Women's Views on News |
- Why we don’t hear women as authoritative
- Poles in the UK fear rising tide of racism
- Protest in York
- Food aid in the UK reviewed
| Why we don’t hear women as authoritative Posted: 04 Mar 2014 07:39 AM PST
In a recent London Review of Books lecture, Mary Beard, Professor of Classics at the University of Cambridge, said that 'When as listeners we hear a female voice, we haven't learned how to hear authority in it.' She goes on to say that there is simply no neurological reason. Such assumptions and prejudices are 'hardwired' into 'our culture, our language and millennia of our history.' Women’s interventions were often described as “strident” or “whining” – and, Beard said, "that effectively repositions women back into the domestic sphere (people “whinge” over things like the washing up); it trivialises their words,” the Guardian reported. “Contrast that with the ‘deep-voiced’ man, and its connotations of profundity. It is still the case, I’d argue, that when as listeners we hear a female voice, we don’t hear a voice that connotes authority; or rather we haven’t learned how to hear authority in it.” Part of a talk Beard gave recently, she explained, 'reflected on the ways that women are often urged to ape male rhetorical techniques to get their points across. ‘The classic example is of course Margaret Thatcher, who was specifically trained to speak lower to gove her high pitch voice more authority. ‘I wanted to question the idea that women had to pretend to be men in order to find a voice. Wasn’t that just making them more outsiders, turning them into actors not orators? Shouldn’t we think instead about how we might learn to find women’s (natural) voices authoritative? And, she continued, 'one point that came up time and again from the women I met who had been on “communication courses” was that they had all been urged to lower their voices and speak more like blokes. And indeed most who talked to me about it felt that it was in the long term counter productive.' Her comments came as Durham North West MP Pat Glass wrote in The Independent about male Conservative party backbench MPs in the House of Commons regularly jeering at women speaking in the Chamber, particularly women with accents. Jeering so loudly they drown out the woman's voice. Glass said, 'Cameron's Government seems to have a real problem with women. Many of his backbenchers also have a problem with class and make that clear when a woman with an accent gets up to speak. 'It is clear they believe that we have no place in their hallowed presence and our voices need to be drowned out.' Women with any sort of regional accent 'regularly come in for a seemingly orchestrated barraging', and younger women MPs are attacked even more vociferously than older women. Glass said these incidents are often not seen by the public because the camera is focused on the person speaking. In her lecture, Beard also mentioned the treatment of women MPs and the recent abuse of women via Twitter. She said, 'It doesn't matter what line you take as a woman. 'It is not what you say that prompts it [the abuse] – it is the fact that you are saying it.' Beard said that she is trying to get people to think calmly, analytically and historically about gender inequality and that while misogyny is often an apt description, there is a much longer, broader societal context that needs to be addressed. She recommends 'old-fashioned feminist consciousness-raising' that asks why we demand such a high price from women who want to enter public debate. Glass reckons nothing will change until more women become MPs. And as the Fawcett Society said in an article publicising its latest campaign to get more women into Parliament, 'the more of us there are, the harder we are to ignore.'  |
| Poles in the UK fear rising tide of racism Posted: 04 Mar 2014 04:34 AM PST
Last week hundreds of UK-based Eastern Europeans and their supporters staged a protest in Downing Street following a racially motivated attack on a Polish motorcyclist in East London. The demonstrators are concerned that xenophobic remarks by politicians from all parties are stoking racist sentiments against Eastern Europeans living in the UK – and putting them at risk. "We wanted to say to politicians that we don't overuse the benefits system, we would be fine with some changes to the benefit systems, as long as we’re treated equally to the British. "Polish people I know work and pay tax," said Izabela Bak, of the Polish Bikers Forum. She cited research from University College London which found that people from the European Economic Area (EEA) contribute 34 per cent more in taxes to the UK economy than they ‘take’ in benefits. “We decided to do something about it because today it was our colleague but tomorrow it could be me or you. "I myself have on my motorcycle a sticker saying 'Polish Biker'. I would like to feel safe keeping it where it is. "We are being pointed at as a nation of cheaters. People think we are taking their jobs. I don't agree with that. "There are many jobs around available. If somebody wants to work, I don't see a problem. "Poles come to the UK often without any connections and without knowing English language well enough. How possibly could we take jobs from any British person? "I think the law should be changed but everyone should be treated equally. It doesn't matter where you are from," she concluded. Ella Vine, of the advice centre Help for Poles in the UK Foundation supported last Monday's demonstration although she was not one of the organisers. She says she has dealt with hundreds of families who are she believes placed in a very difficult situation because of negative media portrayal and discriminatory remarks made by politicians. "EU citizens are very often refused benefits when they go through assessments. "In most cases they are entitled to benefits but officials make it very hard," she said. "Loss of benefits can trigger evictions, as they can't afford to pay their rent and the appeals process can take years," she said. Vine believes that lack of access to benefits can mean that women find themselves trapped in violent relationships, especially if they have