Labour suspends Trevor Phillips because he identified who made up child grooming gangs

[jadefinch]

Trevor Phillips is the former chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission - and he's recently been accused of 'transphobia' for saying women's same-sex spaces should be protected.

He's now been suspended by Labour for accurately saying that the majority of members of northern grooming gangs, which sexually abused tens of thousands of vulnerable girls, were Pakistani Muslim men.

One of the main reasons why the girls were put at risk was because the police and local authorities didn't want to intervene in case they were accused of Islamophobia.

Labour's war on both women and the freedom to say things that are true is not going away.

news.sky.com/story/labour-veteran-trevor-phillips-suspended-over-islamophobia-allegations-11953457

It's definitely not all Muslim men, nor is it a majority ime, but it's common enough as an attitude that pretending it doesn't exist and isn't factoring into what's been happening with the grooming gangs is stupid. Which is what Trevor Phillips was trying to say.

Exactly.

I've also heard such language and attitudes Kitten. Let's face it there are other countries and cultures where women are openly viewed as lower class and lower in importance than men - there are cultures and countries where female infanticide is routine. Why does it become impossible to say this when some of the men from those countries are practicing their culture here?

I am very grateful for the likes of Trevor Phillips and Sajid Javid as well who have not flinched from pointing out the link between racist misogyny and certain ethnicities, and I am disgusted that we cannot all do likewise. What is barely tolerated from them would be met with all the usual denial and hostility from white women. The number of facts that women - demonstrable, provable facts, from women particularly - are not allowed to state about men and the harm they do to women grows daily.

One of the main reasons why the girls were put at risk was because the police and local authorities didn't want to intervene in case they were accused of Islamophobia.

Yeah right. If those girls had been upper class do you think the police would have done jack shit for so many years? It was a pathetic excuse for blatantly not doing their job for literally years. I can't believe they got away with it. (Actually I can.)

The main reason girls were put at risk was because professionals like the police thought they were just "slags" rather than victims.

Exactly. Any decent person would prefer to spend a lifetime accused of Islamophobia rather than permit paedo rapists to abuse. In this case the police chiefs stood idly by whilst paedo rapists did what they wanted for years. The police chiefs should be doing time too.

Let’s face it, it was both.

Yes it was both. You see it in social services too. Cases where social workers see causes for concern but don't want to be accused of homophobia or racism and so don't report. Victoria Climbie's social worker (despite being black herself) admitted that what she saw and heard would have caused her concern if it had happened in a white family, but she never acted on this as she didn't want to be culturally insensitive. In another case, social workers saw causes for concern in the way a male gay couple were with fostered boys but didn't want to be accused of homophobia so did nothing, which meant young boys were abused. This is what is so terrible about Labour's reaction to Sarah Champion and TP. We need a cultural shift so that people feel confident about reporting concerns, without fear of accusation of ism's and phobias, yet Labour is reinforcing the culture of fear despite the fact that we know it results in vulnerable people being abused. Its' despicable.

Any decent person would prefer to spend a lifetime accused of Islamophobia rather than permit paedo rapists to abuse.

Let's face it Lino any decent person would also recognise that children having sex with adult men, with groups of adult men, were abuse victims.

Here's a tweet from Robert Colvile, editor of CapX, that sums it up:
^
“Things that don’t get you expelled from the Labour Party: hosting IRA, Hamas, Hezbollah in parliament; sharing platforms with antisemites; picketing trial of Brighton Bomber; etc etc. Things that do get you expelled from the Labour Party: being Trevor Phillips.”^

You see it in social services too. Cases where social workers see causes for concern but don't want to be accused of homophobia or racism and so don't report.

Its often far more nuanced that a fear of being judged discriminatory.
People have bias & those with Safeguarding responsibility are taught (rightly) to guard against their own possible bias. There may be an 'over-correction' which is sub-conscious.

Its also not uncommon that abusers who are educated middle-class white British are less scrutinised when concerns raised.

Any decent person would prefer to spend a lifetime accused of Islamophobia rather than permit paedo rapists to abuse. In this case the police chiefs stood idly by whilst paedo rapists did what they wanted for years.

It's also I think that often the policy, direction and culture in the organisation are set by those at the top, who aren't making direct decisions usually about a particular case. It can also be the political level that makes it clear they don't want certain types of problems. And yet at the same time this constrains what people on the front lines can do. It's really common in all kinds of organisations like this, including the police, for someone to want to make a different call but they simply aren't really allowed. It becomes a sort of whistleblower situation if they take that step, which is something for most people where they have to really be sure before they take that leap.

It becomes a sort of whistleblower situation if they take that step, which is something for most people where they have to really be sure before they take that leap.

Systemic sexism has relevence, not least the way that female whistleblowers are treated.

I live in one of these areas and there was a girl on my street it happened to, they also tried to target my neighbour's daughter but she moved away to stop it. The way women are thought of is a huge part of this. Even I get spat at for wearing normal clothes and I'm a middle age woman, I was even called a 'whore' in front of my DS whose only ten. He asked me what the word meant and I had to be honest about it. My DH has also been attacked on the street too.

And it is still going on, we see it all the time, late at nights, in cars etc. God knows if it will ever stop because there will be a steady supply of men with this attitude because it is how they're being raised, we saw it at the school. There will also be a steady stream of vulnerable girls whose plight won't be recognised early enough.

For us we've noticed so many changes, streets we just don't go up, shopping areas we no longer visit. Not going out on Fridays. But we will leave and go as far as we can from it so it won't be part of our lives any more. But there are many who cannot run from it and whose lives will be ruined.

TP always seemed like a decent person, intelligent and fair. But he told the truth and I think that's become a cardinal sin these days.

The way women are thought of is a huge part of this.

