Women's Views on News |
- Living, not just surviving
- Meet me at the intersection
- Bystanders no more
- Remembering victims of hatred
| Posted: 20 Nov 2013 08:27 AM PST
The English Appeal Court has unanimously ruled that the Government misinterpreted the law when it decided to close a £320m ring-fenced fund that supports just under 19,000 disabled people to live independently. Recipients receive an average £300 a week which helps pay for support to enable them to continue living independently in the community. On 6 November the three Appeal Court judges decided unanimously that the Government had failed to properly consider disabled people's views when they made the decision to close the Independent Living Fund (ILF) last December. The Government was planning to reallocate the money to local authorities, who provide most social care support, but the five ILF recipients who brought the case feared that if this happened, councils faced with funding cuts elsewhere, might use the money to support other services. They risked losing some or all of their funding and might have been forced into residential care. If this happened, the claimants argued, they would lose the ability to participate in work and everyday activities on the same basis as non-disabled people. In the ruling Lord Justice McCombe, said that if the ILF was closed, 'independent living might well be put seriously in peril for a large number of people'. Sue Elsegood, a disabled activist who receives ILF funding to help pay for round the clock support, said she was relieved and elated by the decision. Speaking to WVoN she said, "The ILF allows me to have a quality of life. It means that I can live. It means I have been able to go to university and do a post graduate counselling course. "I can participate in the community rather than surviving within four walls. It means being able to visit my parents and my brother and just do day to day activities. "Without the iLF my life would not be worth thinking about. "If the ILF closed we may be left with the threat of not having enough support at home and having to go into residential care, which we all know can lead to all sorts of abuse. I was very frightened." The Government has indicated that it will not appeal the High Court decision, so the fund will stay open for now. But Elsegood is clear that disabled people will have to keep fighting for the right to lead a full life. "We are still having to defend the rights that we won years ago, and I for one am not prepared to see those rights disappear without a fight," she said. She added that disabled people intended to put pressure on the Minister for Disabled People, Mike Penning, to extend the ILF to new applicants and with adequate funding to meet their needs. But Elsegood, who plays power chair football, said the victory had encouraged some of the young disabled people she plays with. "Lots of them are not yet old enough to be eligible for the ILF, but they want to know that in the future they can live independent lives as well," she said.  |
| Posted: 20 Nov 2013 06:20 AM PST
by TinaPJ "My feminism is nothing if it is not intersectional" said someone very famous and wise (probably, a brief internet search has revealed nothing so if no-one can be found to which this statement may be attributed, I'm more than happy to be cited as the original source). Most people would understand what an intersection is – a crossroads, a place where two or more paths cross. In the case of politics it is the point at which two or more policies or ideals meet. In the case of social policy, it is the necessity of understanding the effects and affects of those points crossing and addressing the situation accordingly. With regard to political theory, "intersectional" is a buzzword which at its most fundamental means that any form of social or political theory must be inclusive of all people, pertaining particularly to equality activism. We all have different experiences and understandings of our roles, privileges and discriminations within our particular social groups (the micro level for the sociologists amongst you) and wider social placing in our country/nation (the macro level). However, to be an activist in equality, for example, solely on the basis of one identity group such as 'female' ignores the individual experiences of oppression through other identity groups who are discriminated against. By other identity groups I mean defined by race and/or culture, whether one is transgender/sexual, has a disability, is of a lower-end economic or social class, is not heterosexual or identifies outside the privileged identity groups in some other way. These other identity groups which experience discrimination intersect. The life experiences of a working class black woman from the poorer boroughs of south east London is very different to a middle class white woman from a richer suburban area. Those who live in the north of England have different experiences to those in the south of England. There are broad commonalities within identity groupings, but the variations are made up by the differences. That is the fundamental truth of intersectionality. We can talk in broad generalisations about the oppressions experienced by particular groups, but to ignore or downplay one over the other prevents any true equality being achieved. It would be an error to assume that intersectional equality means getting to a point where everyone is the same – people are different, and those differences are basic and will not be bred or policy'ed into non-existence. We have different abilities, interests and experiences, but discrimination on arbitrary factors limits our access to developing and reaching our potential. My feminism means I fight to ensure that there will be equality of opportunity for all. That means no discrimination on the basis of gender, and in order for that to be full equality it necessitates intersectional equality. Women are represented in all other arbitrary discriminated-against groups. There are women who are disabled, who are gay, who are transgender/sexual, non-white and so on. Without addressing those forms of discrimination, there can be no equality of opportunity. Further, there are those who do not fit the gender/sex binary and therefore identify as gender-queer or non-gendered. I have privileges – I am cisgender, white, live in a developed country, am not impoverished (although by no means am I wealthy or even middle-class), am educated to degree level, literate, am identified as heterosexual, married, the list goes on. However, I am a woman and am disabled, so experience discrimination too. My identity is intersectional. Everyone's identity is intersectional. Everyone who is not a rich, white, able-bodied, heterosexual, middle- or upper-class, economically stable, educated cisgender/sexual male will experience some form of discrimination. The word "intersectional" may seem a throwaway, confusing buzzword, but it is so much more than that. It is fundamental to all forms of equality activism. So I repeat, "my feminism is nothing if not intersectional". Meet me at the intersection. We have some fighting to do. TinaPJ is a writer and blogger. This post first appeared on Pilot TV News.  |
| Posted: 20 Nov 2013 05:00 AM PST
