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Original poster

Disability hate on MN

559 replies

IClaudine · 02/05/2024 13:31

Hi MNHQ

Since Sunak’s announcement on disability benefits, there has been a big increase on MN in hostility towards people who receive then.

The abuse, hate and outright lies (my neighbour’s son’s cousin’s wife climbs Mount Everest but gets PIP etc) being spewed on MN towards disabled people, a group with protected characteristics, has been dreadful and very distressing for disabled people and their loved ones to read,

Please can you do something?

Here is a small selection of the threads where the disability benefit bashers have paid a visit and had a field day. There may be more, but I can’t face searching for them!

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5064828-to-be-terrified-about-pip?utm_campaign=thread&utm_medium=share  

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5065470-people-who-work-have-anxiety-too?utm_campaign=thread&utm_medium=share

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5066670-aibu-to-hope-that-able-bodied-people-will-support-disabled-people-against-the-tory-attack-on-pip?utm_campaign=thread&utm_medium=share

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/money-matters/5064856-pip-vouchers-to-replace-money?reply=134966246&utm_campaign=thread&utm_medium=share

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/money-matters/5066331-do-you-feel-bad-for-receiving-a-high-amount-of-uc?utm_campaign=thread&utm_medium=share

OP posts:
Thread gallery
6
Italianita · 09/07/2025 20:29

My illness and disability is a full time job and I'm supposed to be retired now!

No such luck but I am grateful to be alive..

Italianita · 09/07/2025 20:27

flapjackfairy · 09/07/2025 19:43

exactly. just say that outright then. You came on to bash people who are disabled and rely on benefits to survive. What a novelty!
You think.people who.rely on disability benefits are taking people for a ride. Stop to think that people with disabilities have a lot of associated costs and most people would happily swap their disabilities to live a normal life and earn their own money. You really have no.clue what many disabled people's lives are like. If you think they are living in clover you are totally deluded.

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Exactly.

I'm actually busier with my disabilities, illnesses and regular medical treatments than when I was working !!

flapjackfairy · 09/07/2025 19:43

This reply has been deleted

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exactly. just say that outright then. You came on to bash people who are disabled and rely on benefits to survive. What a novelty!
You think.people who.rely on disability benefits are taking people for a ride. Stop to think that people with disabilities have a lot of associated costs and most people would happily swap their disabilities to live a normal life and earn their own money. You really have no.clue what many disabled people's lives are like. If you think they are living in clover you are totally deluded.

K0OLA1D · 09/07/2025 19:37

This reply has been deleted

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Ffs. Get off a literal thread talking about how sick people are of people bashing disabled benefits claimants with your shite.

TigerRag · 09/07/2025 19:29

This reply has been deleted

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Not the thread for it. Start your own if you want to benefit bash

MyNameIsX · 09/07/2025 18:34

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flapjackfairy · 09/07/2025 18:22

MyNameIsX · 09/07/2025 17:44

Jobless people on sickness benefits will soon receive £2,500 more a year than a minimum wage worker, new figures have revealed.

The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a think tank, found that a non-working Universal Credit (UC) claimant receiving the average housing benefit and personal independence payment for ill health would have an income of £25,000 in 2026-27.

This compares with a full-time worker paid the national living wage, who will earn about £22,500 after income tax and National Insurance.

And ? Your point is ?

MyNameIsX · 09/07/2025 17:44

Jobless people on sickness benefits will soon receive £2,500 more a year than a minimum wage worker, new figures have revealed.

The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a think tank, found that a non-working Universal Credit (UC) claimant receiving the average housing benefit and personal independence payment for ill health would have an income of £25,000 in 2026-27.

This compares with a full-time worker paid the national living wage, who will earn about £22,500 after income tax and National Insurance.

ButteredRadish · 05/07/2025 09:54

TigerRag · 04/07/2025 11:37

I don't bother reporting it as I feel it's just a waste of time as they don't appear to do anything

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Agreed. Sigh.

PandoraSocks · 05/07/2025 09:46

Yup.

LadyKenya · 05/07/2025 09:10

⬆

Dollenganger333 · 05/07/2025 08:41

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

Bumpitybumper · 04/07/2025 17:23

Samcro · 04/07/2025 14:51

its useful that someone has come on this thread and shown what disabled people have to put up with.

I'm pleased to have been of service. Seriously I am. This thread is an echo chamber and I'm pleased that MN haven't caved to the sentiment that only disabled people can define what is and isn't ableist and that anything a disabled person considers to be offensive must automatically be ableist. This isn't what the law says and would be a huge impediment on debate and free speech.

Samcro · 04/07/2025 14:51

its useful that someone has come on this thread and shown what disabled people have to put up with.

Italianita · 04/07/2025 13:36

PandoraSocks · 04/07/2025 09:40

That ditch is getting deeper with each post.

You don't need direct experience of ableism to be able to judge what it is and apply an objective test to a post to see if it meets the required threshold

Ableism takes many forms and, like other flavours of bigotry, can be insidious and sly.

A non-disabled person cannot have the knowledge and experience to always recognise when ableism is happening. Just like I, as a white person, cannot have the knowledge and experience to always recognise when racism is happening.

I would not dare to have the audacity to talk to people of colour about what defines racism in the way that you are talking to disabled people on this thread about what defines ableism. That you do is telling in itself.

