*Cathal Crowe. Photograph: Natasha Barton
CLARE TD, Cathal Crowe (FF) has made a complaint to Gardaí over a “sinister” video online which features the politician and the sound of a gunshot.
On Monday, Deputy Crowe made a complaint at Ennis Garda Station regarding a four minute video which was branded by its anonymous narrator as a “warning” on “woke” commentary. The video includes a clip of the Meelick native speaking in the Dáil about hate legislation where he criticises the Irish Freedom Party and it concludes with the sound of a gunshot.
Chairperson of the Irish Freedom Party, Michael Leahy previously accused Deputy Crowe of abusing Dáil privilege to criticise the party and noted that his comments on March 9th came one week after an objection was submitted to Clare County Council by Leahy an Ennis-based architect on behalf of Matthew Broggy relating to the TD’s application for a 236 sq metre home four-bedroom dwelling house in Cratloe.
Speaking in the Dáil, Crowe remarked that the party uses “hate messaging” and has no elected mandate. He stated, “Any form of rallying people or inciting hatred in that regard is also a form of illegality.
These comments are played in the online video with the narrator labelling the former Mayor of Clare a “toxic, inarticulate piece of shit”. The anonymous speaker added, “Crowe also believes that the Irish Government should implement laws which would make it impossibly difficult for those who tend towards conservatism or liberty to organise and have a representative voice in politics”. The video contains photographs of gay pride flags as well as Black activist and academic Dr Ebun Joseph.
According to the narrator, “The level of left wing, or indeed, Marxist representation in prominent and powerful positions in Irish society has reached a tipping point”.
The narrator ends the video by saying he will “continue to defend property that I have accumulated through years of hard work with violence if necessary. So go ahead and make your laws but don’t be surprised if those of us who are willing to die for freedom and individual liberty do something that might be frowned upon along the way,” the voiceover adds, while a picture of the Dáil’s 160 TDs are shown on screen. The video conludes with the sound of a gunshot.
Deputy Crowe said he first became aware of the video in the past week and had been aware of it by friends and constituents. He described the video as “sinister”. Crowe commented, “Politics is tough business but at the end of the day, if somebody takes umbrage with what a politician has said, there’s many legitimate ways in which an umbrage can be expressed. To threaten an individual or people online is absolutely reprehensible.”
“In particular, I thought the gunshot at the end of the video is quite sinister,” he continued. “This individual lives in a virtual world and he thinks he can hide in there but I live in the real world. I have gone to the guards, the real guards, and reported this. He cannot hide behind a vale of anonymity. The guards will investigate this and I hope they will call to discuss the content with him”.
An Garda Síochána have confirmed “enquires are ongoing” into the report received by Deputy Crowe on Monday.
