In the recent furore surrounding the BBC’s internal failings around coverage of abuse allegations, the original tragedy of the victims of Jimmy Savile has been lost., Unfortunately, this is typical of the way child sexual rape, abuse and exploitation have too often been treated. The tendency to ‘look the other way’ has its own grave consequence, not the victims simply fear they will not be believed – that their word as a child will carry less weight when measured against an adult’s testimony. It is a common pattern and the abusers exploit it well.
Abusers use power and control, telling victims they will not be believed and that they will be blamed for taking part in the abuse. To seal the culture of silence, individual workers in positions of trust have at various times effectively colluded with this by turning a blind eye. This contributes to a wall of silence that fails to protect our most vulnerable children.
Furthermore, the racialisation of the cases of sexual abuses by some south Asian men has further blurred the understanding of how prevalent sexual abuse is in all communities and at all levels of society. The interim report by the office of the children’s commissioner has concluded that there are much more intricate and insidious patterns of abuse taking place within our localities.
However, to ignore the problem of street grooming by some men in particular communities would be woefully neglectful. Let me be unequivocal in saying that there are specific problems with some men from some communities. There is a cultural attitude by a minority of men within certain south Asian communities, who believe that ‘white’ girls in particular are easy prey as they supposedly have a different set of cultural norms and values with regard to sexual activity and personal freedom. Professional classes’ uncertainty around possible perpetrators’ cultural background has often led them to fail to act. But there can never be any justification for the failure to prosecute an individual who has committed a crime because of culture, race, gender or class – especially crimes as heinous as the rape of a child.
The other problem with this narrative is the conclusion that sexual abuse does not occur within south Asian communities. This is not only false, but a dangerous position to support. Conversations about sexual activity within certain communities are already taboo and abuse is certainly not discussed openly. Many families who discover sexual abuse has taken place within their own families prefer to deal with it in-house for fear of their Izzat (honour) being irrevocably stained. Therefore when the media makes this an issue between south Asian men and white girls – this further isolates the victims from South Asian backgrounds who have experienced sexual abuse. The Henna Foundation, which work to support such victims, has noted a year-on-year increase in victims from south Asian backgrounds abused by south Asian perpetrators coming to them for help. Often victims will be pressured in to not sharing the abuse with anyone and will turn to religious leaders within the community for help.
The pattern of grooming between a minority of south Asian men and white girls is one particular pattern of abuse and will unfold differently in different geographical areas. The common themes are not race, culture or class but the fact that many of the victims were vulnerable.
Regrettably victims can get forgotten. Anyone who works with victims of abuse knows that one of the common consequences of abuse is the victim’s belief that they were somehow complicit in the abuse and that they take a share of the blame upon themselves. This is compounded when the authorities or adults who the victims confide in do not believe the victims. In one recent case, a 15-year-old child was raped by a number of men and reported it to various authorities. Despite the fact that this child was being continuously threatened and raped until she was made pregnant by one of her abusers, not one professional acted significantly enough to protect her. The professionals charged with safeguarding her were more concerned with the risk that this teenager placed to the baby she was carrying than any consideration of her mental, physical and emotional wellbeing – even though she was self-harming and abusing alcohol. The stark fact that a child had conceived a child thorough the act of multiple rape somehow got lost in the professionals assessment.
There are ways to prevent these abuses. To do this we need to build upon well-evidenced processes that already work to alert parents and communities, with localised knowledge and expertise of the predominate types of paedophile activity in their area. That is not to be culturally insensitive or racist. It does, however, require careful consideration and implementation.
Safeguarding should include educating parents and young people of what to look out for from abusers, and identifying particular risks within their localities will help. It is also important that different agencies share expertise, knowledge, resources and data. Strengthening relationships between children and adults including family members and teachers should be part of the strategy – if only so there is another layer of protection. However, the biggest single factor is professionals, individuals and other children not turning a blind eye to abuse, but to speak out and report all incidents. It is high time we put the victims first.
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Amina Lone is co-director of the Social Action and Research Foundation, a trustee of the Henna Foundation, and a councillor on Manchester city council. She tweets @Lone5
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