The reality of sexism in the UK today - bank note campaigner forced into hiding

Caroline Criado-Perez, the graduate student who led the campaign to ask the Bank of England to feature at least one woman on the banknotes, has been forced to leave her home by large numbers of death threats, threats of sexual violence and other threats - she is now living at a guest house under her boyfriend's name.
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/aug/04/caroline-criado-perez-twitter-rape-threats

The reality of sexism in the UK - not some abstract discussion about lad mags, but harsh threatening behaviour dished out to a female student who has the temerity to win a battle to have the authorities recognise women in a public way. She's a really good person and her family have been through a lot - she deserves better.

Britain has a long way to go to modernise its attitudes.

Reply 1

Phoebe Buffay

19

You love all this dont you? :rolleyes:

It is such a shame though :frown:

Having read the article, I think that this woman is actually rather full of herself though.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 2

username1133173

12

Original post by Fullofsurprises

Caroline Criado-Perez, the graduate student who led the campaign to ask the Bank of England to feature at least one woman on the banknotes, has been forced to leave her home by large numbers of death threats, threats of sexual violence and other threats - she is now living at a guest house under her boyfriend's name.
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/aug/04/caroline-criado-perez-twitter-rape-threats

The reality of sexism in the UK - not some abstract discussion about lad mags, but harsh threatening behaviour dished out to a female student who has the temerity to win a battle to have the authorities recognise women in a public way. She's a really good person and her family have been through a lot - she deserves better.

Britain has a long way to go to modernise its attitudes.

It's the common threatening street thug with a new medium. A medium that also gives a degree(?) of anonymity.

It's a shame. I don't honestly think the issue is sexism though, don't these twitter thugs target many different victims? Recently bereaved, celebrities etc.

My point is, I don't think they care who they're targetting, just that there's someone to target.

They're disgusting and it's entirely reprehensible, I just wish the whole throwing around in the media of 'English culture is sexist!!!!' was curbed.

Reply 3

ddaappoo

13

real interesting story, has opened my eyes a bit tbh. it's easy to blame internet trolls but it comes to a point where we must realise that a large proportion of the population holds certain views about the opposite sex.

Reply 4

shadowdweller

Volunteer Section Leader

21

What people don't seem to get is that it's possible to focus on issues happening here and elsewhere. It's not a case of one or the other

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 5

RunningScotsman

1

Original post by BenP

My point is, I don't think they care who they're targetting, just that there's someone to target.

Exactly.

Trolls are trolls, they'll do what they like because they enjoy the backlash, but I'm angered by the insinuation that all men agree with them.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 6

thesabbath

2

Women's problem, they'll have to solve it.

Not as if they'd listen to a male's advice on the subject anyway.

Reply 7

noneofthemknew

8

But that isn't the issue being raised here. The issue being raised, regardless of whether you agree with this woman's cause or not, is of how she cannot take up such a cause without being subjected to terrifying abuse.

Reply 8

punani

14

The reality of sexism in the UK today is that men are just as likely to be victims of it as women but that "feminists" seem to ignore this inconvenient truth.

Reply 9

shadowdweller

Volunteer Section Leader

21

Feminism has branched more recently, not all feminists support every movement

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Reply 10

SuperHanss

2

Original post by Fullofsurprises

The reality of sexism in the UK - not some abstract discussion about lad mags, but harsh threatening behaviour dished out to a female student who has the temerity to win a battle to have the authorities recognise women in a public way. She's a really good person and her family have been through a lot - she deserves better.

Britain has a long way to go to modernise its attitudes.

Not really though is it?
I support the women who campaigned for greater representation on the banknotes (not too sure about Jane Austen as the choice, but there you go) even if it was a bit preemptive - the £10 note was due a change as well as the £5 so I don't doubt that the Bank of England would've selected a female anyway; without having to be influenced by a protest group.

How does a group of bigots harassing this lady render all of Britain 'sexist' though. It's that type irrationality which has come to define feminism in most of our eyes. The people responsible for threatening her are probably too stupid to even know what the word 'sexism' is, so it's hardly appropriate to associate everyone else in a country of 70 million liberal-minded people is it?

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 11

Hyde

Because having a woman on a banknote is going to make such a difference to female equality. If that's all feminists can muster - no surprise then that women globally complain of being oppressed, because the supposed campaigners are too busy trying to change the picture of a ****ing banknote.

P.S Charles Darwin deserves to be printed on the note.

Reply 12

kittyb99

11

It's terribly sad that this sort of issue is still present in today's society. I simply cannot understand why the small minority of people will not accept that our country was constructed and shaped by the achievements of both men and women, and that it is not unreasonable to celebrate one female by printing her face on the bank notes. I do not consider myself a feminist, but I do believe that equality should be commonplace, and when things such as this happen it should serve as a painful and uncomfortable reminder that there is still some way to go until we have reached that point. I can only hope that incidents such as this will become much fewer and far between as sense gradually prevails.

Reply 13

Drewski

19

Original post by noneofthemknew

But that isn't the issue being raised here. The issue being raised, regardless of whether you agree with this woman's cause or not, is of how she cannot take up such a cause without being subjected to terrifying abuse.

I'm more inclined to agree with the above comments, very much doubt it's because of the cause she's celebrating; it's the fact she's in the public eye, full stop. It would appear her cause is completely irrelevant to those abusing her.

It happens all over the celeb world, just search through any celeb's twitter feed and you'll find some abusive messages, if someone's in the public eye especially, then they'll get abuse. As an above poster said, look at Tom Daley during the Olympics. Or Mark Cavendish. They both got torrents of abuse.

Of course I'm not excusing it, but I just think that to say it's directly because of her campaign isn't necessarily true. That argument is post hoc ergo propter hoc.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 14

Phoebe Buffay

19

I would have to agree. The flow of any argument on an issue such as this is to completely blow it up.

Personally I dont see why this bank note business is that great an issue. There already is a female on the banknotes :lolwut:

Reply 15

deedee123

16

So do you think these peoples actions towards the women are justified? As you said, it's not a big deal at all, so why the **** are people sending out death threats over it?

Reply 16

shadowdweller

Volunteer Section Leader

21

Original post by Hyde

P.S Charles Darwin deserves to be printed on the note.

No-one is saying he didn't?

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 17

kittyb99

11

Original post by Phoebe Buffay

I would have to agree. The flow of any argument on an issue such as this is to completely blow it up.

Personally I dont see why this bank note business is that great an issue. There already is a female on the banknotes :lolwut:

Only of a regal variety though :biggrin:

Which is somewhat mandatory, regardless of sex :tongue:

Reply 18

User995789

14

All this over bank notes pft we have the Queen on it anyway... Middle east is more important, go help out there.

Reply 19

noneofthemknew

8

No that, isn't implied in the OP as far I can see.There is a big, big difference between disagreeing with someone and sending threatening and abuse messages to them en masse which is what OP is concerned with.

The reality of sexism in the UK today - bank note campaigner forced into hiding

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