GET A GRIP Profile picture
Dec 4, 2021 22 tweets 11 min read Read on X
#THREAD on press responses to Arthur.

Some people DO need removing from society.

It's often impossible to know exactly what caused or motivated their despicable behaviour: some have been abused themselves, others have psychological problems, there may even be biological causes.
Whatever the cause, some behaviours are intolerable, & it's only right that they should be removed from society.

But it is often impossible to be 100% certain about what motivated a person to engage in cruelty toward children.

There's certainly something wrong with them.
However, certain sections of the press are imho deeply irresponsible in their reporting of child abuse.

What I object to is the predictable, instant, & speculative demonisation of social workers, police officers & doctors by some sections of the press, without knowing the facts.
These brave public servants have almost impossible jobs to do, & it's testament to their professionalism & dedication that so few high profile cases like Victoria Climbie, baby P & Arthur make it onto the front pages.

IF they've been negligent, this will come out in the Inquiry.
What bothers me is the PRESUMPTION of guilt or incompetence displayed in the usual sections of the press.

I'm not denying that these tragic cases aren't newsworthy, but each time they happen, we get unhelpful, predictable & sensationalist headlines & predictable consequences:
They blame (what's left of) the welfare state;

They offer far too much *sensationalist detail* about the suffering endured by the poor child;

There is some kind of largely symbolic act by the Government (often knee-jerk scapegoating & sacking the wrong person);
The consequences of these sensationalist headlines are entirely predictable:

1 A renewed emphasis on removing children from potentially harmful situations, later leading to claims by the same newspapers that an interfering tyrannical "nanny state" undermines family values;
2. A surge/spike in the number of children going into care - which in reality means extended family, foster care & care homes - when there is already a severe shortage of carers, which means children are often relocated away from friends, schools & support networks;
Social workers & children's services know that the evidence shows that a wide range outcomes for children removed from their families are significantly worse than for those not removed eg educational attainment; psychological wellbeing; involvement in crime; substance abuse etc
So the idea that there is some easy checklist which makes this momentous decision easy or simple, is absurd.

3. An Inquiry results in yet more new processes & risk assessments, which usually means even less time for already overworked social workers to spend with clients;
4. There's usually a slump in the number of children's social worker applications: who would want to spend every day with traumatised families, deciding children's fate, & risking being hated, when social workers are damned if they do (remove a child) & damned if they don't?
Of course anyone displaying professional incompetence should face consequences, & of course we should "learn lessons". But the simple, horrible truth is that there are cunning manipulative people who, for whatever reasons, get off on hurting children, & we don't always spot them.
Sadly, it is impossible to prevent all cases of child abuse.

And let's not lose sight of the wider context: children's services have now faced a decade of cuts, & charities & other organisations have been screaming out for help - too often ignored by successive Governments.
As recently as November this year, The Lords Public Services Committee said the pandemic had accelerated a pre-existing “crisis of child vulnerability” in which increasing number of youngsters and parents were unable to access help before their problems spun out of control.
More than a million vulnerable children in England are growing up emotionally damaged & with reduced life chances as a result of billions of pounds of austerity cuts to family support & youth services, according to the cross-party House of Lords inquiry.

theguardian.com/society/2021/n…
And of course, on top of a decade of cruel & unnecessary cuts, declining & inadequate welfare benefits, & slashed & failing public services, many already vulnerable people's problems are exacerbated by grinding poverty.
This tragic case occurred while politicians engage in lies, corruption, & trivial culture wars, often earning small fortunes from second jobs, & at a time when just 1,000 individuals have increased their collective wealth by nearly half a TRILLION pounds since 2009.

#ToryBritain
While accepting, sadly, it's impossible to prevent every child death at the hands of adults, we can do better by stopping being reductionist & simplistic in our solutions & looking for individual scapegoats, & by being more nuanced & less sensationalist in media reporting.
Ray Jones, emeritus professor of social work, said the key issue was cuts to services:

“Police officers, health visitors, community nurses, social workers are all struggling because of 10 years of cuts to services. That makes it difficult for us to do the job we need to do."
“We need to have the time to get to know families & find out what’s happening; we need time to communicate well with each other & share information; & all of that gets squeezed when the imperative is to close work down to take on the new work coming in.”

communitycare.co.uk/2021/12/03/art…
Here's another similar but more detailed #THREAD, which combines an historical view of child abuse with Stan Cohen's 'moral panic' framework.

threadreaderapp.com/thread/1466723…
Someone sent me this disturbing cartoon, which perfectly encapsulates right-wing attitudes to social workers.

Their mother was a social worker during the Thatcher Govt, & this cartoon by Kal (1987) was on her desk at work.

Lynch mobs should have no role in tackling child abuse.

