This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/sep/03/rotherham-you-cant-blame-all-of-us
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Rotherham: ‘It’s sad that it’s taken something so horrific to give voice to these girls’ | Rotherham: ‘It’s sad that it’s taken something so horrific to give voice to these girls’ |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| It’s early morning in Rotherham and the town centre is bathed in sunshine. Market stalls sell everything from salwar kameezes to e-cigarettes, children play around the fountain and an indefatigable busker plays Edelweiss on a violin. It is just over a week since Professor Alexis Jay’s damning report detailed how more than 1,400 young girls were raped and exploited in the town and the community is under strain. | It’s early morning in Rotherham and the town centre is bathed in sunshine. Market stalls sell everything from salwar kameezes to e-cigarettes, children play around the fountain and an indefatigable busker plays Edelweiss on a violin. It is just over a week since Professor Alexis Jay’s damning report detailed how more than 1,400 young girls were raped and exploited in the town and the community is under strain. |
| The authorities’ failure to tackle the abusers, the majority of whom were Asian, or to protect their mostly white victims, has been greeted with understandable fury. And tensions in the town, which elected two BNP councillors in 2008, have been reflected in a spike in reported instances of Islamophobic abuse nationally, according to the monitoring group Tell MAMA. The support group says there have been 53 incidents across the country directly related to the Rotherham abuse scandal, including threats to kill, and burn down mosques. In the past seven days, according to South Yorkshire Police, only six incidents of racially motivated hate crime offences have been reported – this is slightly higher than the average of zero to five a week. | The authorities’ failure to tackle the abusers, the majority of whom were Asian, or to protect their mostly white victims, has been greeted with understandable fury. And tensions in the town, which elected two BNP councillors in 2008, have been reflected in a spike in reported instances of Islamophobic abuse nationally, according to the monitoring group Tell MAMA. The support group says there have been 53 incidents across the country directly related to the Rotherham abuse scandal, including threats to kill, and burn down mosques. In the past seven days, according to South Yorkshire Police, only six incidents of racially motivated hate crime offences have been reported – this is slightly higher than the average of zero to five a week. |
| “Tuesday was the first day of school, and there was an air of tension in the playground,” says Yasmin Ishaq, who runs a small not-for-profit organisation called Islam Rotherham. “A few mothers were being quite vocal, saying things like ‘these Pakis’ and waiting for a response. My older son has seen Facebook posts with people saying things like ‘paki paedo’. I have four sons and I am worried.” | “Tuesday was the first day of school, and there was an air of tension in the playground,” says Yasmin Ishaq, who runs a small not-for-profit organisation called Islam Rotherham. “A few mothers were being quite vocal, saying things like ‘these Pakis’ and waiting for a response. My older son has seen Facebook posts with people saying things like ‘paki paedo’. I have four sons and I am worried.” |
| Her organisation, which runs Qur’an classes and raises awareness of domestic violence, has received abusive phone calls, emails and social media posts since the report came out. “People have written things like: ‘All Muslim girls should be raped,’” she explains. “In the Muslim community the overall feeling is that things are going to get worse before they get better.” | Her organisation, which runs Qur’an classes and raises awareness of domestic violence, has received abusive phone calls, emails and social media posts since the report came out. “People have written things like: ‘All Muslim girls should be raped,’” she explains. “In the Muslim community the overall feeling is that things are going to get worse before they get better.” |
| Since last Wednesday English Defence League (EDL) supporters have been camped in front of the police station and opposite the town’s council office and library. Only a handful of demonstrators are visible, but drivers beep their horns in support as they drive past. With the media spotlight now on the former coal and steel town, where 14,000 children are said to be living below the breadline, five camera crews are parked near the demonstrators, while reporters have arrived from as far afield as Germany and the US. | Since last Wednesday English Defence League (EDL) supporters have been camped in front of the police station and opposite the town’s council office and library. Only a handful of demonstrators are visible, but drivers beep their horns in support as they drive past. With the media spotlight now on the former coal and steel town, where 14,000 children are said to be living below the breadline, five camera crews are parked near the demonstrators, while reporters have arrived from as far afield as Germany and the US. |
| Local people are wary, or perhaps just weary, of talking about the issue. Many express their disgust both at the abuse and at the lack of action from the police and council, but few want to give their names. One woman sitting in the sunshine with her daughter and granddaughter admits: “It has made me more sympathetic to what they [the EDL] are saying.” Another woman says she is furious about the “coverup” but tells me pointedly: “Trust me, you don’t want to know what I think.” | Local people are wary, or perhaps just weary, of talking about the issue. Many express their disgust both at the abuse and at the lack of action from the police and council, but few want to give their names. One woman sitting in the sunshine with her daughter and granddaughter admits: “It has made me more sympathetic to what they [the EDL] are saying.” Another woman says she is furious about the “coverup” but tells me pointedly: “Trust me, you don’t want to know what I think.” |
