Category: Sex and Sexuality Hate Crime

Covid-19 is a dangerous fuse

June 8, 2020 / / 0 Comments

“The coronavirus is an excuse for, rather than a cause of, hateful behaviour – It is a fuse that activates pre-existing prejudices and stereotypes. Many people have decided that they can now manifest them with impunity. Before our eyes, the social norms are changing – what is allowed, what is acceptable”  notes Prof. Rafał Pankowski, a Polish sociologist and political scientist.

There have been reports of a rise in hate crime in Poland against people of Asian origin, following Covid-19, as there have been in the UK. However, in addition, other minority groups including refugees, Muslims and LGBTQ+ communities have also been targeted. Cases of discrimination were collected by “Never Again”, an NGO which combats hate speech in their new report “Virus of Hate: the Brown Book of the Time of Epidemic” which can be read in full here: the_virus_of_hate

As Gazeta Wyborcza reported in April, “Wiadomości” TVP aired a news piece blaming refugees for spreading coronavirus. “In the Greek refugee camp, Coronavirus was detected. As many as 20 immigrants from the Middle East are infected. The residents are full of fear, because there is no shortage of escapes.” – said the creator of the material Maciej Sawicki. The Berlin correspondent of TVP Cezary Gmyz, in turn, re-posted on Twitter a comment by the far-right AfD party accusing Muslims in Berlin of deliberately spreading coronavirus (because they were supposed to gather in front of the mosque).

In Wrocław, Salesian priest Leonard Wilczyński stated in his sermon that the coronavirus epidemic is “God’s punishment for living in sin: for homosexuality”. Warsaw priest Sławomir Abramowski wrote on Facebook that “the biological bomb that spread the plague in Madrid was a demonstration by many thousands of genderists”.

As Professor Pankowski explains the pandemic has resulted in a  “global crisis of social trust and values, disorientation, anxiety. In these conditions not only xenophobia but also conspiracy theories are developing dangerously.”

In the UK a survey by psychologists at the University of Oxford showed that nearly half of people in England believe in conspiracy theories related to Covid-19. The results showed that one fifth of English people blamed Jews or Muslims for Covid-19.  The research suggested that people who believe in Covid-19 conspiracy theories are less likely to comply with government guidelines on social distancing rules, thereby “contributing to the spread of the disease.”  The full report can be read here.

The rise in Covid-19 conspiracy theories, both on and off the internet, is dangerous.  We all need to be aware that hate crime will increase as a result of this, and there will be a need to challenge it. At the end of the pandemic, confidence in social trust and values must be re-evaluated, and worked on.

Sheffield LGBT+ Leaders call for cancellation of Franklin Graham Tour

January 19, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Franklin Graham is coming to visit 8 UK cities later this year as part of his tour which has already sparked protests in Florida.  One of the dates includes Sheffield Arena on 6th June. Graham is a close friend of Donald Trump and preached at his inauguration. He is the son of the late preacher, Billy Graham, who was also close to American presidents and preached to thousands of Christians across America.

Franklin Graham has previously said that he believes gay marriage is a sin.

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The Arena is managed by Sheffield City Trust and they have said they do not endorse Graham’s views but support the right to free speech. This has sparked criticism by community leaders in Sheffield who wrote a letter expressing their concern that his visit could lead to protests. The Bishop of Sheffield has also said, “Graham’s rhetoric is inflammatory and represents a risk to the social cohesion of Sheffield.” There has been widespread fury in the LGBT+ community and they have also called for the event to be cancelled.

22 members of the LGBT+ community, including members of the Sheffield Equality Hub Network, Sheffield Bi and Pan Social Group, the Progressive Catholic Church and the University of Sheffield have written a letter to the head of Sheffield City Trust, David Grey, stating:

“Franklin Graham has repeatedly publicly promoted his homophobic beliefs including, but not limited to, branding homosexuality a ‘sin’, claiming Satan was the architect of same-sex marriage and LGBT rights, claiming gay people existing are causing a ‘moral 9/11’, declared gay people ‘the enemy’ of civilisation and advocates for the highly damaging abusive practice of gay conversion therapy.

We believe that these statements far exceed freedom of speech and are direct hate speech… which should not be welcomed in our city, or anywhere else.”

David Grey was reported by The Guardian as saying he had talked to faith leaders as well as South Yorkshire Police and  responded saying there was “a potential conflict between these two moral stances”.  He said that the event was not open to the public and “if individuals or groups aren’t breaking the law then their right to speak freely should be respected”.

The Guardian also reported that Heather Paterson, LGBT+ chair at the Equality Hub Network in the city and one of the signatories to the letter, said: “While Sheffield City Trust defend their position on the grounds of ‘free speech’, hate speech is not free speech. Graham’s rhetoric demonising some of our most vulnerable communities, referring to us as the enemies of civilisation and advocating for the harmful and abusive practice of conversion therapy, inspires and encourages these attacks. As a community we stand together to reject his attempts to spread further hatred and division in our city.”

