Young girls across Britain are being groomed, trafficked and sexually exploited by drug gangs

[IwantToRetire]

The authorities have been warned repeatedly, yet the same failures continue. Through the testimony of survivors, whistleblowers and those who raised the alarm, this film investigates why this exploitation has been allowed to continue for over two decades.

Britains' Forgotten Girls - BBC 2 tonight 9pm or on iPlayer
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0031c4c

And later tonght investigation about where the money given to Tommy Robinson has gone. Including money meant for girls who were victims of grooming gangs C4 10pm https://www.channel4.com/programmes/tommy-robinson-wheres-the-money-gone

One of those women, Kate, not her real name, is a survivor of Telford’s grooming gangs and was interviewed for the Channel 4 documentary.
When asked if she had received any money from Robinson’s fundraiser, she told the programme: “No. I’ve not heard anything. I’ve not heard of that at all. So if it’s going to Telford grooming gang survivors, I don’t know about it… I’m shocked by that… He’s using me, basically.
“I am very angry because I’m sat here literally struggling… while other people profit from my pain and suffering.”
Kate, who suffers from PTSD, claimed Robinson had coaxed her into taking part in a documentary film for him for £500 on the promise that her identity would be concealed. However, when Robinson’s documentary aired, he included her real name.
He also included a recording of a phone call she had with the influencer where she discussed taking her own life. Kate stated she was unaware the call was being recorded.
https://inews.co.uk/news/how-tommy-robinson-really-makes-his-money-4755860?srsltid=AfmBOortRl5-lHh8muWXsXdAtERL5ONQDMucF7F_JyNvkv3pV9KHUx2x

Thank you for flagging this. I rarely watch TV and it hadn't shown up on my feeds. I haven't watched it yet but sadly have some idea of what is in there.

To a PP's snide comment, I expect the reason this thread won't run anywhere near 40 pages is that no one, at least I hope to god no one, would ever turn up trying to argue any of this is in any way ok.

Ashamed to be British? Men use, exploit and abuse women the world over. It's not an inherently British culture. It's men. Men throughout the world.

I need to watch this.

It's failure of care by politicians yes, but it's also the stripping to the bone of all the public services that could help. Social workers with no time at all to do anything, police with no time to do anything, all the boring safe free spaces like libraries and leisure centres where young teenage kids could go to get away from gang pressure, gone. When protections go the weakest suffer most.

I still haven't watched the one about drugs gangs.

But it isn't that long ago, well maybe within the past 10 years that there were reports of young girls being used as runners for drug gangs as they were thought less likely to attract police attention.

But ... part of the initiation into the gang(s) was effectively gang rape. So this was in the public domain. And also, just to show that peer pressure between men is also a problem that younger men, boys had to show their willingness to be take part in this initiation.

From 2019 https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/nov/27/girls-gangs-sexual-criminal-exploitation-violence

I suspect one of the reasons little action has been and still isn't being taken is that it is assumed to be members of the Black community.

I started a thread on the bbc one but deleted when I saw this. Then watched the film and am as appalled as all of you. It seems the police in particular failed them. And the male criminologists! Jfc!and no system for data collection. I’m so glad all have found careers where they can channel their experiences to make sure change happens.

I remember training on kcsie a number of years ago including county lines. I know send children were recognised as being targeted. Girls were not mentioned once

I’m a bit confused as to why TR film is linked here; I feel it over shadows discussion of the bbc one.

this board is specifically for sex and gender discussion hence the predominance of these threads.

pretty much the rest of mn is feminist general.

Agreed but it's another level when the police, social services and politicians are actively and obviously covering it up and enabling it though.

I mean I'd be more ashamed if I lived in Afghanistan, but then again I'd probably be dead over there so...

Epstein was bad, but at least everyone's pretended to be appalled - he was a private citizen. We're talking state actors here. And nothing, but nothing, is done about it.

I listened to Marlon West's testimony to the rape gang inquiry and it was heartbreaking. He reported his daughter missing to police so many times. They did nothing. He told them where she was, they did nothing. It sounded as if they expended a lot more energy trying to shut him up and wear him down than protecting his daughter.

