Wednesday, 30 September 2009
Some good news on disability hate crime
Just to illustrate that lessons are being learned and positive moves are happening: the Equality and Human Rights Commission issued a press release yesterday saying that they will be reviewing how public authorities respond to disability hate crime. The EHRC also published their disability work plan which I haven't had time to look at yet but look forward to reading!
we can't all install electric fences
I was going to blog about the Cornish pensioner who is so sick of harassment and the threat of burglary he has erected an electrified fence around his bungalow. He has been driven to do this by the lack of response from police and local authorities to his initial complaints. Funnily enough after the news being dominated by the tragic Pilkington case, now that the pensioner has gone to the press he is expecting a visit from the local mayor and the police tonight, to look at solving the issues he is facing, being targeted and harassed by thugs and criminals (he has been burgled in the past.)
Anyway I was going to just mention that news story but today I was at an event with the gypsy and traveller communities. It was an incredibly interesting, illuminating and in some ways inspiring way to spend my day. The women who attended - they were predominantly women - had a wealth of experience, wisdom and strength to share with one another. The event really brought home the message that only exploring real people's experiences and really involving people whether young, old, disabled, travellers or anyone, will develop a true and useful understanding of everyone's needs. This is where policy development should begin.
When I worked for the Mayor of London (Ken that is) it was the approach we took. If people with learning difficulties told us they weren't being listened to or understood by the police we would ask people with learning difficulties to get to gether and we would provide police officers of all levels to meet with them. The police wouldn't be allowed to leave until they had come up with some actions to improve things.
So what I am saying is that we all have powerful voices and so I am going to start by sharing some of my experiences of disability related hate crime, bullying, harassment - what ever you want to call it. I am incredibly lucky that I have never experienced persistent serious harassment or abuse, but my experiences I think are quite telling, I also think that it is important for me to be honest. I have a successful career being Head of Equality and Diversity for a large regulator, but I still experience many barriers and bad attitudes from society.
My first experience of disability related bullying of any kind was when I was 6 or 7. I wasn't expecting it one bit. I had been accepted by my peers at nursery and primary school. So I wasn't prepared for a gang of local big kids - they were about 12 - turning on me in the local swing park. I was with an older friend and my house was opposite the park. The gang of kids started hurling abuse at me, calling me names, then they started throwing huge clods of mud and stones at me in an attempt to smash my glasses. My glasses were the proverbial jam jar glasses. The kids eventually drove me and my friend out of the park, muddy, bloody and tearful. I was totally bewildered to why this had happened but for the first time in my life I felt that my disability could cause me shame, embarrassment and I felt very, very different.
It wasn't for another 20 odd years that I realised that what happened to me is a great illustration of how the social model works. I wasn't disabled as a child, I had a visual impairment but my environment was adapted for me I didn't feel any different to anyone else. But as the mud and stones hit me and I ran for my life, that's how it felt, I was disabled for the first time. Not long after this incident I was knocked over by a bicycle on a quiet road and the combination of these events led me to delve into myself and not want to leave the house. Eventually a mobility officer had to work with me to build my confidence of getting about I was scared of roads but I was more scared of other children. I didn't breath a word to my parents about these fears though. After that if anyone tried to bully me I hit them back and got into a lot of trouble for fighting every now and again.
The last time I experienced any significant (I'll get back to this later) disability related abuse was on London underground. I was finding it particularly difficult finding my footing on the steps out of an underground station. I was suddenly pushed hard and purposefully from behind and a woman yelled "Get a move on - are you f*****g blind" I turned to look at the woman, she turned out to be a city type in a sharp suit and stilettos, I tried to calmly say "yes I'm partially sighted" but my voice was shaking. She just shoved me one more time hissing "For F***s sake get out of my way - you're a menace." Interesting turn of phrase she had.
Now, even I can get cross at slow walking pedestrians not that I'd shout at anyone I hope. What was interesting was that when I explained I was partially sighted she was either so shocked, horrified, appalled or all three, that she continued to abuse me even more viciously.
