In a thread a few weeks ago, Wendy mentioned:
Recently, I've been made aware of one consequence of the focus of attention and resources on one group of - I hate to use the term 'victims', as it implies a helpless state, but let's use it just for this example - victims of sexual assault. The majority of resources for treatment, consciousness-raising, shelter and so on goes to women victims/survivors, and as a result little or nothing is available for male sexual abuse victims/survivors. One of the consequences of this concentration of resources has been that society as a whole, or the sexual abuse 'helping community' in particular, has almost been able to deny that there is even a problem affecting men. Male victims/survivors can find almost no-one to listen to them. They call helplines, only to find the phone slammed down the instant the person on the other end realises they're talking to a man. Women campaigners against sexual violence call all men abusers and refuse to acknowledge that men can also be abused. Sexual assault units are geared to deal with women, and men who are themselves victims can feel unwanted and that they're viewed with hostility and mistrust by the very people who should be trying to help them... because the overall focus is that those who fall victim to sexual abuse are women.
And I've just run across an example of this attitude, which I found interesting, so I wanted to share it.
Quoting from
Don Surber\'s blog :
Sexism at the abuse shelter
Britain will cut off funds to domestic violence shelters that don’t help male victims. Fiona Mactaggart, the former Home Office minister, complains.
I am amused by the sexism of women. It seems to me that domestic abuse shelters should help victims regardless of their sex.
Town councils across England are beginning to require that these shelters counsel and protect male victims.
Mactaggart is alarmed. Ap[parently, equality laws include only women, not men.
She told the London Telegraph: “There are some local authorities who interpret equalities to mean that a refuge has to provide for men, not only for women. There are some stupidnesses developing in the system that nobody intended.”
So let me get this straight: Only women need help, not men.
She is not alone. Nicola Harwin, chief executive of Women’s Aid, also called for discrimination.
Harwin said: “Women do appreciate being engaged in women-only organisations. When you have been disempowered and had no control of your life it’s important for a lot of women to see that this is an organisation run by women for women.”
It is a stunningly bogus argument. Let’s get something straight: Domestic violence is a crime. All victims are worthy of aid, not just women.
Visit the blog for links to more information. Complaints notwithstanding, I'm glad to see that Britain is working to help all victims.
PJ