On 25th January there will be a demonstration, at the Forge International Sports Centre, against Graham’s appearance: “Sheffield Against Hate Demo: Say No To Franklin Graham”.

Graham is also due to speak at the O2 arena and a petition has been started online to protest against his hate speech.

Freedom of speech should be respected. However, when freedom of speech promotes hatred against other people and has the potential to cause hate crime attacks, it needs to be stopped.

 

A Culture of Disbelief

January 1, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Photo taken from The Telegraph showing women rights activists outside the court in Cyprus

The #metoo movement sparked a rise in women sharing their stories on social media and coming forward to talk about sexual abuse that had happened to them. However there is still a “culture of disbelief” as reported to Inews by Dame Vera Baird, the Victims Commissioner for England and Wales. This unfortunately stops victims from reporting crimes and obtaining the justice they deserve. There was a 25% drop in rape conviction prosecutions in 2018-19, a disturbing drop for the second year running.  This was despite a record number of 57,882 reported incidents. This means that only 3.3% of cases reported ended in a conviction. This is worrying news for campaigners who support women and for victims that need justice.

At the moment the British Foreign Office is trying to intervene in the case of a 19 year old girl who could face up to a year in jail. The young girl had reported to Cypriot authorities that she had been raped by 12 men on the island of Ayia Napa. The British girl is only 19. She was interrogated by Cypriot police for 9 hours without access to a solicitor, before retracting her statement at 2am in the morning. The girl has since said she was bullied into retracting her statement. The men involved were freed and allowed to go home whilst the young girl was then remanded in custody for a month. On the 30th December the girl was convicted of “public mischief” with the judge saying that she lied about being gang raped. The alleged perpetrators had also filmed the event without her consent but video evidence was not allowed in court. The alleged perpetrators were also not charged with revenge porn.

The girl’s legal team are planning to appeal her conviction to a suspended sentence so that she can return to the UK.  However, due to delays in the island’s Supreme Court, she could now face up to a wait of 8 years before she can clear her name, before going to the European Court of Human Rights if needed.

Her mother has talked to the BBC and reported that her daughter is suffering from PTSD, hypersomnia and paralysing hallucinations, as well as becoming very withdrawn. “‘She needs to get back to the UK to get that treated – that’s my absolute primary focus. She can’t be treated here because hearing foreign men speaking loudly will trigger an episode.”

The story has resulted in widespread outrage with online campaigns starting such as #BoycottCyprus and a petition to drop the charges against her There has also been a gofundme page set up to support the girl: Help teen victim get justice in Cyprus and over £100,000 has been raised so far.

It is now 2020 and sadly this case again highlights the atrocity of a prevailing culture of disbelief amongst members of authority when victims come forward, as well as the devastating impact this can have on an individual and those closest to them. This culture needs to change so that victims can get the justice they deserve and perpetrators of crimes can be convicted.

You can take part in 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence which is run every year across the world, between 25th November and 10th December, leading up to the UN International day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Sheffield Hallam University runs events each year which you can get involved in as well as other events being held across the city.

If you are a woman or a man who needs support as a victim of rape there are a list of useful numbers and websites on the This Morning website here: https://www.itv.com/thismorning/rape-helplines you can also talk to someone at the University here: https://reportandsupport.shu.ac.uk/

Hate Crime Towards Women

December 20, 2019 /
The life of a woman..
It had been a cold winter’s night, Jyoti had been travelling back home from her trip to the cinema. Little did she know this would be the last time she would take the bus back home, the last time she could enjoy a movie with her friends.
As she waited for her bus to arrive, she had noticed 5 other passengers, all young men. The doors closed behind her; trapped.
The past hour states how sickening the world is towards women. Jyoti Singh had been raped by all men within the bus, including the driver himself. She and her fellow friend had been left on the road side in the dusk of night and had later passed away, with her dreams of attending medical school with her.
This short description states how women, till this day, are seen as ‘objects’. This HATE CRIME TOWARDS THE FEMALE GENDER MUST END ! No- one should deserve to die like this. It is important for us to end hate crime towards women and hopefully this insight of Jyoti’s story may impact many to begin to treat women equally..
BY: Natasha Janagol

Sex, Gender and Sexuality

November 23, 2018 / / 0 Comments

What Were You Wearing?

‘What Were You Wearing?’ is an art installation that originated at the University of Arkansas in the United States.  We sought permission from Dr Jen Brockman to host the exhibition here at Sheffield Hallam, and have had pop-up events in the HUBS, in student halls of residence, and, as part of Sexual Violence Awareness Week  in December 2018, we moved the exhibition to a number of different university main spaces.

‘What Were You Wearing?’ at the HUBS.

The installation is made up of a series of outfits inspired by survivor  accounts of sexual assault, and provokes questions about how victims can be blamed for being on the receiving end of violence.  The University of Kansas now hosts a web page dedicated to this art exhibition so do visit it to find out more about the origins and the reach of this work.

We continue to host this display at relevant events, so if you are interested in seeing it or would like us to bring it to a session that you are hosting, please contact Jill LeBihan on j.lebihan@shu.ac.uk.

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