I said "significant" above because on an occasional but constant basis local teenagers will pass me in the street or super market and find me incredibly amusing. Whether it is the jam jar glasses, my nystagmus or because I am holding something close to my face to read that amuses them they make it quite clear that I am hysterically funny, as they mimic me. Petty and low level but when I'm not feeling too good its enough to make me not want to go out. Sometimes I can't bare to be seen wearing my glasses when I am feeling low. I fixate on my glasses being the issue when I know they aren't.
I just hope that by sharing these experiences I have exercised a few demons for myself but also shed light on the kinds of abuse that disabled people often face on a daily basis for no other reason than the fact that we are disabled. I don't consider the examples I've given as being serious but after 30+ years of this and many more different barriers being put in my way it does build up.
Luckily for me I am certain this has made me stronger but it could so easily have swung the other way.
Anyway I was going to just mention that news story but today I was at an event with the gypsy and traveller communities. It was an incredibly interesting, illuminating and in some ways inspiring way to spend my day. The women who attended - they were predominantly women - had a wealth of experience, wisdom and strength to share with one another. The event really brought home the message that only exploring real people's experiences and really involving people whether young, old, disabled, travellers or anyone, will develop a true and useful understanding of everyone's needs. This is where policy development should begin.
When I worked for the Mayor of London (Ken that is) it was the approach we took. If people with learning difficulties told us they weren't being listened to or understood by the police we would ask people with learning difficulties to get to gether and we would provide police officers of all levels to meet with them. The police wouldn't be allowed to leave until they had come up with some actions to improve things.
So what I am saying is that we all have powerful voices and so I am going to start by sharing some of my experiences of disability related hate crime, bullying, harassment - what ever you want to call it. I am incredibly lucky that I have never experienced persistent serious harassment or abuse, but my experiences I think are quite telling, I also think that it is important for me to be honest. I have a successful career being Head of Equality and Diversity for a large regulator, but I still experience many barriers and bad attitudes from society.
My first experience of disability related bullying of any kind was when I was 6 or 7. I wasn't expecting it one bit. I had been accepted by my peers at nursery and primary school. So I wasn't prepared for a gang of local big kids - they were about 12 - turning on me in the local swing park. I was with an older friend and my house was opposite the park. The gang of kids started hurling abuse at me, calling me names, then they started throwing huge clods of mud and stones at me in an attempt to smash my glasses. My glasses were the proverbial jam jar glasses. The kids eventually drove me and my friend out of the park, muddy, bloody and tearful. I was totally bewildered to why this had happened but for the first time in my life I felt that my disability could cause me shame, embarrassment and I felt very, very different.
It wasn't for another 20 odd years that I realised that what happened to me is a great illustration of how the social model works. I wasn't disabled as a child, I had a visual impairment but my environment was adapted for me I didn't feel any different to anyone else. But as the mud and stones hit me and I ran for my life, that's how it felt, I was disabled for the first time. Not long after this incident I was knocked over by a bicycle on a quiet road and the combination of these events led me to delve into myself and not want to leave the house. Eventually a mobility officer had to work with me to build my confidence of getting about I was scared of roads but I was more scared of other children. I didn't breath a word to my parents about these fears though. After that if anyone tried to bully me I hit them back and got into a lot of trouble for fighting every now and again.
The last time I experienced any significant (I'll get back to this later) disability related abuse was on London underground. I was finding it particularly difficult finding my footing on the steps out of an underground station. I was suddenly pushed hard and purposefully from behind and a woman yelled "Get a move on - are you f*****g blind" I turned to look at the woman, she turned out to be a city type in a sharp suit and stilettos, I tried to calmly say "yes I'm partially sighted" but my voice was shaking. She just shoved me one more time hissing "For F***s sake get out of my way - you're a menace." Interesting turn of phrase she had.
Now, even I can get cross at slow walking pedestrians not that I'd shout at anyone I hope. What was interesting was that when I explained I was partially sighted she was either so shocked, horrified, appalled or all three, that she continued to abuse me even more viciously.