Agree but also there was a social worked who went to a let woman speak event who was told not to talk about how taxis would show up to care homes and take the girls away. She was told if she wanted to keep her career she needed to not rock the boat. Police did nothing when girls reported rape. The rot is very deep in certain areas in particular.

The girls were seen as culpable, they were not protected, this was the social services culture at the time, and as far as I can tell still is in some areas.

Maggie Oliver was blocked from protecting the girls in the police. They tried to bully her into silence, they tried to break her - she lost her home, she was living hand to mouth. I bet for most that worked.

https://www.bayes.citystgeorges.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/2025/november/the-curious-liberation-of-speaking-out

From the above link

One investigation, Operation Augusta, was closed with no charges while Ms Oliver was on bereavement leave following her husband’s death. She resigned after challenging the GMP leadership over a decision to drop the testimony of a young woman from a trial triggered by a second investigation into organised sexual abuse involving men of Pakistani origin.
“This young woman was two years out of her abuse. I had gone to her. I had been tasked by the most senior officers in GMP with gaining the trust of victims amidst promises to me that there wouldn't be a repeat of Augusta. I had given them my word that if they put their trust in me, I would support them right through the system to court.”
Speaking truth to power
These events played out as the public learnt that South Yorkshire Police had repeatedly and systematically lied about the Hillsborough football disaster. The revelations only emerged after families of the 96 Liverpool fans who died had campaigned for decades.
Ms Oliver said: “Watching that story on the news, I didn’t want my children asking why I hadn’t told the truth (about the grooming gangs). I initially thought the problem was one lazy senior officer who told me senior officers make decisions and that if I couldn’t accept that then I was in the wrong job. The Chief Constable sent me a four line response after I submitted a file which was the size of War and Peace. It fell to me to decide to walk away or be a good little girl.”
In a meeting with another senior officer she was warned that going public with her concerns could see her charged with a criminal offence as police officers “effectively sign the Official Secrets Act”.

It's virtually impossible for people to talk about this abuse or do anything because all the state is opposed to people doing so and essentially supports the abusers. All the 'action' is entirely performative and not at all meaningful. I think it creates a very depressing, suppressive effect, which is obviously the intent.

Posh people generally don't care because it's working class girls too. It's not just seeing girls as subhuman it's seeing the working class as not fully human. Lucy Powell with her 'dog whistle' comment - has she suffered for that, has she lost her job, nope. It's accepted.

The mainstream (middle class) media suppress it too. No coverage AT ALL of the rape gang inquiry except via GB news.

Generally normal people are very against this abuse of girls but whether they're willing to lose their home over it and put their own kids at risk? It's a rare, brave soul who'll do that.

As a case in point, they've done nothing about Shabir Ahmed because they don't want to it's all performative 'trying to change the law' bollocks. You're telling me, given what he's been convicted of, they couldn't put him back in prison if they wanted to? He DIDN'T serve his full term they didn't have to release him, but they chose to.

When, as a comparison, they arrested Glinner at gunpoint for saying nothing illegal? Pfft. They don't want to, these are the people they want to support. Meanwhile the victims get NO support from police even when they ask for help when they're being threatened.

It's important to look at deeds not words. Maggie Oliver gets that. She's done so much and a few others have too and usually pay a very high price for doing so. Other than supporting her foundation, I feel totally powerless and at risk if I'm more outspoken and it's depressing as anything.

I’m a bit confused as to why TR film is linked here; I feel it over shadows discussion of the bbc one.

this board is specifically for sex and gender discussion hence the predominance of these threads.

Why would you be confused. I pointed out that part of the programme about TR was his exploitation of women who had been abused.

Why wouldn't you care about them. It is part of the same pattern.

And this is a feminist board, but for those who agree that feminism is based on women as a sex class, and that sex is a biological fact.

Obviously any of us can only engage with threads on a specific issue if that is all we dare about.

But the forum itself is about the oppression of women because of their sex.

I attended a lecture on Global Health and Development at one of London's top university's as part of my professional development. A fellow mature student (most of us were mature and working) asked the the lecturer / researcher a relevant question about human trafficking. She basically said coldly, oh never mind that, the figures for human trafficking are completely exaggerated, there really isn't a big or real problem. Academics in the field, including well travelled, intelligent, lefty academics deny there is a problem.