Right folks,
There's a petition been started to get the definition hate crime changed to include "crimes committed against a person or persons, on the basis of their appearance or subcultural interests."
Fairly obviously, this is the result of the murder and attempted murder, of Sophie Lancaster and her boyfriend, Robert Maltby, while walking through Stubbylee Park in Bacup, Rossendale in Lancashire, last year.
To recap upon what happened:
While returning home, Lancaster and Maltby were subjected to a "vicious mob attack" from "a large group of people" between 01:10 hours and 01:20 hours on Saturday, 11 August 2007, at the skate park area of Stubby Lee Park, Bacup.[2] The couple were walking home and came across a group of teenagers at the entrance to the park. The group followed them but there was no trouble till some of them suddenly assaulted Robert Maltby without provocation. When he was knocked unconscious the gang attacked Sophie Lancaster, who was trying to protect him by cradling him in her arms. One witness a 15-year-old boy, told police: "They were running over and just kicking her in the head and jumping up and down on her head." One distraught witness used a mobile to call for emergency services saying: "We need, we need an ambulance at Bacup Park, this mosher’s just been banged because he’s a mosher." [5] Witnesses revealed that afterwards: "The killers celebrated their attack on the goths - or "moshers" - by telling friends afterwards that they had "done summat good", and claiming: "There's two moshers nearly dead up Bacup park - you wanna see them -they're a right mess." " [6]
Police said soon afterwards it was "a sustained attack during the course of which the pair received serious head injuries and their faces were so swollen we could not ascertain which one was female and which one was male." Both were hospitalised as a result of the attack, first at Rochdale Infirmary.[1] Maltby's injuries left him in a coma with bleeding on the brain, but he gradually recovered over the next two weeks. Lancaster, in a deep coma, was moved to Fairfield Hospital - Bury then to the Neurology unit at Hope Hospital in Salford. It became clear to hospital staff she would not recover from her injuries and on August 24, 2007 her family agreed to switch off life support and Lancaster died.
Meanwhile, the trail has started.
Clicky.
There has also been released a recording of the 999 call that was made from the scene.
If you're resident in the UK, please sign the petition.
http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/goth-hatecrimes/
Thank you.
Sophie Lancaster Petition.
- weebleswobble
- Underneath the Rock
- Posts: 5875
- Joined: 09 Feb 2006, 06:57
- Location: The Bat-Milk Cave
- Contact:
Me and my Dawnrazor peeps have actioned this, thanks in large to Wild Bill and his overtly large heart
Now all I need is a petition to hang the little bastards....
Now all I need is a petition to hang the little bastards....
‎"We will wear some very loud shirts. We will wear some very wrong trousers."
- Hexe Luciferia
- Utterly Bastard Groovy Amphetamine Filth
- Posts: 785
- Joined: 11 Feb 2008, 11:36
- Location: In Wonderland without Alice
- Contact:
I'm going to pass it on to my England residing friends.
Ta muchly
Ta muchly
I'll shove that bat up your a** and turn you into a popsicle
- Syberberg
- Utterly Bastard Groovy Amphetamine Filth
- Posts: 959
- Joined: 17 Feb 2006, 05:46
- Location: The People's Republic of West Yorkshire.
:notworthyweebleswobble wrote:Me and my Dawnrazor peeps have actioned this, thanks in large to Wild Bill and his overtly large heart
You're confusing "petition" with "cue" there weebs.Now all I need is a petition to hang the little bastards....
I don't necessarily agree with everything I think.
- Andy Christ 666
- Gonzoid Amphetamine Filth
- Posts: 267
- Joined: 19 Aug 2005, 01:01
- Location: Walsall, West Midlands, England.
- Contact:
Signed, lets just hope the government take notice.
EDIT: Hope you don't mind, but I've copied and pasted the first post with the links to put on a bikers forum that I go on.
EDIT: Hope you don't mind, but I've copied and pasted the first post with the links to put on a bikers forum that I go on.
- Syberberg
- Utterly Bastard Groovy Amphetamine Filth
- Posts: 959
- Joined: 17 Feb 2006, 05:46
- Location: The People's Republic of West Yorkshire.
Of course I don't mind mate.Andy Christ 666 wrote:Signed, lets just hope the government take notice.
EDIT: Hope you don't mind, but I've copied and pasted the first post with the links to put on a bikers forum that I go on.
