Hate crime inquiry – Inclusion London’s evidence
Inclusion London recently submitted evidence to the All Party Parliamentary Group’s inquiry into hate crime.
Inclusion London recently submitted evidence to the All Party Parliamentary Group’s inquiry into hate crime.
More information about the inquiry is available at: http://www.appghatecrime.org/enquiries/
Download our evidence here: Inclusion London’s & SSE evidence to APPG hate crime inquiry
Below are the key concerns we raised in our evidence followed by a summary of our recommendations:
Key Concerns
- Deaf and Disabled continue to be targeted for abuse and violence both face-to-face and online. Horrific deaths of Disabled people can occur, sometimes due to an inadequate response by the police.
- The response, recording, investigation of disability hate incidents by police needs to improve through initiatives such as the Metropolitan Police’s ‘Disability Hate Crime Matters’ initiative.
- There is lack of parity in hate crime law for Disability Hate Crime offences and LGBT hate crime offences.
- The law does not adequately protect Deaf and Disabled people who are deliberately targeted due to their impairments, when hostility towards a Deaf or Disabled person is not involved.
- Laws regarding online abuse need strengthening.
- Local and national hate crime forums are not always accessible to Deaf and Disabled people who then cannot raise awareness of the level and types of disability hate crime that are occurring.
- The false rhetoric about high incidence of disability benefit fraud from politicians, which has been amplified many times by the press has led to deterioration in public attitudes towards disabled people who are abused as benefit scroungers and fraudsters and there has been an increase in disability hate crime.
Recommendations:
- The government needs to urgently review existing hate crime legislation with a view to introducing amendments to ensure parity across all protected characteristics by creating new “aggravated” and “stirring up” offences for hatred on grounds of disability.
- Parliament needs to change the law so it protects Deaf and Disabled people who are deliberately targeted due to their impairments, when hostility is not involved.
- Parliament needs to strengthen UK licensing legislation by introducing penalties on social media companies who fail to:
- remove harmful online material within 24 hours of being notified
- proactively search and remove posts with harmful content
- The recommendations in the Police, Prosecution and Probation services joint inspectorate reports on Disability Hate Crime[1] as well as the recommendations in the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s reports[2] need to be fully implemented.
- Police and Disabled people and user led Deaf and Disabled People’s Organisations (DDPOs) co-produce strategic plans to improve the response, recording and investigation of Disability hate crime through initiatives such as Metropolitan Police’s ‘Disability Hate Crime MATTERS’ initiative, with targeted funding provided by central government.
- All services involved in hate crime forums ensure that Deaf and Disabled people can be involved by paying access costs and holding meetings in accessible venues.
- For Government to implement a positive broad mass media campaign, in consultation with Deaf and Disabled People’s Organisations, promoting disabled people, particularly those who receive social security payments and are unable to work, as equal citizens and rights holders in accordance with the recommendation made by UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
[1] https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmic/media/a-joint-review-of-disability-hate-crime-living-in-a-different-world-20130321.pdf
[2] https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/publication-download/out-open-tackling-disability-related-harassment-manifesto-change