Haughey: ‘I’ve had to report threats’
Rutherglen’s MSP has revealed she has had to report misogynistic abuse to the police during her time in the Scottish Parliament.
Clare Haughey was speaking in the aftermath of the tragic murder of 33-year-old Sarah Everard as she walked back to her home.
The killing in London sparked nationwide vigils and protests, with women urged to “reclaim the streets” after continual violence from men towards women.
Ms Haughey has now called for greater education and more responsibility from social media companies as being among the steps needed to create change.
She told the Reformer: “Like many women in public life, I have been subject to threats by men, some of which have resulted in police involvement.
“Being held accountable and scrutinised by everyone across Rutherglen and Cambuslang, whether they voted for me or not, is right and proper. However, I’ve experienced abusive and threatening behaviour
– often very misogynistic in nature.
“Mainly, these comments are online, when men either hide behind anonymity or would say things they necessarily wouldn’t say to your face. Social media must take their responsibilities more seriously and clamp down on this.
“The best tool we have to combat violence against women is education – boys should be taught from a young age to respect girls and they should learn about consent.
“All men have a key role to play. Whether it’s through simple steps like crossing to the other side of the road to reassure women who are walking alone, to calling out friends or family for misogynistic behaviour.”
Rutherglen councillor Janine Calikes has also warned that violence against women and sexual harassment must not be “swept under the carpet.”
Ms Calikes, who represents Rutherglen Central and North, recently tweeted online about how often women feel unsafe, citing taxi journeys home alone at night as a situation where a woman can be uncomfortable,
She said: “I think the fact that such serious, grave, crimes happen to women, often at the hands of a partner or loved one, with alarming frequency, is partly what has led the rest of us to keep quiet about what we see as less serious infractions, but I am glad that seems to be changing.
“I don’t think I know a single woman who hasn’t changed something, however small and for however long, about the way they had planned to behave due to concerns about a man’s behaviour.
“We need to speak out about how unsafe we feel and how much we modify our lives just to feel a bit safer.”
Councillor Calikes added that she believes greater education for children about issues such as consent could make a difference for future generations.
She explained: “There needs to be a space in early years to have ageappropriate learning take place around consent and bodily autonomy.
“The notions that emotional boys are “wimps” and assertive girls are “bossy” and that both are unappealing or abnormal still persist.
“I am glad that we are finally seeing women speaking openly about their experiences and some men are genuinely asking what they can do to help support us.
“Let’s keep the conversation going. We cannot allow it to be swept back under that carpet just because it’s an uncomfortable topic.”
There are 26 Women’s Aid refuges in South Lanarkshire, including throughout Rutherglen and Cambuslang.
Dr Marsha Scott, the chief executive of Scottish Women’s Aid, said: “What we have seen unfold has been a terrifying example of how women’s space for freedom, and our safety, is overwhelmingly restricted by archaic ideas about how women should act to protect themselves from violence.
“So many women have been sharing their own traumas and experiences of ‘safety planning’ in response to victimblaming media and social media posts.
“Their stories and their rage highlight the many ways that conservative gender norms restrict our rights and movement.”