Remiss of me not to thank you sooner Hexe. And you too KorinHexe Luciferia wrote:I'm going to pass it on to my England residing friends.
Ta muchly
I don't necessarily agree with everything I think.
- reactiv8
- Utterly Bastard Groovy Amphetamine Filth
- Posts: 568
- Joined: 16 Jul 2007, 03:27
- Location: The Horror
Signed.
They (The Establishment) use sex as an addiction for control, just as they use alcohol and drugs ...
- A programme of systematic frustration in order to sell this crock of s**t as immortality, a garden of delights and love. ...
- A programme of systematic frustration in order to sell this crock of s**t as immortality, a garden of delights and love. ...
- reactiv8
- Utterly Bastard Groovy Amphetamine Filth
- Posts: 568
- Joined: 16 Jul 2007, 03:27
- Location: The Horror
The least I can do ...
They (The Establishment) use sex as an addiction for control, just as they use alcohol and drugs ...
- A programme of systematic frustration in order to sell this crock of s**t as immortality, a garden of delights and love. ...
- A programme of systematic frustration in order to sell this crock of s**t as immortality, a garden of delights and love. ...
- robertzombie
- Overbomber
- Posts: 4382
- Joined: 05 Sep 2005, 12:49
- Location: London
Signed and posted on the London Goth Meet Up group website.
- Hexe Luciferia
- Utterly Bastard Groovy Amphetamine Filth
- Posts: 785
- Joined: 11 Feb 2008, 11:36
- Location: In Wonderland without Alice
- Contact:
@Syberberg: that is the least one can do.
I'll shove that bat up your a** and turn you into a popsicle
- Hexe Luciferia
- Utterly Bastard Groovy Amphetamine Filth
- Posts: 785
- Joined: 11 Feb 2008, 11:36
- Location: In Wonderland without Alice
- Contact:
I'll shove that bat up your a** and turn you into a popsicle
W@nkersWithin this broad definition, legislation focuses on hate crimes on the basis of race, faith, sexual orientation, disability and gender identity - and it is these categories which are currently monitored. We do not plan to extend this to include hatred against people on the basis of their appearance or sub-cultural interests. These are not intrinsic characteristics of a person and could be potentially be very wide ranging, including for example allegiance to football teams - which makes this a very difficult category to legislate for. However, it is important to remember that this is within a legal framework that assumes that all violence is a very serious matter; and in addition, judges have discretion to look at a wide range of mitigating and aggravating factors when they are sentencing - and are likely to view attacks motivated by hatred of this kind as very serious indeed.
Will you let it rest there?
I don't know how much chances you have to bring on this petition, but as I see it, the PM took a pretty weak point saying mainly "We do as we do, BUBBA!".
As you didn't claim only goths to be protected by that change of law you targeted achieving a public benefit as I see it.
The chav-type of folks that attacked Sophie would be protected by that law as much from attacks by Skins or Mods or whaever is floating around in their pond to bite them the same. Maybe the title of that petition was chosen a bit misleadingly. I think of retrying as a good idea.
And the petiton as such seems to be a very decent idea to me.
I don't know how much chances you have to bring on this petition, but as I see it, the PM took a pretty weak point saying mainly "We do as we do, BUBBA!".
As you didn't claim only goths to be protected by that change of law you targeted achieving a public benefit as I see it.
The chav-type of folks that attacked Sophie would be protected by that law as much from attacks by Skins or Mods or whaever is floating around in their pond to bite them the same. Maybe the title of that petition was chosen a bit misleadingly. I think of retrying as a good idea.
And the petiton as such seems to be a very decent idea to me.
"These are my principles! And if you don't like the just says so, I have others, too!"
~Rufus T. Firefly
~Rufus T. Firefly
- EvilBastard
- Overbomber
- Posts: 3931
- Joined: 01 Feb 2006, 17:48
- Location: Where the Ruined Tower shouts
I'm not entirely sure that I agree with the concept of a "hate crime" - it's been said by people more eloquent than I in other places but if someone beats someone else to death then does it really matter if it was because the victim was black, gay, or Jedi? What matters is that a crime has been committed, and that the person responsible is brought to book. Once you start saying "Beating the crap out of someone will get you 1 year in prison, but beating the crap out of a gay person for being gay will get you 5 years," you're making one rule for one group and one rule for another.