I said "significant" above because on an occasional but constant basis local teenagers will pass me in the street or super market and find me incredibly amusing. Whether it is the jam jar glasses, my nystagmus or because I am holding something close to my face to read that amuses them they make it quite clear that I am hysterically funny, as they mimic me. Petty and low level but when I'm not feeling too good its enough to make me not want to go out. Sometimes I can't bare to be seen wearing my glasses when I am feeling low. I fixate on my glasses being the issue when I know they aren't.
I just hope that by sharing these experiences I have exercised a few demons for myself but also shed light on the kinds of abuse that disabled people often face on a daily basis for no other reason than the fact that we are disabled. I don't consider the examples I've given as being serious but after 30+ years of this and many more different barriers being put in my way it does build up.
Luckily for me I am certain this has made me stronger but it could so easily have swung the other way.
Tuesday, 29 September 2009
Disability hate crime
Whilst working at the Disability Rights Commission I worked on projects relating to harassment and disability hate crime particularly in relation to social housing, so this blog entry saddens me greatly. Whilst I was advising local authorities and housing associations on how to tackle disability related harassment, in Leicestershire the guidance was really needed but not getting though.
The terribly tragic deaths of Fiona Pilkington and her daughter Francecca has been headline news today. Fiona killed herself and her disabled daughter after being driven distraught by harassment and bullying from youngsters attacking her home, her garden, physically abusing her son and verbally abusing her family. The motivation for this prolonged (it lasted a decade) abuse was that the Pilkingtons were different, Francecca was disabled and her mother and brother experienced severe emotional problems because of the abuse. They were easy targets.
I listened this morning to a Radio 5 breakfast interview with the Pilkington's local MP and I just despaired. Firstly the MP tried to turn the interview into an opportunity to play party politics, Nicky Campbell even had to ask him not to do this! But I would expect that of quite a few politicians. What really got me angry was when he was asked if this was a disability hate crime. The MP replied that lessons needed to be learned because this has shown us that "people with special needs should be monitored more closely by authorities!"
OK everything in that statement is just wrong! Special needs always gets me cross! Saying special needs puts the emphasis on the disabled people being different, needing special treatment and completely takes the emphasis away from the perpetrators of the abuse. Then to say that the answer is to monitor disabled people more closely completely lets the abusers and harassers off the hook. This puts out the message that there is nothing we can do about preventing abuse against disabled people the only answer is to monitor the disabled people as if they are the ones causing the problems!
Can you imagine any MP saying that to tackle racism local authorities need to watch people from ethnic minorities more closely?
So here is the message to any MPs. Disabled people experience all kinds of hate crime in many situations. It is hate crime because the people who attack disabled people verbally and physically do so because the person is disabled. The perpetrators target disabled people for many reasons, some of which are that disabled people are seen as weak and easy prey, different and perceived as unnatural or frightening. Society still attaches huge stigma to disability even in this day and age 15 years on from the DDA.
Even the Prime Minster on Sunday's Andrew Marr show spoke about his own disability as a handicap as if it was something he was ashamed of. He had to keep emphasising that he acquired his eye condition from being fit and healthy playing rugby. He might as well have said "I've not always been disabled (or handicapped as he seems to prefer) you know."
As a PS I am not keen on the TV news vigilantism that seems to be targeting one of the families accused of harassing the Pilkingtons. This will only end up making martyrs of some people involved and yet again sweep under the carpet the real issues in this case. Why is disability hate crime happening at all and how can we stop it.
PPS a great article from the BBC on disability hate crime, thanks to Rich Watts for alerting me to it.
The terribly tragic deaths of Fiona Pilkington and her daughter Francecca has been headline news today. Fiona killed herself and her disabled daughter after being driven distraught by harassment and bullying from youngsters attacking her home, her garden, physically abusing her son and verbally abusing her family. The motivation for this prolonged (it lasted a decade) abuse was that the Pilkingtons were different, Francecca was disabled and her mother and brother experienced severe emotional problems because of the abuse. They were easy targets.