Most of us are not ok with sexism and homophobia, but many of us lack the confidence, knowledge or skills to challenge it. We may not be perpetrators or victims of gender based violence, but we are often silent bystanders. A programme called GET SAVI (Students Against Violence Initiative) has been set up in Scotland which aims to give silent bystanders the skills and confidence to stand up and speak out against all forms of gender-based violence and abuse. Gender-based violence is one of the most dangerous social issues of our time. Research consistently says that many people globally experience gender based violence; that is straight women, children, transgendered men and women and members of the LGBT community experience verbal or physical abuse on a daily basis purely because of their real or perceived gender and sexual identity. A study commissioned by LGBT Youth found that 81 per cent of respondents had experienced verbal abuse and nearly a third had been sexually assaulted. That needs to be stopped. Scotland's GET SAVI programme has been developed in the belief that gender based violence is preventable. Traditionally, prevention strategies and policies have been aimed at influencing the behaviour or attitudes of potential victims or perpetrators of gender based violence. On issues relating to gender equality and gender based violence, the focus has been on education and awareness raising. And while many prevention strategies have proved to be effective in challenging attitudes, 'Bystander Programmes' are an innovative approach to challenging gender based violence. They take their cue from the fields of psychology, social sciences and epistemology, and see the target audience as potential allies in preventing gender based violence. The idea is to support 'bystanders' in developing appropriate and safe intervention strategies. A 'bystander' in this context is an adult who witnesses abuse and although they may not in any way perpetrate or condone the abuse, their inaction can contribute to its continuation. It is often difficult for people to take action or speak out in such situations: people often feel threatened, embarrassed to speak out or take action in front of their peer group, or simply do not know what to do or say. Research revealed that the barriers for intervening or challenging abusive behaviour are multi-faceted, but they include: men's fear of other men, social punishment for speaking out, not having the confidence or language to challenge, and 'keeping quiet' being reinforced by societal, community or institutional norms. Research also shows that a key reason why girls may be just as violent and aggressive as boys are is that masculine traits are regarded as superior to feminine traits, and girls will aspire to projecting what they perceive are desirable 'masculine' qualities. One such perceived masculine quality is 'strength', which many children and young people equate with violence. It is important to emphasise that 'strength' is not an exclusive masculine trait and that being strong does not mean being violent and abusive. But back to bystanders. Most of us at some point will have been a 'passive bystander', and continued to walk on. The reason we do this is due to something psychologists call 'the bystander effect'. We often don't intervene in situations for a variety of reasons, namely – we think it's not our problem, we think someone else will deal with it, or we are worried for our own safety. Our responses to gender based violence can be seen in the same way. Many of us know gender based violence is wrong, but many of us think that it's not our problem or it's not safe for us to challenge or intervene. Have a look at the GET SAVI programme. Scottish Women's Aid is proud to be co-ordinating this programme for students alongside LGBT Youth, Rape Crisis Scotland, White Ribbon Scotland and Zero Tolerance. Join us. Together we can stop gender based abuse.  |
| Posted: 20 Nov 2013 01:07 AM PST
International Transgender Day of Remembrance – 20 November - is to remember those who have been killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice. International statistics compiled by the recently released Trans Respect Monitoring Project identified 238 trans people killed throughout the world in the past 12 months. Over the last decade, more than one person per month has died due to transgender-based hate or prejudice, regardless of any other factors in their lives. This trend shows no sign of abating. The Day of Remembrance is held in November in honour of Rita Hester, whose murder in Boston, USA, on 28 November, 1998, lead to the 'Remembering Our Dead' web project and a San Francisco candlelight vigil in 1999. Rita Hester's murder – like most anti-transgender murder cases – has yet to be solved. Although not every person represented during the Day of Remembrance self-identified as transgender — that is, as a transsexual, crossdresser, or otherwise gender-variant — each was a victim of violence based on bias against transgender people. But even now, when people are more sensitive than ever to hatred-based violence, the deaths of those based on anti-transgender hatred or prejudice are largely ignored. And so the Transgender Day of Remembrance serves several purposes. It raises public awareness of hate crimes against transgender people, an action that current media doesn't perform. It publicly mourns and honours the lives of our brothers and sisters who might otherwise be forgotten. It reminds non-transgender people that we are their sons, daughters, parents, friends and lovers. It gives friends and allies a chance to step forward with us and stand in vigil, memorialising those who have died by anti-transgender violence. Putting on the Day of Remembrance in schools can also be used as a way to educate students, teachers, and administrators about transgender issues, so we can try to prevent anti-transgender hatred and violence from continuing. Anyone with any doubts at all about the need for such a day, click here to read not only who and where they were, but the horror of how they died. Their names will be read out at events around the world at vigils and remembrance events. Since Trans Murder Monitoring by Transgender Europe began in 2009, 1,374 individuals in 60 countries have lost their lives due to hate crimes, 108 were individuals under the age of 20. An important and extremely troubling fact is that 22 of those 108 deaths were just in the first 10 months of this year. In ten months, we have seen the highest number of deaths since monitoring began. However, campaigners warn the true figure is likely to be higher as transphobic crime remains under reported – and not all jurisdictions document or treat the cases accordingly. That number does not include the number of transgender individuals who take their own lives each year because they have been told what they are is wrong. Nor does it factor in violence, both sexual and physical, against trans people, or the verbal abuse and harassment they are often subjected to. There is an immediate need to call attention to the violence that faces the transgender community, and an immediate need to ensure that steps are taken to stop it.  |
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