“We urgently need to start addressing disability hate crime at its root – and that root is the disgusting demonisation of disabled people,” said Zakariya Cochrane, a London-based housing worker, speaking at UNISON’s disabled members’ conference in Manchester this morning.
With disability hate crime on the rise – in 2011/12, 1,700 cases were reported in England and Wales – the need for action was clear.
David Morgan, a police worker for over 30 years, said: “I can speak from experience: hate crime against any person is a vile and abhorrent offence.”
He called for a clear definition of disability hate crime and a plan to tackle it. And he voiced concern about what the “savage” 20% cuts in policing would mean for tackling the crime.
Conference called for disability hate crime to be a specific criminal offence and called for urgent action to tackle it.
Conference also noted with dismay that, despite the success of the 2012 Paralympics, attitudes towards disabled people have deteriorated. This included the ongoing discrimination against LGBT disabled people that conference agreed needed to be tackled.
Delegates also condemned the increase in the state retirement age to 68 that would be a “financial disaster” for many disabled people, as employers use capability procedures to dispose of workers who “can’t cut the mustard.”
Conference additionally agreed to work to increase participation of deaf members in UNISON.
