Elon Musk has provoked a furious backlash in Scotland by accusing Humza Yousaf of being “a blatant racist” after the tech billionaire saw a highly selective clip of a speech by the first minister.
Musk, the owner of Tesla, Space X and the social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, reacted to a 45-second clip of Yousaf listing all the senior public posts in Scotland held by white people, which was posted on X by an anonymous account called End Wokeness.
The account, which has a paid-for blue verification mark, accused Yousaf, who is Scotland’s first ethnic minority first minister, of “openly despising white people”. It said: “Why would Scotland’s parliament and King select a guy who hates almost 100% of the country?”
Musk replied: “What a blatant racist!”
What a blatant racist!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 26, 2023
Musk was quickly challenged on X, while Yousaf responded by posting a gif of an Asian shopkeeper from the BBC Scotland sitcom Still Game doing a shimmying dance in his shop with the words “racists foaming at the mouth at my very existence”.
Racists foaming at the mouth at my very existence.
— Humza Yousaf (@HumzaYousaf) October 27, 2023
Me: pic.twitter.com/DsKRWRhnIy
Numerous posts pointed out that Yousaf had been arguing that Scotland’s public sector and institutions were not demonstrating a clear commitment to racial diversity given nearly every one was run by white people.
The Ferret news website subjected the post, which reused a clip from an account called ChurchillsCigar, to its factchecking service and found it was false. It said the extract was a highly selective excerpt of a broader statement, a conclusion reposted by critics of Yousaf’s government.
The excerpt of Yousaf’s statement has been repeatedly amplified in Scotland by far-right nativist groups who claim it was racist. Audience members and protesters have also accused him of racism at events.
Yousaf has been widely praised for his handling of the Israel-Hamas crisis, hosting meetings with Jewish leaders and the widow of a Jewish man murdered by Hamas and issuing joint statements condemning the violence. His wife, Nadia El-Nakla, is half-Palestinian and his first wife was white.
The clip was taken from May 2020 when Yousaf was speaking to MSPs on a motion in support of anti-racist activism after the death of George Floyd, where he discussed the racism he had experienced since being elected.
“Some people have been surprised or taken aback by my mention on my social media that at 99% of the meetings that I go to, I am the only non-white person in the room,” he told the chamber. “Why are we so surprised when the most senior positions in Scotland are filled almost exclusively by people who are white?”
He then listed all the senior judicial, policing and legal posts in his justice portfolio held by white people, and said the same could be found in health, another portfolio he held.
“Almost every trade union in the country, headed by people who are white people,” he added. “In the Scottish government, every director general is white. Every chair of every public body is white. That is not good enough.”
A spokesperson for Yousaf said on Friday: “The first minister has been on the receiving end of racist hate, abuse and death threats his entire life, and has stood firm against hatred and bigotry, of any kind, throughout.
“Sadly, much of the racist abuse and threats of violence the first minister faces are directed his way on X. Mr Musk should use his position to tackle racism and hatred that goes unchecked on the social media platform he owns.”