Yes, by all parties: the sexism/misogyny & contempt of women is common to abusive men in gangs, within communities & was/is (?) a systemic issue within police, CPS & policy makers.

sportinguista - that is awful - I have no words.

It's really common in all kinds of organisations like this, including the police, for someone to want to make a different call but they simply aren't really allowed. It becomes a sort of whistleblower situation if they take that step, which is something for most people where they have to really be sure before they take that leap.

That could just about excuse low level officers for having kept their mouths shut (although I personally wouldn't want it on my conscience) but for higher ranking officers there is no excuse whatsoever. I defy anyone to produce evidence suggesting that the police were advised to let criminals such as paedo rapists continue to offend if they're from an ethnic minority. It's very different to asking the police to give up constantly stopping and searching ethnic minorities in the streets.

The high ranking officers who permitted the criminals to offend for years are just as culpable imo. I'd send the lot of them down if I could.

Me too. I think the whole lot of them should be done for negligence or something.
Or all be done for joint enterprise

We are letting down young people:

1. The girls who have been subject to grooming gangs
2. Young Muslim boys who may believe, for lack of alternative messages, that this acceptable behaviour.
3. Young Muslim girls who may not be protected by either their own community or by a wider society.

None of this is acceptable. I don't know everything about Trevor Phillips, but to me he seems to be a member of a brave cohort including Ann Clwyd, Nazir Afzal, and some brave whistleblowers and journalists.

The systemic Safeguarding failures put a wide number of children (of both sexes & from all communities) at risk. Levels of sexual abuse of girls by boys in schools are at record levels.

There are also parallels with the age-based Safeguarding framework failures putting boys at risk of exploitation by criminal gangs:

February 2019 Independent:
(extract)
"The failings that let grooming gangs sexually abuse girls for decades are being repeated for tens of thousands of children being exploited by criminal networks, the children’s commissioner has warned.

A new report estimated that at least 27,000 under-18s in England identified as gang members, and that 34,000 children linked to gangs had been the victims of violent crime in the past year.

But the children’s commissioner said that less than one in four child gang members and associates were being supported by authorities, with only 6,500 known to specialist services.

A further 313,000 children know a gang member and the report warned that younger children and girls are being increasingly targeted by recruiters because they are less likely to attract police attention.

Anne Longfield, the children’s commissioner for England, said “complex and ruthless” criminal organisations were grooming children and then controlling them with “chilling levels of violence”.

“At the moment it is too easy for them to succeed,” she added. “Thousands of children in towns and cities across England are at risk.”

Ms Longfield expressed concern that mistakes that caused failures to prevent sexual grooming activity across the UK are now being repeated in the context of criminal gang activity.

She compared the situation to child sexual exploitation before the Rotherham scandal brought the abuse into national consciousness.

“Many local areas are not facing up to the scale of the problem, they are not taking notice of the risk factors in front of them, and they are not listening to parents and communities who ask for help,” Ms Longfield said." (continues)
www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/grooming-gangs-crime-children-drug-dealing-failures-repeat-stabbings-a8800091.html

Context:
Next Tuesday Centre for Women's Justice & End Violence Against Women Coalition,

"will be in court trying to get permission for a judicial review against the CPS for their change in policy that has seen a 51% drop in charges of reported rapes in 5 years. Please come and show your support!"

mobile.twitter.com/centreWJ/status/1237338562745548801

threads:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3845203-The-Decriminalisation-of-Rape

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3844803-Spades-required-Judicial-review-against-CPS-Justice-for-rape-victims

Its often far more nuanced that a fear of being judged discriminatory.
People have bias & those with Safeguarding responsibility are taught (rightly) to guard against their own possible bias. There may be an 'over-correction' which is sub-conscious

But sometimes it's just not. In both of the cases the social workers explicitly stated that they would have behaved differently if the adults had been of a different race/ sexuality. They were consciously aware they were behaving differently and making different choices. Andrew Gilligan said he was warned that he would get a whole lot of shit for being racist if he exposed the Rotherham scandal. People are well aware of the potential abuse that could come theirway, and that being called 'ist' 'phobic' is now seen as a killer argument that it is hard to fight your way back from, and where usual supporters will likely fade away from you for fear of being tainted in the same way.
This is exactly what TRA's are exploiting with might effect right now.

I had a colleague whose new manager, a black man, behaved in an extremely inappropriate way sexually at work. She felt intimidated by him and avoided being alone with him. Her employer did start to collect evidence against him, but wanted to build a completely solid and inarguable case against him before taking any action, as they feared being accused of racism. In the time they were taking to do this, he raped a female colleague at a work event.

People do fear the implications of being called 'ist' and 'phobic', and that does affect their behaviour and choices. We need to encourage people to feel safe and secure in making allegations without fear of what is now reputation, and possibly career damaging, name calling.

But sometimes it's just not. In both of the cases the social workers explicitly stated that they would have behaved differently if the adults had been of a different race/ sexuality. They were consciously aware they were behaving differently and making different choices.

Yes, I havent disagreed with the fact that this happened/happens.
Also often people become more aware of the extent to which they made different decisions (& the reasons why) on reflection & when there are consequences.

Her employer did start to collect evidence against him, but wanted to build a completely solid and inarguable case against him before taking any action, as they feared being accused of racism. In the time they were taking to do this, he raped a female colleague at a work event.

Fear of litigation is often deliberately created & exploited by abusers. Safeguarding has to take priority.
Its horrific when women & children are harmed due to inaction.

Trevor Phillips' suspension is being discussed on R4 Moral Maze this evening.

There is a Petition asking for an independent public inquiry into grooming gangs. feel free to click on the link sign and share the link. petition.parliament.uk/petitions/327566 The more cover up over an issue the worst it tends to become.

George the link isn't clicky. Hopefully someone else can post it