Following her recent demolition of Hunting Kind’s Ed Swales on Good Morning Britain, the HSA is delighted to feature a guest piece by writer, academic and activist Chantelle Lunt.
August has been a harrowing month for people of colour in the UK, with many of us facing persecution in the streets. Confronted with violence, intimidation, and harassment during racist and Islamophobic riots – triggered when innocent non-white communities were targeted by the far-right following the tragic murder of three young girls in Southport – diverse communities have been left reeling.
So, when Ed Swales suggested that fox hunters should be granted minority group status, I initially thought he was offering some much-needed comic relief. Alas, this was no joke. Swales, the chairperson of the hunting lobby group Hunting Kind (apparently adding ‘kind’ at the end is meant to soften the blow), was dead serious.

Swales initially made headlines by arguing that fox hunters deserve the same protections as ethnic minority groups. He was quoted in The Guardian stating, ‘The qualifications of an ethnic group, there are five of them, and we hit every one straight in the bullseye.’ However, ahead of his appearance on Good Morning Britain, where he debated me, Swales seemed to pivot. He toned down his rhetoric, claiming instead that hunters should be protected on the basis of having a philosophical belief – an argument he presumably found more palatable for a daytime TV audience. But let’s be clear: fox hunting does not meet the threshold of a philosophical belief.

For a belief to be recognised as philosophical under the Equality Act 2010, it must be genuine, more than just an opinion, cogent, serious, worthy of respect, and crucially, it must not infringe upon the rights of others. The so-called ‘belief’ in the right to hunt foxes fails on every count. Numerous polls have shown that more than 80% of people in the UK oppose fox hunting. The attempt to co-opt legislative protections hard-won by genuinely marginalised communities is not only insulting but also dangerous. While Swales may appear well-dressed and polite on daytime television, his comparison of trail hunting – often, a smokescreen for the continued bloodied pursuit of foxes – to drink driving was utterly absurd.
The fact that many hunters continue to pursue innocent animals nearly 20 years after the Hunting Act 2004 banned this cruel ‘sport’ is a testament to the privileges enjoyed by those who partake – those with the wealth, connections, and land ownership to conceal their actions from public view. If anything, we should be strengthening legislative protections for foxes, not those who hunt them. Hunting Kind’s ‘minority belief’ campaign falsely equates the privileged elite’s outrage at being told they can no longer hunt and kill innocent animals with the genuine struggles faced by minority communities.

One of the original complaints from Swales’ group was that hunters are facing consequences at work due to their beliefs. As a former police officer, I would argue that such consequences are entirely reasonable when one chooses to break the law.
As a woman of colour, there is no way for me to hide my protected characteristics; they are an intrinsic part of who I am, and they impact me negatively on a daily basis. The discrimination and oppression that I and other minority groups face is in no way comparable to the consequences faced by hunters who choose to break the law and allow their dogs to tear foxes apart. Society has evolved and recognises that this is a cruel, inhumane practice, and it’s time that the ‘hunting community’ moved on too.
For more of Chantelle’s activism and writing follow her on social media:
https://www.instagram.com/chantelle_lunt/
https://x.com/chantellelunt