| Others are disturbed by the influx of far-right groups, which include the BNP, National Front and Britain First. “They’re vile,” a shopper sipping coffee insists. “My daughter-in-law works for the council, in the environment department, and they accosted her, calling her a ‘fucking social worker’.” | Others are disturbed by the influx of far-right groups, which include the BNP, National Front and Britain First. “They’re vile,” a shopper sipping coffee insists. “My daughter-in-law works for the council, in the environment department, and they accosted her, calling her a ‘fucking social worker’.” |
| Ishaq says one of her friends, a white Muslim woman, had her car attacked by protesters while she was with her children. “They were banging placards on her car window, hurling abuse and shouting ‘traitors’, as though by becoming Muslims they had betrayed their community.” | Ishaq says one of her friends, a white Muslim woman, had her car attacked by protesters while she was with her children. “They were banging placards on her car window, hurling abuse and shouting ‘traitors’, as though by becoming Muslims they had betrayed their community.” |
| Jay’s report highlighted the prominent role taxi drivers played in the exploitation of young girls in the town, and children’s home managers reported drivers ferrying victims to assignations with men that ended in rape. And so taxi drivers have also been on the receiving end of the backlash. The mother of one taxi-office controller tells me her daughter received threats of bomb attacks, and even rape, while drivers say there has been an increase in racist insults. | Jay’s report highlighted the prominent role taxi drivers played in the exploitation of young girls in the town, and children’s home managers reported drivers ferrying victims to assignations with men that ended in rape. And so taxi drivers have also been on the receiving end of the backlash. The mother of one taxi-office controller tells me her daughter received threats of bomb attacks, and even rape, while drivers say there has been an increase in racist insults. |
| “Anyone who has been involved in this child abuse should be arrested,” one driver tells me. “You can’t blame all of us. At weekends and at night people get drunk and get abusive. And I think it will get worse.” | “Anyone who has been involved in this child abuse should be arrested,” one driver tells me. “You can’t blame all of us. At weekends and at night people get drunk and get abusive. And I think it will get worse.” |
| Young people in Rotherham town centre, meanwhile, tell me that the scale of the abuse has shaken their trust in the place they grew up. Rachel Pearson, 18, says: “I used to think it was safe in Rotherham but now I feel you have to watch your back.” | Young people in Rotherham town centre, meanwhile, tell me that the scale of the abuse has shaken their trust in the place they grew up. Rachel Pearson, 18, says: “I used to think it was safe in Rotherham but now I feel you have to watch your back.” |
| Anisa, 21, went to school with Laura Wilson, one of the victims, whose body was found in a canal. “It shocked me because it’s all so close. Laura was friends with one of my friends. My friend didn’t know about the abuse at the time but she told me later that Laura was involved – apparently her mother had complained about it to the police, but nothing was done. | Anisa, 21, went to school with Laura Wilson, one of the victims, whose body was found in a canal. “It shocked me because it’s all so close. Laura was friends with one of my friends. My friend didn’t know about the abuse at the time but she told me later that Laura was involved – apparently her mother had complained about it to the police, but nothing was done. |
| “I was on holiday when they found her body, but I remember my friend calling me. She was screaming and screaming and broke down crying.” | “I was on holiday when they found her body, but I remember my friend calling me. She was screaming and screaming and broke down crying.” |
| Anisa and her sister Imaan, 24, think the exploitation was partly racially motivated. “We were always treated with respect [by Asian men] and I wonder if that’s because people knew our parents and that we were Muslims. My auntie, who is white, says: ‘They would not do it to their own.’” | Anisa and her sister Imaan, 24, think the exploitation was partly racially motivated. “We were always treated with respect [by Asian men] and I wonder if that’s because people knew our parents and that we were Muslims. My auntie, who is white, says: ‘They would not do it to their own.’” |
| Yet Jay’s report cast doubt on the idea that perpetrators attacked only white girls. It pointed to research by the Muslim Women’s Network, which found evidence of child exploitation within the Asian community. It was hidden, the report says, because of a culture of “honour” in which girls who had been raped would be seen as having brought shame on their families. | |
| Zlakha Ahmed, who set up Apna Haq, a specialist domestic violence charity in Rotherham that works in the Asian community, hopes the report will encourage more Asian victims to come forward. “I remember taxi drivers would wait outside my secondary school in another town, to pick up first-year girls. This has been going on for a long, long time,” she says. | Zlakha Ahmed, who set up Apna Haq, a specialist domestic violence charity in Rotherham that works in the Asian community, hopes the report will encourage more Asian victims to come forward. “I remember taxi drivers would wait outside my secondary school in another town, to pick up first-year girls. This has been going on for a long, long time,” she says. |
