Skewed priorities

The last time I read about one of the Rochdale grooming gang who on his release from prison, should have been deported, still here, courtesy of lawyers, appeals and our legal aid system. Never mind the victim who lived in the same vicinity as her abuser.

Let’s educate ourselves about this.
blogs.lse.ac.uk/religionglobalsociety/2025/01/the-grooming-gang-debate-navigating-race-politics-and-justice-in-the-uk/

Casdon

Let’s educate ourselves about this.
blogs.lse.ac.uk/religionglobalsociety/2025/01/the-grooming-gang-debate-navigating-race-politics-and-justice-in-the-uk/

Thankyou- this is very interesting reading.

I also did some reading myself earlier. The National Inquiry is due to complete the preliminary planning stage in March this year. I will certainly be checking in on this when it finally gets underway.

The grooming gangs debate in the HoC in December also threw up the figure of 83% of those convicted being of Pakistani origins- though there was no detailed profiling for these figures.

In addition the BeaconPort initiative is underway in which previously closed cases can now be re-opened in order to obtain clarity on the racial profile of the gangs.

The inquiry also has a remit to look specifically at the ethnic origin of these gangs, there is no mention of religious affiliations.

The debate also highlighted the issue of why these gangs found it so easy to prey on these young girls with a particular social profile.

Why were we not protecting these children? I suspect cuts to social services, education and more widespread austerity measures have a part to play in this. I can personally attest to this, having worked with these vulnerable children for many years, and indeed lost my job for trying to stand up for them.

Throw in the mix the fact that often this issue was kept undercover due to more statutary services being predominantly white- especially police, social workers, and local councillors who really didn't give it the attention it deserved, maybe due to community sensitivities but probably more to entrenched misogyny that felt these girls weren't worth it.

On a thread here recently I saw the word 'chav' being used in the context of young women's clothing. I think this idea that we have an underclass in this country who are held in disdain by many in power, only seeks to show that we are all complicit in failing to protect these young girls and women.

I am not victim blaming at all here, just pointing out as I have done many times on this site, that no one cares about the kids anymore.

On a thread here recently I saw the word 'chav' being used in the context of young women's clothing. I think this idea that we have an underclass in this country who are held in disdain by many in power, only seeks to show that we are all complicit in failing to protect these young girls and women.

A person does not have to come from what you term underclass to wear clothing that many would call chav clothes.

It's not a matter of class, it's personal taste and encouraged by online 'influencers'.
www.pinterest.com/ideas/chav-outfits/923395954775/

TerriBull

The last time I read about one of the Rochdale grooming gang who on his release from prison, should have been deported, still here, courtesy of lawyers, appeals and our legal aid system. Never mind the victim who lived in the same vicinity as her abuser.

It’s a bloody disgrace.

Oreo

TerriBull

The last time I read about one of the Rochdale grooming gang who on his release from prison, should have been deported, still here, courtesy of lawyers, appeals and our legal aid system. Never mind the victim who lived in the same vicinity as her abuser.

It’s a bloody disgrace.

No regard for the poor victim at all.

How do these lawyers and judges live with themselves?

"How do these lawyers and judges live with themselves"

Obviously they don't care, it's not their job to care or empathise with victims. Just to act on behalf of their client and their right to a family life here rather than there, because that might compromise their human rights.

In any case it often comes across that the victims are not that important, a mere byproduct. They get a certain amount of lip service and platitudes as in "lessons have been learned" Even though the visual line ups after the trials point to one demographic. There are always the deflectors who try and make it non specific and relate it all sexual predators/abusers. The very reason why some of the victims walked away from the inquiry in the first place.

Obviously they don't care, it's not their job to care or empathise with victims.

Never mind the human rights of the victims.

It's just another day in the courtroom and £m

I know many women in the past were sexually harassed or assaulted. Fortunately, my only experience of this was in my late teens was a man flashing when I was waiting for a bus one evening. That was unnerving but not traumatic.

I don't like this new narrative that seems to be emerging - the women in the Epstein case were fully aware of what they were doing and went along with the sexual demands that were made of them. Many of these young women were firstly introduced to these men as part of their employment. They had not been informed that they would be expected to go along with any sexual advances that were made to them. And, even if they were, I think it is totally unacceptable to prey on often disadvantaged and sometimes troubled young women. Find someone your own age, or you so inadequate that you can only have sex with someone who is in your power? In any event, in the US the age of consent is 18 so, in many cases, such behaviour was breaking the law, as was flying in women from other countries specifically for the purpose of sex.

I was surprised when a friend of mine also expressed the view that "these girls knew what they were doing and reaped many benefits" and "what red-blooded man would turn down an attractive young woman who is ready and willing for sex". I find this totally abhorrent.

Now, it seems, some people are using this topic to bring up the issue of sexual assaults by immigrants. Yet they fail to mention the many, many serious cases of sexual assault of minors that have occurred in the indigenous community. There have been some very serious examples recently and in the not too distant past. Ostensibly respectable white men in responsible and trusted positions (the church, medicine, politics, education, etc, etc, - sexually abusing children, some as young and three years old. Sex crimes are abhorrent, whoever commits them, but let's not pretend that they are the preserve of immigrants only.

