Rape Crisis Support in Crisis

On the 8th March, 2008, I headed up to London to take part in the International Women’s Day "Million Women Rise" march and to hear the speakers in Trafalgar Square. Two parts of that day have made a lasting impression on me.

The first is so important, that I must urge everyone that reads this blog to think on it, take action and ask others to take action too. This is the first time in my life that I’ve directly asked others to rally around a cause I believe in. I’m not one for imposing my views, so whilst I’ve ‘urged’ you, you can still ignore my request if you like. I won’t mind.

I was absolutely ignorant in not knowing about the following, so when I heard about it, something deep inside me shuddered.

What was it? Well, Rape Crisis Centres have been closing all across England and Wales and many more are under threat. There are now 38 Rape Crisis Centres, when once upon a time ago there were 68. Three out of every four local authority areas have no services for victims of rape, and up to half of the remaining rape crisis centres face closure because of severe funding problems.

This means that the vast majority of people who are raped do not have a rape crisis centre in their area. There are no rape crisis centres in the whole of Bedfordshire or Suffolk. Eight centres have not yet secured funding for 2008-2009, and sixty-nine per cent report that funding is ‘unsustainable’ for the future. There is no national helpline. If you’ve suffered rape and don’t live in the right area, you may have NO ONE with professional training to turn to.

Even if you do live in the right area, the services are overstretched. In Croydon, telephone records showed that one woman had to try 978 times to get through to a helpline. There are only two telephone lines and they’ve had 87 people trying to get through at once. Figures vary on rape statistics, but, according to the Home Office, 5% of women and 0.4% of men experience rape in their life time. Every 34 minutes a rape is reported to the police in the United Kingdom. There were 13,000 recorded rapes in England and Wales last year. Of course, many go unreported

Rape Crisis Centres haven’t been closed due to a lack of demand, but because of a lack of long term funding, and the absence of a strategic approach from the government. Rape isn’t like having your mobile phone nicked. Rape is one of the worse crimes known to humankind.

After much campaigning by the Women's Resource Centre and Rape Crisis, coverage by radio stations and articles in the press, yesterday, the Minister for Women, Harriet Harman, announced that up to £1 million in emergency funding will be provided towards keeping some of the Rape Crisis centres open.

Is this enough? Of course not. How far will a million pounds go to support struggling Rape Crisis services across England and Wales? The combined annual income of the Rape Crisis Centres that have managed to stay afloat (just) is just over £3.5m. That’s when they’ve been dropping off like flies. A million pounds may prevent more closures for now, but it’s a small plaster for a big wound. To put Harman’s announcement in context, Victim Support received £30m from the Government in 2005-06.

I have found two online petitions that are asking the government to take further action. One is heavily marinated in New Statesman sauce (the self publicity seems a bit full on, but the campaign is no doubt coming from the right place). The other neglects the fact that men are raped too. That said they are both trying to secure funding for Rape Crisis services, and every little helps.
Petition for Rape Crisis Services
Petition Against Violence to Women

You can also email kiran@wrc.org.uk with your name and address if you want to add your name to this letter written by the Women’s Resource Centre:
Letter to Gordon Brown about Rape Crisis Centres

So, that’s my rant over.

What was the second part of the day that made a lasting impression? The stupidity of some radical feminists. Some radical feminists appear to hate prostitutes.

Firstly, one of the speakers was gagged just before she was about to get up into the stage. Two of the organising committee members did not approve of her speech and they actually stopped her from making it. Terisa Mackay, of the Solidarity 1st Coalition to Decriminalise Prostitution, was going to propose an open dialogue about the decriminalisation of prostitution in Ipswich. For those of you with hazy memories, Ipswich is the place where five prostitutes were murdered in 2006. It might be controversial, but an open debate could be very useful.

As I stood watching the stage, I could see a disturbance breaking out. People were not happy about the decision. Someone came to the microphone and asked for security to come to stage. Women were not united. Members of organisations, such as the English Collective of Prostitutes, Women Against Rape, All Africa’s Group’s Campaign and the Black Women’s Rape Project, were trying to get to the stage to announce their outrage to the crowd. There were scuffles. There was women on women violence. Girls holding the English Collective of Prostitutes banner in the crowd looked scared, scared of a general backlash, but they held firm. I really admired their spirit and determination.

Secondly, during the march, unbeknownst to me at the time, phone boxes were ransacked and prostitutes’ calling cards were ripped up. Or so I hear. Someone has to replace them, and in the meantime, prostitutes are out of pocket.

The tagline of the march was ‘together we can end male violence against women’, but what about female violence against women? What about ending violence full stop?

By the way, prostitutes get raped too.