Press release: Justice for Disabled Victims open letter
Inclusion London launches open letter to Prime Minister, demanding justice for Disabled victims of hate crime
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IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Inclusion London Launches Open Letter to Prime Minister Demanding Justice for Disabled Victims of Hate Crime
London, UK. 15 October 2024 – Today, during National Hate Crime Awareness Week, Inclusion London has launched an open letter to the Prime Minister, calling for urgent action to deliver justice for Disabled victims of hate crime. This campaign comes in response to the alarming low prosecution and conviction rates for hate crimes targeting Disabled people and other marginalised communities.
While Labour’s manifesto pledge to make all hate crimes aggravated offences is a positive step, it does not go far enough to address the specific protections required for Disabled individuals.
The open letter urges the Prime Minister to go act on his pledge to foster ‘respect and equality for all’ by improving protections for Disabled people under hate crime law, creating a National Hate Crime Strategy and recognising intersectional hate crime.
Louise Holden, Senior Policy Officer on Disability & Crime for Inclusion London, stated, “It is an unpalatable fact that there are people in our society who deliberately and ruthlessly target Disabled people and commit horrendous crimes against them. These victims may be isolated and seen as ‘an easy target’.
The perpetrators of hateful acts operate in a society that allows Disabled people to be demonised and inhumanly treated. We need more than a tweak to the law. We need a national plan, and resources to address the systemic issues that allow hate crimes against disabled individuals to persist.”
The open letter is available to read on the Inclusion London website. Inclusion London urges organisations to support this crucial cause by adding their names to the letter and sharing it within their communities. Individuals can support the Justice for Disabled Victims campaign by signing Inclusion London’s petition and writing to their MP.
Notes for Editors:
Facts and figures
We are using the term Disabled to cover a range of conditions and impairments including Mental Trauma and Distress, Learning Disability, Learning Difficulty, Neurodivergence, Physical, Sensory, Chronic long-term conditions and the Deaf Community.
There are an estimated 1.3 million Disabled people in London.
Inclusion London are the voice of Disabled Victims in London, providing policy and campaigning across London and nationally.
Data on Hate Crime
Recent Freedom of Information requests by United Response and Leonard Cheshire revealed that:
- 10,740 disability hate crimes were reported between April 2022 and March 2023.
- Approximately half of these reports involved violence, and over 1,300 occurred online.
- Despite a 3.7% decrease in reports from the previous year, the figures remain higher than pre-pandemic levels.
- Only 1.2% of these reports resulted in a charge or summons, down from 1.9% in 2021/22.
These statistics, combined with the exclusion of hate crime data from the most recent national crime survey for England and Wales, underscore the urgent need for change.
Inclusion London represented Disabled victims of hate crime at numerous meetings across the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) via our London DDPO HC Partnership – https://www.inclusionlondon.org.uk/training-and-support/partnership-working/disability-hate-crime-partnership/disability-hate-crime/ which ran for five years.
As well as working for Inclusion London, Louise Holden is an independent member of the Metropolitan Police Service Disability Independent Advisory Group.
For more information or to arrange interviews contact
Rensa Gaunt, Communications Manager
Mobile 07561064227