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with GET A GRIP

GET A GRIP Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @docrussjackson

Jun 29
🧵

A few thoughts on Bob Vylan leading the #GlastonburyFestival crowd in chants of "Death to the IDF" (Israeli Defence Force), livestreamed by the @BBC, and the mischaracterisation of the chant by some MPs, news media, and activists. Image
In England, where #GlastonburyFestival is located, all of us have the right to freely express our criticism of anyone or anything - as long as there is no intent to provoke immediate unlawful violence or there is a reasonable likelihood it will occur as a consequence.
In England, free speech is protected under Article 10 of the Human Rights Act 1998. However, inciting violence is a criminal offence under several laws which attempt to balance public safety with free expression rights.

There are a number of key provisions in UK Law.
Read 29 tweets
Jun 26
🧵

Socially isolated and radicalised online, Marcus Monzo, 37, was convicted of murdering 14-yr-old Daniel Anjorin and attacking others with a sword.

He was fascinated by violence, far-right extremism, Incel ideology, conspiracy theories and figures like Musk, Tate, and Hitler. Image
UK society is insufficiently concerned about the harms of extreme online material of the kind pushed by the far-right, incels, & conspiracy theorists.

Debate is too often framed as being about free speech, rather than its sometimes horrific consequences.

actearly.uk/radicalisation…
In many countries, especially since Musk bought Twitter/@X, underregulated online extreme content has been used to groom and radicalise vulnerable people.

Too many cowardly politicians are scared to speak up for fear of being branded 'anti-free speech'.

Read 30 tweets
Jun 10
🧵

Some MPs who have been in parliament for many years NEVER appear on any of the @BBC's "flagship" politics shows - but Reform's privately educated shit-stirring 'anti-elite' former Tory Sarah Pochin - an MP for FIVE WEEKS - gets her own special introduction on #PoliticsLive. Image
Politicians using dangerously irresponsible anti-Muslim rhetoric know their comments are normalising Islamophobia and endanger British Muslim women. Islamophobic incidents rose by 375% in the week after Boris Johnson called veiled Muslim women “letterboxes” in 2018.
#PolitcsLive Image
Britain prides itself in NOT being the sort of country that tells women how to dress. States that do dictate women’s clothing (eg Iran, Sudan, Saudi Arabia) are vilified as misogynistic & ultra-controlling: the antithesis of the enlightened, liberal west.
theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
Read 11 tweets
Jun 7
🧵

The 'Women's Safety Initiative' is an anti-migrant AstroTurf disinformation group founded by Jess Gill, a Fellow of the Koch-funded climate change denial group, the Foundation for Economic Education, & an apprentice at the Mises Institute. The '1 in 4' claim is a lie. Image
Before I outline the evidence that (despite what we are told every day by politicians, activists, and news media) there is no discernable link between either legal or illegal immigration and increased crime rates in OECD countries, including ours, some context about Jess Gill. Image
Jess Gill’s involvement with these radical free-market climate change denying Koch foundation funded organisations is deeply concerning.

The WSI exploits young women to make misleading claims about supposed links between immigration with women’s safety.

Read 32 tweets
Jun 2
🧵

"Foreigners" DO NOT claim £1BILLION/month in benefits.

This disgusting anti-migrant dogwhistle by shameless liar and former Head of Policy Exchange, Neil O'Brien MP, is just one of several recent dispicable divisive Telegraph front page lies.

WTAF @IpsoNews? @HoCStandards? Image
The claims that the UK spends £1bn/month "on UC benefits for overseas nationals" (O'Brien) and "Foreigners claim £1bn a month in benefits" (Telegraph) are revealed to be lies in the article: the£1bn relates to "Benefits claims by HOUSEHOLDS with AT LEAST ONE FOREIGN NATIONAL." Image
The Telegraph claims that (unnamed) "experts suggested the increase reflected a SURGE in the number of asylum seekers being granted refugee status and in net migration."

To evaluate/make sense of this sensational unsourced claim, additional context is needed (but not provided). Image
Read 57 tweets
May 30
🧵

Chase Herro, co-founder of Trump’s main crypto venture, World Liberty Financial, on crypto:

“You can literally sell shit in a can, wrapped in piss, covered in human skin, for a billion dollars if the story’s right, because people will buy it.”

theguardian.com/technology/202…
Despite crypto being bullshit, & memecoins being consciously bullshit, many – especially angry young gullible men – still invest: 42% of men & 17% of women aged 18-29 have invested in, traded or used crypto (2024 Pew Research), compared to only 11% of men & 5% of women over 50. Image
“It’s no accident that memecoins are such a phenomenon among young people who have grown immensely frustrated with a financial system that, I think it’s fair to say, has failed them” - Sander Lutz, the first crypto-focused White House correspondent.

theguardian.com/technology/202…
Read 16 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(