Greens: “Crucial step forward” as police consider making misogyny a hate crime

8 December 2017

The Green Party says a “crucial step” has been achieved in its campaign to make misogyny a hate crime, after a police official said they were considering the idea [1].

Deputy leader Amelia Womack announced a campaign for misogyny to be made a hate crime during her speech to Green Party autumn conference in October [2].

Assistant chief constable Mark Hamilton told the Women and Equalities Committee that misogyny could be considered a factor in crimes like harassment and assault. He gave evidence to the committee on Wednesday during a discussion about sexism and sexual harassment faced by women.

Hamilton, whose work focuses on hate crime, described misogyny as a ‘significant issue’ and said ‘we are planning to put papers through… about the consideration of misogyny as a sixth strand of hate crime’.

Womack was motivated by her own experience of domestic violence, which she spoke publically about for the first time earlier this year [3]. On November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, the Green Party handed in a petition to the Home Office signed by more than 5000 people calling for misogyny to be recorded as a hate crime.

Womack said:

“It’s great to see police are taking misogyny seriously and recognising that sometimes women are targeted simply because they are women, whether it’s groping on the dance floor, harassment in the streets or rape. I’m really pleased to see our campaign take this crucial step forward.

“If gender-based violence was properly recognised there would be new avenues for women to report acts of aggression or abuse. It’s so important that women feel confident to come forward and talk about their experiences. It’s beyond time that our society acknowledged the suffering caused by misogyny.”

Notes:

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