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Excellent point at the end there 👍

PandoraSocks · 04/07/2025 13:03

They are all at it again in the "Tax increases imminent" thread 😡

TigerRag · 04/07/2025 11:37

ButteredRadish · 04/07/2025 11:02

Unfortunately MNHQ’s new mods are not much better and actively refuse to delete most of the ableism I’ve reported. It’s astonishing

I don't bother reporting it as I feel it's just a waste of time as they don't appear to do anything

Piggywaspushed · 04/07/2025 11:35

It would be nice to know nonetheless if/how often mods are diversity trained and if recruitment to modding is diversity tracked. You can recruit based on a preference for underreprestened groups and characteristics, too.

ButteredRadish · 04/07/2025 11:02

Unfortunately MNHQ’s new mods are not much better and actively refuse to delete most of the ableism I’ve reported. It’s astonishing

Bumpitybumper · 04/07/2025 10:54

PandoraSocks · 04/07/2025 10:42

It would not be practical for Mumsnet to find moderators that have specific characteristics that to satisfy specific posters idea of someone that really understands a specific form of discrimination due to their lived experience

Where have I suggested that @Bumpitybumper? You have not understood my post at all, but thanks for another lecture.

I will leave it there. Enjoy the 🌞 if it is shining where you are.

Edited

You have suggested that only those who are disabled can truly understand ableism and things like micro aggressions etc. Therefore logically MN would need a disabled moderator to moderate posts regarding disability appropriately. Correct me if I'm wrong.

I'm happy to leave it there but just wanted to clarify.

PandoraSocks · 04/07/2025 10:42

It would not be practical for Mumsnet to find moderators that have specific characteristics that to satisfy specific posters idea of someone that really understands a specific form of discrimination due to their lived experience

Where have I suggested that @Bumpitybumper? You have not understood my post at all, but thanks for another lecture.

I will leave it there. Enjoy the 🌞 if it is shining where you are.

Bumpitybumper · 04/07/2025 10:33

PandoraSocks · 04/07/2025 09:40

That ditch is getting deeper with each post.

You don't need direct experience of ableism to be able to judge what it is and apply an objective test to a post to see if it meets the required threshold

Ableism takes many forms and, like other flavours of bigotry, can be insidious and sly.

A non-disabled person cannot have the knowledge and experience to always recognise when ableism is happening. Just like I, as a white person, cannot have the knowledge and experience to always recognise when racism is happening.

I would not dare to have the audacity to talk to people of colour about what defines racism in the way that you are talking to disabled people on this thread about what defines ableism. That you do is telling in itself.

Show quote history

Your approach is incompatible with the law as well as any reasonable practical application of the law. There are objective tests in place for protected characteristics and these can be applied by anyone irrespective of their own characteristics. A judge doesn't have to be disabled to make a judgement regarding ableism and a white judge can absolutely make a judgement regarding racism.

It would not be practical for Mumsnet to find moderators that have specific characteristics that to satisfy specific posters idea of someone that really understands a specific form of discrimination due to their lived experience. Firstly, there are obviously lots of protected characteristics so this would be difficult logistically. This would also assume for example that disabled people all have the same idea of where the threshold lies between legitimate debate and ableism. We know from previous threads this simply isn't the case and we often have disabled posters accusing other disabled posters of ableism. The same goes for all the other protected characteristics and why we need objective tests in place.

PandoraSocks · 04/07/2025 09:45

@BeckyAMumsnet out of curiosity, what sort of training do the mods have? Do they do any form of training around awareness of ableism on social media?

PandoraSocks · 04/07/2025 09:40

Bumpitybumper · 04/07/2025 07:36

You don't need direct experience of ableism to be able to judge what it is and apply an objective test to a post to see if it meets the required threshold. The fact that you think someone does need to have experienced ableism to judge when it's present implies that you think that someone's judgement should be influenced and informed by personal experience as opposed to objective fact which actually would have the potential to introduce sensitivity and bias.

Perhaps some people do know a lot of people that are 'faking it's. How do you know this isn't true? How do I know that what you're telling me about your own situation is anymore true than what they are claiming? Don't you see that a moderator like MN also can't make these judgements either easily.

Show quote history

That ditch is getting deeper with each post.

You don't need direct experience of ableism to be able to judge what it is and apply an objective test to a post to see if it meets the required threshold

Ableism takes many forms and, like other flavours of bigotry, can be insidious and sly.

A non-disabled person cannot have the knowledge and experience to always recognise when ableism is happening. Just like I, as a white person, cannot have the knowledge and experience to always recognise when racism is happening.

I would not dare to have the audacity to talk to people of colour about what defines racism in the way that you are talking to disabled people on this thread about what defines ableism. That you do is telling in itself.

LadyKenya · 04/07/2025 09:15

Italianita · 04/07/2025 08:14

I don't think I've ever seen transphobia on Mumsnet?

I have seen many many posters not wanting womens rights to be eroded.

I've seen many many posters not wanting people who have (or have had) a penis, in womens spaces and womens sports.

But I haven't seen transphobia.
That would mean a fear of transpeople or dislike/ hatred of transpeople wouldn't it?
I haven't seen that.

Show quote history

We see different things then. Lets just agree to disagree, and leave it there. I have had the same response from some posters when I have raised the issue of racism on MN too. The claim not to see it. I am not wasting my time with those posters either. Good Day!