As someone living with Cerebral Palsy and Hydrocephalus who uses a wheelchair to navigate daily life I’ve been a victim of hate crime on numerous occasions.
There was one notable occasion on Thursday, December the 5th 2019 when I was wheeling home from an evening out in my local city centre.
As I wheeled through the city centre a group of youths came out of an ally way and walked past me, one of the group however felt it necessary to shout “ you alright C****le” as our paths crossed for a few seconds.
After the incident occurred I did report it to the police, which meant that using CCTV in the city centre one of the group was identified as a potential suspect.
When questioned by the police about the incident the potential suspect was not prepared to cooperate, this meant that nothing more could be done to resolve the incident of hate crime.
This means that I have to live with the consequences of what those individuals said to me on that night for the rest of my life.
My message to those who think that it’s okay to subject us to abuse that amounts to any form of hate is this, “please stop you will never truly understand the impact your words and actions have on us”.
“ if you haven’t got anything nice to say then don’t say anything at all”
At a Lewis Capaldi concert in January 2023 the couple of people that were sat next to me and my best friend, Dan decided to call me a Cr***le and make remarks about my height.
Read all about that experience: https://just-being-cp.co.uk/2023/01/29/being-abused-at-lewis-capaldis-concert-in-birmingham/
I welcome these changes to the “ Crime and Policing bill” that will see crimes become aggravated offences, if a victim is targeted because of there disability which will carry a higher penalty.
Hopefully this will deter individuals from committing these types of crimes, however in my opinion I don’t think that it will, which is really disappointing.
The big question is “ why is this being brought through parliament now when it should have happened many years ago.
Please get it through parliament as quickly as possible!!!
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It is only right that I take the opportunity to thank “ Members of Parliament” who have championed this bill so that people are protected from these types of crimes, it doesn’t go unnoticed and is very much appreciated.
A thank you must also go to you my regular loyal readers and social media followers who continually take the time out of your busy schedules to read my latest posts, it doesn’t go unnoticed and is of course very much appreciated.
Cam
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