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Rightwing English political journalist Julia Hartley-Brewer deleted a scandalous tweet after being accused of mocking environmental activist Greta Thunberg's autism.
Hartley-Brewer, who is a presenter of News Corp's Talkradio, weighed in with her unsolicited opinion on a contentious interaction between Thunberg and self-described misogynist Andrew Tate–who asked for Thunberg's email address so he could brag about his "33 cars" with "enormous emissions."
Thunberg was praised by social media users for her shady response in which she sarcastically instructed the former kickboxer to "enlighten" her by sending correspondence to "smalldickenergy@getalife.com."
Tate attempted to get the last word in by thanking her by confirming “that you have a small penis.”
He was subsequently arrested as part of a human trafficking and rape investigation after a video he made slamming Thunberg following their online spat.
In the midst of the escalating feud, Hartley-Brewer weighed in with her thoughts and quoted Thunberg's takedown of Tate.
She wrote in a now deleted December 22, 2022:
“I’d choose Andrew Tate’s life *every single time* over the life of a half-educated, autistic, doom-mongering eco-cultist."
"And the only car I own is a diesel Tiguan.”
The English climate change denier was widely denounced on Twitter for referencing Thunberg's autism as part of her antagonistic tweet.
Those who are either autistic or parents of children who are on the spectrum lambasted Hartley-Brewer and the British network for giving her airtime.
\u201cJulia Hartley-Brewer deletes her @Twitter account after referring to autism (a medical condition) in a derogatory way. - @JuliaHB1 \nAs an autistic person, myself, I am disgusted at Julia.\nAnd the only car I have is a bus pass.\n#JuliaHartleyBrewer #GretaThunberg #AndrewTate\u201d— ANDY GIBSON (@ANDY GIBSON) 1672274724
\u201cThis is what happens when a vile, mouthy half-baked right wing thicker than mince nut job is given a voice and air time to amplify it. These views and beliefs become normalised as \u2018it\u2019s my opinion and I\u2019m entitled to it\u2019. My autistic son is worth a 100 Julia Hartley-Brewers.\u201d— TW (@TW) 1672275328
\u201cHi, @bbcquestiontime @thismorning @TalkTV \n\nIm the father of an autistic child I\u2019d like to know if you are going to still give this vermin @JuliaHB1 a platform? \n\nUsing disability as an insult is disgusting and Julia Hartley-Brewer should be cancelled. Now.\u201d— LKeane \ud83d\udd34\ud83c\udf33\u26aa\ufe0f\u2618\ufe0f (@LKeane \ud83d\udd34\ud83c\udf33\u26aa\ufe0f\u2618\ufe0f) 1672274626
\u201cDear @BBCPolitics, @bbcquestiontime, @skynews....\n\nIf you keep inviting Julia Hartley-Brewer on to your shows, after she made fun of a teenager's autism...\n\nYOU HAVE NO STANDARDS.\n\nYou are deliberately ruining society.\u201d— Femi (@Femi) 1672439094
Hartley-Brewer removed the controversial tweet but posted another without mentioning autism.
“I’ve deleted my previous tweet that mentioned Greta’s autism," she wrote, adding:
"Because–although I only referred to it because she states it in her own Twitter biog–people decided to take offence at a fact."
"Even though they had no problem with this woman calling a man ‘small d*ck’. Yawn.' ”
The modified tweet did little to help her cause.
\u201c@JuliaHB1 So you would be happy choosing an alleged human trafficker? LOL please delete your account\u201d— Julia Hartley-Brewer (@Julia Hartley-Brewer) 1672258018
\u201c@JuliaHB1 No, you added the word autistic amongst a string of insults, basically mocking a disability. You could have just apologised but no, you took the narcissistic option of blaming other people for taking offence. Your nickname \u201cJulia Hatred Spewer\u201d has never seemed more apt.\u201d— Julia Hartley-Brewer (@Julia Hartley-Brewer) 1672258018
\u201c@JuliaHB1 Take two seats, ableist. You said what you said. Your lack of self-awareness, thirst for acknowledgment and chasing of clout is on full display. You\u2019re not good at this, and by sizing you up, that\u2019s being generous. You should consider a career as the spokesperson for Gatorade\u2026\u201d— Julia Hartley-Brewer (@Julia Hartley-Brewer) 1672258018
\u201c@JuliaHB1 We know what you meant. I took the liberty of reposting it here so everyone can see who you are. You know EXACTLY why you mentioned it. The rest of us don't have to worry about tweeting and deleting tweets like that. Because we are better human beings than you. Later, pick me.\u201d— Julia Hartley-Brewer (@Julia Hartley-Brewer) 1672258018
\u201c@JuliaHB1 https://t.co/KFjgrXz49d\u201d— Julia Hartley-Brewer (@Julia Hartley-Brewer) 1672258018
\u201c@JuliaHB1 You were making fun of her autism. \n\n1\ufe0f\u20e3 You explicitly used it to position yourself and Tate as superior to her. \n\n2\ufe0f\u20e3 You put 'autistic' in-between two other insults. #ContextClues\n\nNow you're claiming decency?\n\nIf you had any decency, you'd hate yourself.\u201d— Julia Hartley-Brewer (@Julia Hartley-Brewer) 1672258018
Last April 2, which is World Autism Awareness Day, Thunberg spread awareness and opened up about her autism.
In a Twitter thread, the 20-year-old said she was diagnosed with "Asperger–a form of autism" when she was 12.
She wrote in part:
“Today, so many (especially girls) remain undiagnosed."
"The reasons for that are often lack of awareness, prejudices and the fact that many still see autism as a ‘disease’ or something that has to hold you back."
Thunberg continued:
“Autism is not a disease. It’s not something you ‘have.' "
“It simply means that you are a bit different from everyone else."
"And in a world where everyone strives to act, think and look the same–being different is truly something to be proud of.“
"That’s why I’m very proud to be autistic.”