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Pen or Sword      'Research papers'

TITLE:   “Failing victims, fuelling hate: challenging the harms of the 'Muslim grooming gangs' narrative”

Authors:  Ella Cockbain, Waqas Tufail

Funded by:  Institute of Race relations / Chatham House  (tax payer)

Political Clout:  HIGH

link to article concerned

(https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0306396819895727)

Abstract
'Muslim grooming gangs' have become a defining feature of media, political and public debate around child sexual exploitation in the UK. The dominant narrative that has emerged to explain a series of horrific cases is misleading, sensationalist and has in itself promoted a number of harms. This article examines how racist framings of 'Muslim grooming gangs' exist not only in extremist, far-right fringes but in mainstream, liberal discourses too. The involvement of supposedly feminist and liberal actors and the promotion of pseudoscientific 'research' have lent a veneer of legitimacy to essentialist, Orientalist stereotypes of Muslim men, the demonisation of whole communities and demands for collective responsibility. These developments are situated in the broader socio-political context, including the far Right's weaponisation of women's rights, the 'Islamophobia industry' and a long history of racialising crime. We propose alternative ways of understanding and responding to child sexual exploitation/abuse. We contend that genuinely anti-racist feminist approaches can help in centring victims/survivors and their needs and in tackling serious sexual violence without demonising entire communities.

Rebuttal:  

1.  This is a Far Left political hit piece, simplistic, opinionated, repetitive, oozing with smug self righteousness, that takes soaring liberties with logic, common sense, and History.

2.  The term 'Far Right' is used constantly. Tommy Robinson and Britain First are mentioned by name. This terminology appears to be used purely in the abusive, pejorative sense. As if any criticism of Pakistani Muslim child rape gangs ONLY comes from an unsavory, reviled,  extremist section of the British public.
We reject this is as untrue, simplistic, deliberately misleading, Leftist non-reasoning.

3.  Quote: “The dominant narrative that has emerged to explain a series of horrific cases is misleading, sensationalist and has in itself promoted a number of harms.”

There is nothing 'misleading' or 'sensationalist' in pointing out the intolerable scandal of hundreds of thousands of child rapes, of overwhelmingly British White girls.

4.  Quote: “This article examines how racist framings of 'Muslim grooming gangs' exist not only in extremist, far-right fringes but in mainstream, liberal discourses too.”

See point 3 above.

5. Quote: “The involvement of supposedly feminist and liberal actors and the promotion of pseudoscientific 'research' have lent a veneer of legitimacy to essentialist, Orientalist stereotypes of Muslim men, the demonisation of whole communities and demands for collective responsibility”.

'Pseudoscientific Research'? Leftists who live in glass mosques, should maybe hesitate to throw stones.  We maintain it is entirely 'legitimate' to associate this appalling -recent- mass phenomenon, which was hitherto unknown, with the new arrival in -recent- decades of overwhelmingly Muslim Pakistani men.  That does not involve 'pseudo science'. Reading the newspapers or going to court and 'looking' will quite suffice.

We do not maintain that 'all Muslim men' rape British white children.

But a distressingly MASSIVE number DO.

*** If therefore the result is that Muslim men become 'stereotyped', then this is a direct result of THEIR OWN sordid actions. Not the result of mischievous or wicked mislabeling committed by the ever-blamed (oh, so wicked) 'Far Right'.

*** We reject any blame for 'Demonisation of whole communities'. This is hysterical, but standard, Far-Left reasoning and apologetics, aimed at white-washing the Muslim community, as far as possible. And to cost-what-cost protect said grouping from any and all overdue legal and political consequences of repeated outrageous behavior.
*** And to maintain what are effectively STILL wide-open borders.

As regards 'demands for collective responsibility', we submit that ANY responsibility TAKEN would be a welcome start…!

6.  These developments are situated in the broader socio-political context, including the far Right's weaponisation of women's rights, the 'Islamophobia industry' and a long history of racialising crime.

The 'weaponisation of women's rights' is now also blamed on the “Far Right'? Is there anything that is NOT blamed on the “Far Right”? The term “Islamophobia Industry” is meant to imply just what? That the evil “Far Right” is doing it merely to make money? We wish we could. And how would they manage that? As regards a 'long history of racialising crime', that sounds terrific, but what does it mean? Crime comes first, (and it out of control of even the evil “Far Right”) and then, after it occurs, one observes the race. Which tends to be, where vicious and pitiless child rape gangs are concerned, overwhelmingly the SAME race. That's an easily observable FACT. How does one propose to “racialise crime”? Let alone, how does one manage to have a “long History doing so”? Are we to believe Child rape gangs occur across the entire racial board, including Whites, (who must be in a the vast majority then, given their population numbers) but it is then deliberately and cynically shoved ONLY onto the unfortunate shoulders of Muslim Pakistani and Afghan males? This is so severely fanciful, that it smacks of rabid excuse making. Even desperation.

7.   We propose alternative ways of understanding and responding to child sexual exploitation/abuse.

Fine. After four decades of this tragic problem, you've got a whole new set of ideas? Amazing. Let's hear them.

