Whether you love her or hate her, Bahar Mustafa has had an undeniably shit year. After being yanked into her very own public scandal back in May, the Goldsmiths diversity officer has been doing her best to deflect a torrent of online abuse, IRL privacy invasions, death and rape threats. And why? Well, because there are rumours that she may have allegedly posted the phrase “#KillAllWhiteMen” on Twitter one time. Note the stress on rumour, may and allegedly, there. 

“I never actually tweeted it – but I don't condemn it either,” Mustafa told Vice, after finally being let off the ‘threatening message’ charges yesterday. “The reality is that #KillAllMuslims was trending for a while – there are tens and thousands of Muslims being killed in the Middle East and victimised in the UK.”

The controversy this comment caused has felt completely unjustified – especially when you consider the filth that floats by unnoticed on these sites every day. Were people really that threatened? Did they truly believe that a 28-year-old student diversity officer from Edmonton was going to embark on a worldwide mission to kill all white men? And if they did, why didn't they feel the same about the rape and death threats that Mustafa received in retaliation? Why weren't these much more disturbing comments treated with the same urgency? 

“The tweets were never a credible threat, and while Ms Mustafa might have offended some people, that alone should never be enough for prosecution” – Robert Sharp

“The tweets were never a credible threat, and while Ms Mustafa might have offended some people, that alone should never be enough for prosecution,” explains Robert Sharp of the writers’ association, English PEN. “These charges were brought under communications legislation that was written for fax machines, not social media. The law needs an urgent update.”

Sadly, this whole debacle may have only proven that online abuse needs to be directed at a white male before serious steps are taken. A problem doesn't really seem to be a problem unless society's most powerful are feeling the brunt of it, after all. It's probably the reason why most feminists will enjoy slagging off “white men's privilege” every now and then – because, hey, it gets really annoying sometimes. “Like when you say #FML, you aren't literally telling people to fuck your life,” Mustafa added. “The #KillAllWhiteMen hashtag is something that a lot of people in the feminist community use to express frustration.” 

In a world as vast and vitriolic as Twitter, comments like Mustafas are ten-a-penny: which is what makes this news so odd. And while her base views may be problematic, critics should step back and realise which statements should be taken seriously, and which ones should not. It's time to sharpen up. After all, the phrase “#KillAllWhiteMen” is definitely not the worst thing you'll see on social media. Not by a long shot.