I listened this morning to a Radio 5 breakfast interview with the Pilkington's local MP and I just despaired. Firstly the MP tried to turn the interview into an opportunity to play party politics, Nicky Campbell even had to ask him not to do this! But I would expect that of quite a few politicians. What really got me angry was when he was asked if this was a disability hate crime. The MP replied that lessons needed to be learned because this has shown us that "people with special needs should be monitored more closely by authorities!"
OK everything in that statement is just wrong! Special needs always gets me cross! Saying special needs puts the emphasis on the disabled people being different, needing special treatment and completely takes the emphasis away from the perpetrators of the abuse. Then to say that the answer is to monitor disabled people more closely completely lets the abusers and harassers off the hook. This puts out the message that there is nothing we can do about preventing abuse against disabled people the only answer is to monitor the disabled people as if they are the ones causing the problems!
Can you imagine any MP saying that to tackle racism local authorities need to watch people from ethnic minorities more closely?
So here is the message to any MPs. Disabled people experience all kinds of hate crime in many situations. It is hate crime because the people who attack disabled people verbally and physically do so because the person is disabled. The perpetrators target disabled people for many reasons, some of which are that disabled people are seen as weak and easy prey, different and perceived as unnatural or frightening. Society still attaches huge stigma to disability even in this day and age 15 years on from the DDA.
Even the Prime Minster on Sunday's Andrew Marr show spoke about his own disability as a handicap as if it was something he was ashamed of. He had to keep emphasising that he acquired his eye condition from being fit and healthy playing rugby. He might as well have said "I've not always been disabled (or handicapped as he seems to prefer) you know."
As a PS I am not keen on the TV news vigilantism that seems to be targeting one of the families accused of harassing the Pilkingtons. This will only end up making martyrs of some people involved and yet again sweep under the carpet the real issues in this case. Why is disability hate crime happening at all and how can we stop it.
PPS a great article from the BBC on disability hate crime, thanks to Rich Watts for alerting me to it.
Sunday, 27 September 2009
Jedi vs Tesco
This story is a week old but well worth a mention. Basically a bloke who is a follower of the Jedi religion, apparently he founded the international church of jedism, was asked to remove his Jedi hood when shopping in Tesco in Bangor. He accused them of religious discrimination. This prompted a lovely response from Tesco which I have pasted below:
Amusing as this all is, and the statement from Tesco is very cleverly done, it does raise the question would Tesco ask a nun to remove her wimple or a Muslim woman the hijab? And if a Tesco store did would their head office issue a response that delved into interpretations of Islam or Christianity. I think not, they wouldn't dare. In the UK religion is either something to laugh about or steer clear of.
This rule is clearly sparked by Tesco not wanting "hoodies" in their shops. So they don't want kids in hoods in their shops. That in its self I have issues with, why can't kids wear hoods if they want to, but I'm not going to bang on about this. Tesco really should be consistent in their approach either ban all head gear that can obscure the face or find better ways to tackle kids hanging about shops.
Tesco said: "He hasn't been banned. Jedis are very welcome to shop in our stores although we would ask them to remove their hoods.
"Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda and Luke Skywalker all appeared hoodless without ever going over to the Dark Side and we are only aware of the Emperor as one who never removed his hood.
"If Jedi walk around our stores with their hoods on, they'll miss lots of special offers."
Amusing as this all is, and the statement from Tesco is very cleverly done, it does raise the question would Tesco ask a nun to remove her wimple or a Muslim woman the hijab? And if a Tesco store did would their head office issue a response that delved into interpretations of Islam or Christianity. I think not, they wouldn't dare. In the UK religion is either something to laugh about or steer clear of.
This rule is clearly sparked by Tesco not wanting "hoodies" in their shops. So they don't want kids in hoods in their shops. That in its self I have issues with, why can't kids wear hoods if they want to, but I'm not going to bang on about this. Tesco really should be consistent in their approach either ban all head gear that can obscure the face or find better ways to tackle kids hanging about shops.
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