8. We contend that genuinely anti-racist feminist approaches can help in centring victims/survivors and their needs and in tackling serious sexual violence without demonising entire communities.

We struggle to visualize the actual naked truth that lies behind this casual use of repetitive, tired cliches. What is an “anti-racist feminist approach“? Sounds like erudite gobbledygook, designed to prettily enhance a research paper that is super light on hard content, and needs all the 'prettying up' it can get.  How do you 'help' by way of 'centring victims/survivors and their needs'?

9.  “…without demonising entire communities“.

See our rebuttal comment under 5. above.

10.    INTRODUCTION
Over the past decade, the 'Muslim grooming gangs' narrative has become firmly established in popular and political discourse in the UK. Claims of how Muslim culture and faith supposedly perpetuate sexual abuse have helped collectively demonise British Muslim communities, especially young Muslim men. Initially driven by the rightwing media, this construction has been advanced and legitimised by ostensibly liberal and feminist actors. Additional boosts have come via discredited, highly-politicised and partisan 'research' from special interest groups, apparently seeking to capitalise on wider anti-Muslim attitudes in order to influence government policy and otherwise profit. The 'Muslim grooming gangs' trope has enduring currency among rightwing and liberal political elites and, if left unchecked, risks fuelling further racialised and alarmist news coverage and informing misguided and harmful responses. Much of the narrative has centred around towns in the North and Midlands regions of England, where many particularly high-profile criminal convictions have taken place. Rotherham, in South Yorkshire, has arguably become the place most synonymous with 'Muslim grooming gangs' and has attracted the most attention from far-right groups. Home to a significant population of Asian Muslim heritage, workers from the Indian subcontinent initially arrived into towns such as Rotherham to work within the manufacturing sector and were often treated poorly in comparison to whites.1 Like many other places in the former industrial heartlands in the North, Rotherham has struggled for decades with the effects of deindustrialisation – the loss of skilled, well-paid jobs, soaring unemployment and the destabilisation and fragmentation of communities.

Rebuttal:

10 A)   Over the past decade, the 'Muslim grooming gangs' narrative has become firmly established in popular and political discourse in the UK. Claims of how Muslim culture and faith supposedly perpetuate sexual abuse have helped collectively demonise British Muslim communities, especially young Muslim men.

This is repetitive. It is also quite fanciful.
“Claims of how Muslim culture and faith supposedly perpetuate sexual abuse…”
There is no 'SUPPOSEDLY' about it. It is a sordid F-A-C-T. There are endless tales of bemused young victims of these vicious rape gangs being forced to LISTEN to quotations from the Koran, being read out loud to them. See Peter McLoughlin's book “Easy Meat”.
“…have helped collectively demonise British Muslim communities, especially young Muslim men”.
Repetitive. Again, see our comments under 5. above.

10 B)  Initially driven by the rightwing media

Yeah, yeah, yeah. We get it. Everybody opposed to your cherished opinions is biased, unfair, and Right Wing.

10 C) this construction has been advanced and legitimised by ostensibly liberal and feminist actors.

I'm going to translate 'construction' as 'manufactured Lie'. You are now saying everybody is flat out LYING about “Claims of how Muslim culture and faith supposedly perpetuate sexual abuse…”

We submit we're not LYING. YOU ARE, straight-faced.

10 D)    Initially driven by the rightwing media, this construction has been advanced and legitimised by ostensibly liberal and feminist actors.

“Ostensibly”. This warns all the “Liberal and feminist actors” that they had better toe your line, or else they will be revealed as, wait for it, “Far Right operatives”.

10 E)  Additional boosts have come via discredited, highly-politicised and partisan 'research' from special interest groups, apparently seeking to capitalise on wider anti-Muslim attitudes in order to influence government policy and otherwise profit.

Discredited? Highly politicized?  Did you write that with a straight face? Highly politicized???  Capitalize?  Profit?  We have no clue how to 'profit' from these ongoing tragedies, where hundreds of thousands of overwhelmingly White, British girls, are having their lives destroyed by these vicious cowards.

To influence Government Policy      You make that sound obscene, when your opponents do it. I'm sure your own involvement is purely Platonic.

The 'Muslim grooming gangs' trope

A 'TROPE” is defined as the use of figurative language. There is nothing 'figurative' about the concept of 'Muslim grooming gangs'. There is nothing imaginary or exaggerated about it either. The figure of 'hundreds of thousands' of victims has been raised in Westminster Parliament itself, and is well attested to. No need for any 'trope'.

“…if left unchecked, risks fuelling further racialised and alarmist news coverage”

Repetitive, once again. See our comments under 6. above.

“…to work within the manufacturing sector and were often treated poorly in comparison to whites.1 Like many other places in the former industrial heartlands in the North, Rotherham has struggled for decades with the effects of deindustrialisation”

Life became tough for everybody, not just Muslims, and that is no excuse for gang-raping White British children by the hundreds of thousands.

11)   

Last edited by Francis Meyrick on February 24, 2020, 11:13 pm