Tory activists under fire after offensive 'gas chavs' WhatsApp messages
1 min read
The Tory campaign group set up to mirror Momentum is in crisis just days after launching, after some of its members sent messages saying “chavs” should be gassed.
Members of Activate suggested conducting medical experiments on people and called people “vermin”.
The contents of a WhatsApp group of some of Activate’s members were revealed by Guido Fawkes yesterday, including one user suggesting “chavocide”.
That led other members to write “gas them all”, “gonna run some medical experiments on them”, and “use them as substitutes for animals when testing”.
Activate, which is not officially affiliated with the Tories, is a group aimed to mimic Labour’s left-wing Momentum campaign and is aimed at encouraging young people to get involved with politics.
Lib Dem MP Tom Brake told The Sun: “There can be no excuse for this kind of hateful and divisive language.”
Labour MP Emma Reynolds also attacked the language, saying it was using “hatred in an effort to energise young voters”.
A spokesman for Activate later apologised and said those responsible would be ejected from the WhatsApp group.
The Tories yesterday distanced themselves from the group, saying it is “in no way affiliated with the Conservative party”.
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