If we want a society where all people are equal in the eyes of the law then we need to start punishing all crimes with equal rigour. While there may be mitigating circumstances that need to be taken into account ("I beat the crap out of this person because he broke into my house and raped my tortoise"), ultimately crime is crime, and it makes no difference against home it is perpetrated. If I were to be set upon by a group of white middle-class men and beaten to death should they receive a lesser sentence than if I were an old black lady or a young pakistani lesbian?
If we want a society where all people are equal in the eyes of the law then we need to start punishing all crimes with equal rigour. While there may be mitigating circumstances that need to be taken into account ("I beat the crap out of this person because he broke into my house and raped my tortoise"), ultimately crime is crime, and it makes no difference against home it is perpetrated. If I were to be set upon by a group of white middle-class men and beaten to death should they receive a lesser sentence than if I were an old black lady or a young pakistani lesbian?
"I won't go down in history, but I probably will go down on your sister."
Hank Moody
Hank Moody
- MadameButterfly
- HL's mystical safekeeper
- Posts: 6938
- Joined: 12 Jul 2005, 09:29
- Location: in my own galaxy
All I can say is I do protect my own kind of people...
Whatever it takes however small I may seem...
Whatever it takes however small I may seem...
it's all about circles and spirals
that ongoing eternity
that ongoing eternity
- Syberberg
- Utterly Bastard Groovy Amphetamine Filth
- Posts: 959
- Joined: 17 Feb 2006, 05:46
- Location: The People's Republic of West Yorkshire.
I think you've misunderstood the intent of hate crime laws slightly. They make the motive itself a crime. It's a tool, albeit an extremely blunt one, to discourage discrimination. What it means legally is that you can dislike a person for being different, but you can't murder them for it. IF it helps to stop people from killing each other just because they have a different skin colour, sexuality or dress sense, then I see it as a good thing. In an ideal world, of course, no one would feel the need to kill each other for the utterly pathetic reason that "they were chavs/punks/goths/gay/black/Asian/French/etc.." The only legitimate reason for killing another human being is self defense.EvilBastard wrote:I'm not entirely sure that I agree with the concept of a "hate crime" - it's been said by people more eloquent than I in other places but if someone beats someone else to death then does it really matter if it was because the victim was black, gay, or Jedi? What matters is that a crime has been committed, and that the person responsible is brought to book. Once you start saying "Beating the crap out of someone will get you 1 year in prison, but beating the crap out of a gay person for being gay will get you 5 years," you're making one rule for one group and one rule for another.
If we want a society where all people are equal in the eyes of the law then we need to start punishing all crimes with equal rigour. While there may be mitigating circumstances that need to be taken into account ("I beat the crap out of this person because he broke into my house and raped my tortoise"), ultimately crime is crime, and it makes no difference against home it is perpetrated. If I were to be set upon by a group of white middle-class men and beaten to death should they receive a lesser sentence than if I were an old black lady or a young pakistani lesbian?
On the other hand, the concept hate crime legislation raises an interesting question: Are they the beginnings of Thought Crime?
I don't necessarily agree with everything I think.
- MadameButterfly
- HL's mystical safekeeper
- Posts: 6938
- Joined: 12 Jul 2005, 09:29
- Location: in my own galaxy
What Andy TG says!Andy TG wrote:I would be happy to sign it - but the end date has passed :-( - should another be put up I will sigh that.
it's all about circles and spirals
that ongoing eternity
that ongoing eternity
I think this all comes from wanting to reinforce to the ignorant that appearance/race/class/sex/age is not a reason to judge or hate a person. Everybody has the same basic feelings and needs, but still in the 21st century there are people who don't understand this. Ignorance and narrow mindedness are still rife in this age, no matter how much we or the government (us and them) kid ourselves that they aren't.
I think introducing a law relating to racism etc would be a good thing, even if to just reinforce these basic rights and wrongs. It would make headlines and make an impact. Maybe not a clean sweep, but it would start to make a difference.
I think introducing a law relating to racism etc would be a good thing, even if to just reinforce these basic rights and wrongs. It would make headlines and make an impact. Maybe not a clean sweep, but it would start to make a difference.
To not know and to ask a question is a moment of embarrassment; to not know and not ask is a lifetime of shame.