Passed: March 2025 (20th)

What do you want? / Why do you want it? 

This policy was originally submitted in 2022 by Lucy Charnley, and is set to expire in March 2025. I would like to renew and amend this policy as I believe Leeds City Council must include misogyny in its list of protected hate crime characteristics. 

As laid out in the original policy, public sexual harassment (PSH) is a major issue facing women and girls in Leeds, and nationwide. It comprises any unwelcome and unwanted attention, sexual advances or intimidating behaviour that occurs in public spaces, both in person and online. The organisation ‘Our Streets Now’ states that this includes “catcalling, wolf whistling, sexualised comments, sexual jokes, taunting, being groped, grabbed or flashed at in public”. 

PSH has wide-reaching consequences, for example women changing their behaviours to avoid harassment, such as not going out after dark, avoiding certain places, changing how they dress, and generally feeling unsafe in public. 

A key theme from the original policy is that it would send a message to perpetrators that the sexualisation and harassment of women is unacceptable and holds consequences, which would undoubtedly make women feel safer, provide a space for women to report incidents, and to educate men and boys on the impact of public sexual harassment. 

What is your proposed change? Why would this Idea benefit students?

My proposed change is for LUU to continue to urge the Members of Parliament to include misogyny as a characteristic of hate crime, so that these incidents can be reported and tracked, which would allow for the later development of specialised support for people who are victimised. 

A meeting of the Scrutiny Board (Environment, Housing and Communities) of Leeds City Council on Friday, 6th December, 2024 10.00 am noted that “misogyny is not currently recognised as a hate crime but has been identified as an area for development by partners in Leeds” [https://democracy.leeds.gov.uk/mgAi.aspx?ID=101024] 

This change would benefit students as the identification and reporting of hate crimes targeted towards women over a long period of time allows for patterns of behaviour to be tracked and addressed. This would pave the way for specialised support for victims, and to identify what triggers abuse. This can further be used as evidence to support the funding of various initiatives which aim to support women before, during and after they are victimised. 

Since Nottingham launched its pilot programme of including misogyny as a hate crime characteristic, it has found a 25% increase in reporting, and in the first two years 265 misogyny hate crimes were recorded. An evaluation of the scheme by researchers from Nottingham and Nottingham Trent universities in 2018 found that 75% of those who reported incidents had a positive experience, although harassment of women and girls particularly from black and minority ethnic groups in public spaces across the city remained endemic, with nine out of 10 respondents either having experienced or witnessed it

Have you considered the impact of the proposed change for traditionally underrepresented student groups?

This proposed change would have a significant impact on traditionally underrepresented student groups at LUU, particularly women, non-binary people, and other gender minorities who are disproportionately affected by misogyny and gender-based violence.

In particular, women from Black and minority ethnic backgrounds, LGBTQ+ individuals, and disabled women often face intersecting forms of discrimination that can make them more vulnerable to misogynistic hate crimes. By pushing for the inclusion of misogyny as a hate crime characteristic, we ensure that their experiences are acknowledged and recorded, helping to build a clearer picture of the specific challenges they face.```

Additionally, the ability to track these incidents over time could highlight patterns that disproportionately affect underrepresented groups, leading to better-informed policies and targeted support. This would also contribute to a wider culture of safety and inclusion within both the university and the city.