Stop Hate UK and Eulogy are on a mission to end hate
Written by: Natalie Leal
Together, we are encouraging people to take meaningful action by standing up to it and reporting it when they experience or witness it happening.
Our paths first crossed after Eulogy’s MD Phil Borge-Slavnich spent a harrowing week at his husband’s hospital bedside as he was treated for a series of brutal injuries suffered because of a violent hate crime. Since then, Eulogy has been a driving force in support of our work. Their specialist services – including a comms audit and the creation of powerful marketing collateral for us to use – has elevated our positioning and brand to a new level. Equally, the team’s fundraising through various agency initiatives has enabled us to continue our work in opposition to all forms of hate crime and discrimination. Across digital, social, and print, Eulogy wholeheartedly supports our vision, and together we are working to ensure people don’t suffer in silence.
This March 8th marked an important date in our calendars – International Women’s Day. The 2023 IWD theme is to ‘Embrace Equality’. While the event provides an ideal opportunity to focus on celebration, rather than routinely advising women to change their behaviour or the way they think and feel, sadly we also need to acknowledge that women are still disproportionately impacted by street harassment and there is nothing equitable about that.
Every year, I gather with friends during International Women’s Day, and I hear the same outrageous stories. Despite the enormous strides we have made, for every triumph, protest and victory, there is still a wave of misogyny, homophobia, racism, xenophobia, islamophobia, and ableism. Naturally, we comfort one another in solidarity with positive reaffirmations, and, as our celebrations draw to a close, hope that they get home safe – no but really, we’ll need a text to confirm this.
The harm created by street harassment involves many layers of complexity. It erodes our sense of self, chipping away at who we are, how we behave, and the way we think; even when involved in the most mundane of activities, like going home, we are often recalculating our journeys, second guessing, and fearing for our lives.
“She was followed home and was unlocking her front door when she was assaulted”.
– Anonymous reporter
Embracing Equity is not enough.
The impact of street harassment among groups in society is not homogenous, due to the multiple intersections of gender with inequalities based on race, class, sexuality, and disability. Individuals who encounter street harassment are also likely to experience it differently on the basis of the levels of privilege they occupy.
“I saw a woman being harassed by a man for the way she was dressed. He was aggressively shouting at her and saying she was not dressed as ‘a good Muslim.’”
– Anonymous reporter
The good news is we can all do something about it.
Stop Hate UK has successfully launched the Safer Streets app, operating in Waltham Forest and Stay Safe, in Newham. The apps enable you to upload evidence, access specialist support, and report incidents for further investigation by the council and police. The apps also provide a direct route to the 24/7 Stop Hate UK helpline.
Street harassment is something which impacts upon us all. Our Start Safe Stay Safe Street Harassment App is aimed at helping individuals feel safe in our streets, on public transport, and within public spaces – especially those most affected including women and young girls, members of the LGBTQI+ communities, people with a disability, men, and those targeted because of visible signs of their faith or beliefs.
Every day, up and down the country, we witness the incredible bravery and strength it takes to report street harassment. By doing so, you help us build a picture of perceptions of personal safety, and experiences of street harassment so we can better improve responses on the ground and prevent it from happening to others.
Finally, in light of the #EmbraceEquality theme, the call to Embrace Equity should be addressed first by our governments, workplaces, corporations, and the media. It must be directed at tackling the systemic and multiple biases that sustain inequity in so many ways and on so many levels. And it must move from excluding to embracing: embracing a physical, economic, cultural climate that supports and reinforces the wellbeing, safety, economic security, and power of all women, both collectively and as unique individuals.
We thank Eulogy for their enormous contributions and efforts in supporting the work of Stop Hate UK, and helping us to continue furthering our mission.
Stop Hate UK (charity no. 1062692) is a leading national organisation working to challenge all forms of Hate Crime and discrimination, based on any aspect of an individual’s identity through the delivery of a 24-hour support and report helpline which is completely confidential and independent.
