupt withdrawal of her opponent.[3][4]
- If found guilty in the criminal lawsuit, Rowling and Musk could face six-figure fines and multi-year prison sentences. However, it's unlikely they will face prosecution as their messages were sent from abroad.[5][6]
- Prosecutors confirmed on Monday that the National Center for the Fight Against Online Hatred received the complaint and had referred it to the Central Office for Combating Crimes against Humanity and Hate Crimes, which investigates gender-based and origin-based charges.[7][8]
- While naming high-profile figures, the complaint was filed against social media platforms such as X and 'unknown persons' so as to allow the prosecution to look into 'whoever it feels necessary' to determine who may have been at fault.[9][10]
- Boudi further told Variety that this open nature means that former US Pres. Donald Trump would also 'inevitably' be part of the investigation, as he repeatedly claimed that Khelif was 'a good male boxer' who had transitioned.[11][12]
Sources: [1]FOX News, [2]Guardian, [3]New York Post, [4]Washington Post, [5]Daily Mail, [6]BBC News, [7]NBC, [8]New York Times, [9]Al Jazeera, [10]Breitbart, [11]Newsweek and [12]Blaze Media.
Narratives
- Right narrative, as provided by Spectator (UK) and GB News. This lawsuit is both a test for policing social media worldwide and a publicity stunt from woke prosecutors in France, who have long resorted to associating high-profile figures with bogus complaints. Given that Khelif's gender is controversial at best, these developments further undermine free speech — particularly for women's rights advocates.
- Left narrative, as provided by Intercept and The New Republic. Far-right figures such as Trump and Musk have joined forces with anti-trans activists like JK Rowling to attack cisgender female Imane Khelif, paying little attention to the fact that she had competed — and won just a single bout — at Tokyo 2020 without any commotion. It's great news that they may soon be held accountable for their wrongdoing.