young children. She said that when they try to claim benefits they are told they have 'no recourse to public funds'. “One woman I was working with had a 2 year-old child. She was refused a place in a refuge. “She told me she was thinking of taking her daughter and jumping from a bridge. You don't hear any of this from politicians," said Vine. Vine has also launched a petition calling on all politicians to end racism, discrimination and segregation Bak said that although she and her friends have never experienced racism personally, she feels that the words of David Cameron have caused some racial attacks and could cause more. EU citizens working in the UK are currently able to claim child benefit, even if their children live abroad. But Cameron said recently that this was unsustainable and migrants should not be motivated to come to the UK by higher benefits payments. Polish ministers reacted angrily to the comments, the BBC reported. Writing on Twitter, foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski said: “If Britain gets our taxpayers, shouldn’t it also pay their benefits?” Bak said, "In Belfast there were seven incidents in ten days. A gang threw stones at the windows of the houses where Polish people lived. “There have been a few instances in London as well.” "I have always felt welcome here. I think most people like us and we like them. But the media and politicians should think twice before they offend any nation.” Photo by Guy Corbishley used with permission © 2014.  |
| Posted: 04 Mar 2014 02:45 AM PST
A demonstration and rally in York has been called by the Yorkshire and Humber TUC to coincide with the Liberal Democrat’s Spring Conference, which is being held there. The demo and rally will be to protest against the damaging and destructive austerity policies of the Coalition government and in particular the impact on northern communities. The event takes place on International Women's Day, and the speakers at the rally following the march will also reflect on the disproportionate impact of austerity on women. There will be 5 different themes to the event, with demonstrators encouraged to adopt one for the day, and there is also a colour for placards or clothes to create a strong visual spectacle. The themes are: jobs and fair pay (blue); tax justice (green); industrial growth (black); NHS, public services and social security (red) and young people and the future (yellow) There will be local and national speakers at the rally and they will be looking at the damage done by austerity, highlighting the lost opportunities, and will articulate some of the many 'better ways' and alternatives to current government policies. They include: Sue Marsh – disability campaigner and blogger – Sue is an inspiring campaigner who through her blog Diary of A benefit scrounger has helped make a difference and given people with disabilities a louder voice over what the government is doing; Fran Heathcote, Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) DWP Group President will be taking on the attacks on those in need of social security, the rotten culture of TV shows such as Benefits Street and scapegoating of the unemployed. She will be highlighting the huge potential to fully fund public services through clamping down on tax avoidance; Nikki Sharpe, a social entrepreneur and councillor in Sheffield. She will be highlighting the gutting of local government by the Coalition, with the poorest areas hit hardest, and Nick Clegg’s betrayal of Yorkshire and the North; Megan Ollerhead is a campaigning student from the University of York and will speak about the repeated broken promises from Nick Clegg’s party, the cuts to Higher and Further Education and the removal of the Educational Maintenance Allowance (EMA) that helped young people from modest backgrounds to stay in education; Liz Mawson is a NHS worker in Yorkshire and an inspiring workplace rep. She will be exposing the Coalition’s mythical ‘ring-fenced’ funding for the NHS and the scale of privatisation that is taking place without any democratic consent; Liz Kitching, from Leeds Hands off Our Homes, is a campaigner against the Bedroom Tax, and she will be speaking about the impact of the tax on her and the many people she campaigns alongside; Kay Carberry is Assistant General Secretary of the TUC and will be outlining ‘the better way’ our society, economy and country needs. Kay will highlight the alternatives to austerity, why Britain needs a pay rise, the importance of publicly owned services and need for a real recovery for all parts of the country; Tracey Simpson-Laing, Deputy Leader of York City Council, and also holder of the Cabinet Portfolio of Health Housing and Adult Social Services. will be speaking about the importance of a living wage. York City Council is a Kate Lock is an environmental columnist, author, researcher and campaigner and writes a regular 'green' column for The Press in York. She has worked for the Stockholm Environment Institute and is Chair of the York Environment Forum. She will be highlighting the environmental impact of austerity cuts and outlining how the green economy can be a win-win for jobs, young people and the planet. There is a provisional gathering start time of 11am, for the march to set off at 11.30; it will start and finish at Tower Street near Clifford’s Tower and will be followed by a rally at the Courthouse.  |
| Posted: 04 Mar 2014 01:09 AM PST