| For Ishaq, however, the report is already forcing a change. “The scandal has allowed a dialogue to take place,” she says. “And it is so sad that it has taken something so horrific to give voice to these girls.” | For Ishaq, however, the report is already forcing a change. “The scandal has allowed a dialogue to take place,” she says. “And it is so sad that it has taken something so horrific to give voice to these girls.” |
| Three Asian girls have already contacted Ishaq since the report came out, with “equally horrific” stories. “Men are waiting outside schools for girls and giving them gifts and then demanding sexual favours,” she says. “One girl said she slept with a young man, but then he took her to a party where there were five other men, and two of them raped her. | Three Asian girls have already contacted Ishaq since the report came out, with “equally horrific” stories. “Men are waiting outside schools for girls and giving them gifts and then demanding sexual favours,” she says. “One girl said she slept with a young man, but then he took her to a party where there were five other men, and two of them raped her. |
| “He told her that because he had spent all that money on her, she shouldn’t complain. He took videos of the men raping her and said if she didn’t sleep with his older friends, he would take the material to her father. These girls don’t think they will be protected. | “He told her that because he had spent all that money on her, she shouldn’t complain. He took videos of the men raping her and said if she didn’t sleep with his older friends, he would take the material to her father. These girls don’t think they will be protected. |
| “South Yorkshire Police are trying to absolve themselves of all responsibility by saying they were frightened of being called racist, but that’s just nonsense.” | “South Yorkshire Police are trying to absolve themselves of all responsibility by saying they were frightened of being called racist, but that’s just nonsense.” |
| Ahmed hopes to raise awareness of abuse in the community by setting up a talk by the Muslim Women’s Network, which has just created a video and pamphlet on the issue. | Ahmed hopes to raise awareness of abuse in the community by setting up a talk by the Muslim Women’s Network, which has just created a video and pamphlet on the issue. |
| Now that sexual abuse has received so much coverage, the wives of possible perpetrators are also beginning to come forward. “Last year a woman told me an English lady had come to her house and said that her husband was sleeping with the women’s 13-year-old daughter,” Ishaq explains. “She didn’t believe her but the lady took her to a park where the husband had this girl in the car. He still denied it and said he was giving the girl a lift. | Now that sexual abuse has received so much coverage, the wives of possible perpetrators are also beginning to come forward. “Last year a woman told me an English lady had come to her house and said that her husband was sleeping with the women’s 13-year-old daughter,” Ishaq explains. “She didn’t believe her but the lady took her to a park where the husband had this girl in the car. He still denied it and said he was giving the girl a lift. |
| “It was one of the local parks which is notorious for this. My daughters have told me about it – the boys from the college take girls there and there are older men waiting in cars.” | “It was one of the local parks which is notorious for this. My daughters have told me about it – the boys from the college take girls there and there are older men waiting in cars.” |
| Another woman also expressed her fears that her husband may be involved. “She said she was scared and didn’t know what to do. She was frightened to go to the police because where would that leave her and her children? She said she had a sick feeling that the people they were talking about were friends of her husband.” | Another woman also expressed her fears that her husband may be involved. “She said she was scared and didn’t know what to do. She was frightened to go to the police because where would that leave her and her children? She said she had a sick feeling that the people they were talking about were friends of her husband.” |
| Despite having little experience of child exploitation issues, Ishaq is trying to ensure women in the town feel supported. “I am praying these mothers and young girls will overcome their fears and feel strong enough to report this. At the moment they feel the law won’t protect them, because the other victims weren’t protected, so why would they be? And they are also worried about being ostracised.” | Despite having little experience of child exploitation issues, Ishaq is trying to ensure women in the town feel supported. “I am praying these mothers and young girls will overcome their fears and feel strong enough to report this. At the moment they feel the law won’t protect them, because the other victims weren’t protected, so why would they be? And they are also worried about being ostracised.” |
| Back in the market square it is obvious that the horrors exposed in the report are not the only face of Rotherham. “I love Rotherham” T-shirts are continuing to sell in the tourist office and a shopper shakes her head: “Those poor girls have suffered so much. I live in an Asian area and it’s very peaceful, I have lovely friends there. You just can’t generalise.” | Back in the market square it is obvious that the horrors exposed in the report are not the only face of Rotherham. “I love Rotherham” T-shirts are continuing to sell in the tourist office and a shopper shakes her head: “Those poor girls have suffered so much. I live in an Asian area and it’s very peaceful, I have lovely friends there. You just can’t generalise.” |
| • This article was amended on 4 September 2014. An earlier version stated that 140,000 children were living below the breadline in Rotherham, not the correct figure of 14,000. | • This article was amended on 4 September 2014. An earlier version stated that 140,000 children were living below the breadline in Rotherham, not the correct figure of 14,000. |