University News Last updated 25 November 2021
A leading Criminologist has called for a cultural reset to stem the epidemic of violence towards women.
Liz Yardley, Professor of Criminology at Birmingham City University, believes ‘well intentioned’ discussions about categorising misogyny as a hate crime, fail to address the real systemic issues which lead to gendered violence.
Instead Professor Yardley believes we need a dramatic shift in values and beliefs to reassess how society views men and women to tackle the underlying issues which lead to crimes like Sarah Everard’s murder earlier this year.
Her comments come on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (25 November), and mark the start of the White Ribbon Campaign - a 16-day initiative aimed at bolstering activism against gender-based violence.
Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid, one of the University’s charity partners, is among the organisations leading calls for engagement in the campaign, which this year focusses on allyship and the active role all men can play in tackling violence towards women.
Professor Yardley said: “In terms of making misogyny a hate crime, whilst I think this is well intentioned, I think we’re barking up the wrong tree there.
“There seems to be the view that if we criminalize a behaviour, we stop it happening. Well, we did that with stalking in 2012 - that still happens. We did it with coercive control in 2015, and that still happens.
“What we need to focus on are the drivers of misogyny. This involves taking a good look at why people behave in this way, and that means examining our values, attitudes and beliefs about who men and women are and how we expect them to behave in society.
Professor Yardley leads research into violence against women, and the cultural and societal factors which lead to instances such as domestic abuse.
The University has been partnered with local charity Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid since 2018.
The charity has been supporting women affected by domestic violence and abuse in the Birmingham and Solihull area for over 40 years.
Speaking about White Ribbon Campaign, Anna Fawcett, Income Generation and Corporate Relationships Manager at Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid, said: “Today is the White Ribbon Day which is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and we’re asking everybody to take the white ribbon pledge.
“The pledge means that you will never excuse, never commit and never stay silent, on violence against women.
“We welcome comments from academics such as Professor Yardley, as we agree that cultural change on a grand scale is required to tackle men’s violence against women. In the meantime we will continue to offer life-saving services to women and children in our area.”
During the White Ribbon campaign, Birmingham and Solihull Women’s Aid will be shining light on groups of women whose experiences of domestic abuse are often overlooked or misunderstood, such us older women, women who may not speak English as a first language, women with disabilities and women on the LGBTQ+ spectrum.
The charity runs a confidential helpline where a specially trained team of female workers provide emotional and practical support to women and children affected by domestic violence and abuse. Last year, during the early weeks of the pandemic, they have also launched a webchat service which has helped hundreds of women and children to gain confidential advice and support.
Currently the webchat is open Monday to Friday and BSWA is campaigning to raise the funds to extend the service into the weekend. More information on how to donate to the BSWA Webchat Campaign can be found here.