The #ThingsLongerThanOscars Sentence Hashtag Isn’t Funny But It Could Be Important

People aren’t pleased with Pistorius’s sentencing, and though jokes aren’t going to change that, there are tiny things we can learn from this latest hashtag game...

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by Sophie Wilkinson |
Published on

Oscar Pistorius has been sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for the culpable homicide of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Her mum, June, told reporters outside the courthouse in South Africa when asked if she was happy with Judge Masipa’s decision,‘Doesn’t matter, he’s going to pay something. I'm just glad it’s over’.

However, upon noting the defence’s claim – they will not appeal – that Pistorius could be out of prison in 10 months and serve the rest of his sentence under house arrest, people on Twitter are responding in a multitude of ways, and a great whack of them seem to be jokes.

READ MORE: Oscar Pistorius Sentenced To Five Years, Could Leave Prison In Just 10 Months

Some perhaps more sensible internet users are rallying around the #NoJustice hashtag to sum up how embittered they are with the judge’s sentence:

‘How sad that we live in a world where murdering an innocent woman results in so little accountability#OscarPistorius #disgusting #nojustice

— Upinder Randhawa (@UpinderRandhawa) October 21, 2014

‘10 months?!?! Stunning. I cannot believe that- Reeva lost her life and he gets a slap on the wrist #nojustice

— Nat Edwards (@NatEdwards_AFL) October 21, 2014

‘Appalled by the #Pistorius verdict, a human life has been taken, a family ripped apart. It's an absolute joke #PistoriusTrial #nojustice

— Natalie Harper (@NatHarperactor) October 21, 2014

And, as much as the sentencing might seem inappropriately short, people are acting very quickly to turn the Pistorius trial into a joke they can get favourites and retweets for, more of an exercise in their own quick wit than questioning why Pistorius gets such a short sentence and what can be done to fight domestic violence:

‘Well the Judge has well and truly taken the Pistorius #nojustice

— Chevy Kelly (@chevkelly) October 21, 2014

One rape charity totally agrees with the sentiment that Pistorius deserved a much longer custodial sentence than the one handed down. Bethan Cansfield, policy manager at Womankind Worldwide, told The Independent that giving out a short sentence can send a signal that the authorities don’t care about domestic violence. ‘Low levels of convictions and short sentencing given to perpetrators of violence against women is rampant across the world,’ she said.

‘These violate a woman’s right to justice and send a strong message that states do not take violence seriously.’

READ MORE: 'Oscar Must Die In Jail': How The Pistorius Case Is Dividing South Africa

Yet for all the worthy things to say about the sentencing, there are just as many, if not more, jokes. #ThingsLongerThanOscarsSentence is trending on Twitter, with people throwing ridiculously short things out there to make a point about how ridiculously short Pistorius’s sentence is.

#thingslongerthanoscarssentence a Kardashian marriage’

— Sarah Jones (@sarah_louiji) October 21, 2014

‘The iPhone charger cable #ThingsLongerThanOscarsSentence

— Leeanda Reddy (@LeeandaReddy) October 21, 2014

#ThingsLongerThanOscarsSentence Bruno Mars pic.twitter.com/crbGSxaebg

— Holly Brockwell (@hollybrocks) October 21, 2014

MTV Base Africa has even chimed in, telling its 300,000+ followers:

#ThingsLongerThanOscarsSentence Michelle’s verse in Survivor. pic.twitter.com/XtHOxveziW

— MTV Base Africa (@MTVbaseAfrica) October 21, 2014

We’re not saying it isn’t funny – because that last one totally vibes off of that ticklingly irrational hatred of Michelle Williams some people have despite her being a quiet hero of Destiny’s Child. (Have you heard Say Yes, her gospel song?) And we get that sometimes, to deal with pain, people like to make light of a situation. But, then again, if Twitter is regarding itself as the moral arbiter of actual real murder cases, should laughing at one third of Destiny’s Child be the just consequence of a trial over a dead innocent woman?

READ MORE: Roxanne Adams, The Blonde Female Lawyer In The Pistorius Trial Makes Headlines - For Being a Blonde Female Lawyer

One plus – almost – is that in among the jokes, including gross ones about his stumps, it seems there are a lot of men in on the joke.

#ThingsLongerThanOscarsSentence The line to see the physio at Arsenal's training ground.’

— The Betting Bar (@TheBettingBar) October 21, 2014

It’s not for us to say what’s funny and what’s not, but if football fans – mostly comprised of men, some of whom are showing themselves up after it appears they want convicted rapist Ched Evans to return to football – are getting the message that the sentence should have been longer, then it’s not all bad.

Reeva’s never coming back, but the best we can learn from these jokes is that, at least the general public seem to be on the side of the victim here. It’s annoying that that’s not a given, but even if the judiciary system can’t take domestic violence seriously; at least the public knows it should.

#thingslongerthanoscarssentence the heartache he's left for a lifetime in his victims family and friends’

— Jay (@bilstonjay) October 21, 2014

You might also be interested in:

Meet The Pistorians Fighting To Clear Oscar Pistorius's Reputation Online

Oscar Pistorius Found Guilty Of Culpable Homicide - How Will The #Pistorians React?

Reeva Steenkamp's Cousin Gives Emotional Testimony In Oscar Pistorius's Sentencing

Follow Sophie on Twitter @sophwilkinson

This article originally appeared on The Debrief.

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