The last few years of politics have tested loyalties and fractured tribes; for many, it’s tempting to disengage altogether. We have asked contributors to remind us of why politics matters, by reflecting on their formative years. This series of political awakenings shows how family, feelings and unlikely accidents can shape a lifetime of politics…
One night in November 1980, I was followed on my way home from the pub. I was 18, newly arrived in Leeds and living in a YWCA hostel. At the time, the young women of northern England were living under a reign of terror; a serial killer operating in the region had already killed 12 women.
The man who followed me was of medium height with a dark, full beard, wiry hair and black, piercing eyes. I ran into another pub and managed to shake him off. Friends persuaded me to report it to the police and I completed a Photofit, but it was obvious that the officers weren’t taking me seriously.
The next day, the body of the serial killer’s final victim, Jacqueline Hill, was found less than half a mile from where I was followed. It was another two months before Peter Sutcliffe was arrested and confessed to her murder. When his photograph was published, it almost exactly matched my Photofit.
Sutcliffe, nicknamed ‘the Yorkshire Ripper’ by the tabloid press, turned out to be an ordinary, married man living in a suburb of Bradford. His crimes brought attitudes about women in general, and prostituted women in particular, out into the open — and it was in response to this shameful misogyny that I became a committed feminist.
Sutcliffe’s first murder victim — 28-year-old sex worker Wilma McCann — had been discovered in 1975 and, right from the beginning, the West Yorkshire Police were guilty of dragging their feet and bungling the investigation. Complacent officers overlooked vital clues, and inadequate technology was used to collate interviews and intelligence reports. And all the while, Sutcliffe just kept killing — with hammers, screwdrivers and knives.
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SubscribeYes! This very important topic and the case of the Yorkshire Ripper reminds me of the 1989 book by Joan Smith titled Misogynies. Among other things it features an essay on Sutcliffe.
Joan also has a website.
I think you are misinterpreting what you hear Julie. Sutcliffe was a lunatic, as are all serial killers, your feminism will achieve nothing where insanity is involved. And the harsh talk such as “she had it coming etc” I suggest is old-fashioned disapproval of loose morals and one way of putting out the message that being a prostitute is dangerous. Many of such men (and women) who talk like that are fathers, parents, who dread their daughters or any other female relative descending into prostitution and danger.
While I sympathise with your idealism, a world without hatred and violence can only be a fantasy.
Your focus on only violence against women is a bit strange considering at least twice as many men are murdered each year in this country, why don’t you care about male victims ?
Do you not like men ?
Julie makes some fair points which appear to be based on lived experiences, facts and probably research, as that is her job. I agree with you Claire that Sutcliffe was not of sound mind, no-one can be if they do the sort of things he did. However, I find some of your other comments dismissive of the realities and I cannot see they are based on research, lived experiences or facts. If they are please share.
If you also look up the vast research into and information on violence against women, and the various areas it covers, you may also learn something about the stats you quote. Julie is undoubtedly not saying she doesn’t care about male victims of violence and crime, who would. However, she is talking about a real issue that unfortunately does still exist. There have been some things change and progress, and there have been some things that haven’t.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I found yours very dismissive and somewhat rude to some valid points and observations Julie made.