The report of a research project looking at available evidence on what 'food aid' is available to households in the UK, who takes it up and why has just been released. 'Food aid' covers a range of different types of support, including short term help available from food banks and soup runs, as well as food provided as part of community care such as 'Meals on Wheels'. The research was undertaken by a group of researchers led by the University of Warwick. It provides an understanding of the wide range of mainly charitable organisations providing help of this sort to their communities. The UK government’s Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) recently commissioned the University of Warwick and the Food Ethics Council to do a Rapid Evidence Assessment in February to March 2013 to help improve understanding of the 'food aid' landscape in the UK. In particular, the review addressed who might be asking for such help, as well as how and why they do so. The research included rapid but systematic literature review, brief case studies and an expert workshop. The project was framed by Defra's responsibility for household food security, which is met when people can be confident of having sufficient money and access to shops selling affordable, culturally appropriate food to be able to meet food needs for a healthy life. The research provided a rapid picture of the wide diversity of food aid work currently undertaken in the UK and elsewhere. It also offered a detailed snapshot of the available research evidence base – and encountered a lack of systematic documentation of the range of food aid initiatives and their practices. Food aid includes a range of initiatives which provide food to people in need, including food banks, meal projects, soups runs, food vouchers and community care projects such as meals on wheels. The best-known national network of food bank projects is The Trussell Trust. However, there are many independent initiatives (food bank and other food projects) whose existence and reach is hard to capture. Estimated numbers being helped are likely to be underestimates. Despite the general lack of systematic, published UK research on the drivers of food aid use and trends, the report was able to draw the following conclusions from the available evidence: 1. There is growing demand for help to meet food needs, both from first-time food aid users and from those who had already been helped continuing to need food. The key drivers of this growing demand are described by providers as 'crises'. Crises in household income, such as loss of a job or problems with social security benefits, are often underpinned by on-going problems of low income, rising food and other costs and increasing indebtedness. This growing demand may have contributed to more food aid being provided, through existing and new structures. There is no systematic evidence on the impact of any increased supply of food aid. We found no evidence to support the idea that increased food aid provision is driving demand. All available evidence both in the UK and international points in the opposite direction. Put simply, there is more need and informal food aid providers are trying to help. 2. Where provision is adequate, appropriate and tailored to the needs of users, informal food aid may be able to relieve short-term symptoms of food insecurity such as not having enough money for food. However, whether short-term or more sustained, the evidence suggests that informal food aid does not address the underlying causes of household food insecurity. 3. Many food insecure households struggle to manage food needs, and adopt a range of tactics to avoid having to ask for help. Seeking food aid is usually a strategy of last resort. Even so, many households do not use food aid, for a variety of reasons, including access, awareness and stigma. International research findings on household behaviour under financial pressure are a useful contribution to understanding this problem in the UK. 4. Food aid providers see the other support they are able to offer to supplement their food aid provision systems or projects as a particularly important aspect of what they do (for example personal contact, signposting to other sources of advice and support). Our research indicates the importance of this work. Coordination with other support systems to address underlying causes of food insecurity is essential to the long-term success of food aid programmes. 5. UK food aid provision is vulnerable to not being able to meet existing or rising demand. It is dependent on donations and volunteers, which may not be sufficient to meet rising need. There is a risk that collecting, sorting and distributing food for people's immediate needs occupies all available volunteer energy and resources, leaving little focus on developing long-term solutions to household food insecurity. 6. All the evidence points to the need for those involved in food security policy and other responses – from across government, business and civil society – to focus on both the short and long-term causes of household food insecurity to achieve the best outcomes. Short-term causes of a household's food insecurity include sudden reduction in income, caused by, for instance, losing a job, having to work fewer hours or changes to social security benefits. Long-term causes of a household's food insecurity include incomes continually inadequate for essential household needs, rising food (and other) prices, and lack of accessible shops stocking affordable food for health. Professor Elizabeth Dowler, from the University of Warwick, said: "We urge the Government to learn from it and from those living in harsh circumstances, and to find creative, fair ways to enable all in this rich country to have enough money to be able to eat healthily. This work is urgent." Dan Crossley, executive director of the Food Ethics Council, said: “The evidence indicates that informal food aid in the UK does not address the underlying drivers behind people being unable to afford to eat, and to eat healthily. "Food banks – and other types of food aid provision – are intended to be an emergency, short-term response and not a long-term solution. "We need additional research, but we also need urgent action – from all sides – to address the root causes of food poverty.” And Dr Eric Jensen, Associate Professor, in the Department of Sociology at the University of Warwick said: ‘The peer-reviewed literature makes clear the need for systematic interventions by government to relieve long-term suffering from food poverty and insecurity. "The best available evidence suggests that thousands of people in Britain, who don't know whether they can meet basic food needs for themselves and their loved ones, will continue to face this terrible chronic stress without such interventions’. To read the Food Aid Research Report click here.  |
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