Many of these young women were firstly introduced to these men as part of their employment. They had not been informed that they would be expected to go along with any sexual advances that were made to them. And, even if they were, I think it is totally unacceptable to prey on often disadvantaged and sometimes troubled young women. Find someone your own age, or you so inadequate that you can only have sex with someone who is in your power?

👏👏👏

Barristers represent whomever they are charged to represent. They do the best job they can for their clients, whatever they think of them. They do not select their clients, their clients select them, through their solicitors.
I think that if we were ever accused of a crime, we would wish for nothing less from our legal team.

Eloethan
We know all that, about indigenous rapists and so on, the difference is that police and SS were so pussyfooting around the ethnicity of those grooming gangs ( mainly of Pakistani backgrounds) that they chose to blame the girls themselves.
Frightened of being labelled racist.

Exactly that Oreo, well said. We KNOW we have homegrown rapists, always have, always will. But the points I am making is that 1. We are knowingly allowing illegal immigrants, the vast majority of whom are Muslim, to roam our streets without checking who they are and whether they already have criminal records abroad. 2. The authorities are so concerned about being seen as "racist" that they won't take the appropriate action when dealing with crimes committed by those from ethnic minority backgrounds. 3. The grooming gang inquiry is providing evidence (as if we needed it) that the attitude towards white girls by many men of the Muslim community is abhorrent and dangerous.

I do wish people would stop deflecting from these facts by stating the obvious re "indigenous" offenders.

Hear hear. Well said.

The confusion continues. The grooming gangs and lone asylum seekers are not the same group of people, most grooming gang embers are British citizens rather than asylum seekers.

There’s no confusion Casdon
We know it’s not the same thing, the grooming gangs are worse! British citizens of Pakistani ethnicity according to the reports.
Asylum seekers who have raped come from Afghanistan and other countries and are alone or with another asylum seeker.

I know Oreo. It’s muddling the thread to conflate them.

I think it’s quite possible to mention both types, surely.

It is if you choose to ignore all the statistics about the ethnicity of individuals committing sexual offences in the UK, yes.

Opal

Exactly that Oreo, well said. We KNOW we have homegrown rapists, always have, always will. But the points I am making is that 1. We are knowingly allowing illegal immigrants, the vast majority of whom are Muslim, to roam our streets without checking who they are and whether they already have criminal records abroad. 2. The authorities are so concerned about being seen as "racist" that they won't take the appropriate action when dealing with crimes committed by those from ethnic minority backgrounds. 3. The grooming gang inquiry is providing evidence (as if we needed it) that the attitude towards white girls by many men of the Muslim community is abhorrent and dangerous.

I do wish people would stop deflecting from these facts by stating the obvious re "indigenous" offenders.

Who are these Muslims roaming our streets without people knowing who they are?

It just isn't true that the authorities are not sending criminals from elsewhere back to their original countries?

Criminals are being deported every day yet you make it sound as if gangs of illegal migrants are roaming our streets in search of victims with full permission of the authorities- this is clearly nonsense.

Almost 60,000 individuals have been deported from the UK since Labour came into power, which is a 45% increase on previous years.

Yes, there are predatory men doing terrible things to our young women and this is an endemic problem in some communities.

But I will ask again, who is protecting these youg girls and women from these vile people?

The Inquiry is to have a focus on the high level of men of Pakistani origin who have been involved in grooming gangs, and on why this has been allowed to happen.

It will also look at why certain young women in these areas have been the targets for these crimes.

There are two very serious aspects to this situation and all the focus is on these predatory men and not on the most vulnerable people in our society, namely children who are not being protected.

We can claim it to be a religious or racial issue all we like, but it isn't it also one of class?

It has taken years and a great deal of heartache and pain for these females to come forward. Why do we make things so hard for working class girls?

These are the answers I will be looking for too.

Casdon

It is if you choose to ignore all the statistics about the ethnicity of individuals committing sexual offences in the UK, yes.

That’s been half the problem as the Police didn’t record ethnicity.
They are going to start doing it now.

Chocolatelovinggran

Barristers represent whomever they are charged to represent. They do the best job they can for their clients, whatever they think of them. They do not select their clients, their clients select them, through their solicitors.
I think that if we were ever accused of a crime, we would wish for nothing less from our legal team.

I know.
I have met some and, as I said, I don't know how some live with themselves.

Almost 60,000 individuals have been deported from the UK since Labour came into power, which is a 45% increase on previous years.

Of whom 43,000 were voluntary departures under the Assistance Programme where they were give a financial sum to leave to help them settle back in their home country, so presumably they had not left their home country through fear.

That's an entirely different argument.

It's not.
You stated a fact without the full context. Overall it was true but it could possibly have given a false impression.
I clarified it.