The grooming gangs scandal shames Britain

Our country is finally being forced to reckon with a disaster we have ignored for too long

By now, I doubt any of our readers need their attention drawn to the depravity that characterised the almost industrial-scale rape of young, largely white girls in towns and cities across the country by gangs of predominantly Pakistani men. Like a repressed memory suddenly brought to the surface, the details continue to shock and outrage. For anyone on X, there seems no end to the horrors described by the victims - and those few journalists who have been bravely trying to draw our attention to what happened.

This is not just about the brutal, dehumanising violence of the perpetrators. This is also about the conspiracy of silence - and sometimes more than just silence - of elites across the country. Personal ambition, political expediency, and a desire to avoid difficult questions being asked about multicultural Britain - all of this conspired to ensure that the story was repeatedly brushed under the carpet. Undoubtedly the entire political class is implicated in one way or another.

Even now, certain dogged defenders of “respectable” opinion are more concerned about the fact that Elon Musk has turned the grooming gangs into his personal crusade than they are about the facts of the matter.

Where will this debate go? At the Academy of Ideas office, we’ve been asking what should come next. Many across the country are calling for a national inquiry. Normally, we would caution that inquiries are part and parcel of the way that Britain’s elites genuflect towards the existence of tragedies without really changing anything. Inquiries are often tightly stage-managed to ensure that no serious action is taken, and that the recommendations provide excuses for what the elite wanted to do anyway. This time, though, we are less sure. There has to be some method for sifting through the plethora of sickening facts and holding to account everyone who downplayed, denied or even covered up what was going on.

The only thing we do know is that a national conversation on this topic is far overdue. Only through searching national conversation - that remains, contrary to those already seeking to censor social media, stubbornly unrestricted - can we come to terms with what happened and hold those responsible to account. Likewise, only such a conversation holds any hope of a cold examination of the values which led us here in the first place. State multiculturalism, the degradation of former industrial heartlands, the dismissive attitude of the police, the cultivation of so-called “migrant communities”, the racial hatred of those perpetrators towards young white girls, and the desire not to rock the boat when it comes to questions of race - all this and more must be up for debate.

It seems clear that, so long as we commit to talking and demanding action about this, there will be no more sweeping this scandal under the carpet. The scale of what has happened, and the refusal to engage with it, truly is a stain on our country. But hopefully we stand a chance of finally addressing it.

In our humble attempt to contribute to this national dialogue, please see below a number of debates and interventions we’ve been involved in at the Academy of Ideas over the years. The list includes debates from many years ago as well as speeches and interviews. This is an issue we’ve been making noise about for some time.

Podcast with Claire Fox: The Grooming Gangs Scandal: A breakthrough moment (2024)

Recently, Claire Fox was a guest on the Rational Voices with Sunil podcast, where she discussed the scandal and the hypocrisy of those who were shouting to the rooftops about #MeToo but then suspiciously silent about the abuse of girls across the country.

Claire Fox in the House of Lords: Do only some girls matter? (2022)

Back in 2022, Claire Fox asked a question in the House of Lords about the two tier reaction to stories of abuse. The response of many Peers to Claire’s recounting of the horrors of grooming gangs abuse was not outrage at the abuse, but tuts towards Claire and one Peer telling her it was “disgraceful” for her to mention it. This proved how desperate the establishment has been to deliberately ignore the horrors of the grooming gangs.

Battle of Ideas festival live podcast: The grooming gangs scandal (Winston Marshall Show) (2024)

Charlie Peters is one of the few journalists to have doggedly pursued the story of the scandal. In this live podcast, he spoke with Winston Marshall and the Legatum Institute’s Guy Dampier. In this clip below, Guy explains how Wikipedia editors repeatedly tried to downplay the seriousness, and racial component of the scandal. You can watch the whole episode here on Winston Marshall’s channel.

Identity politics and the rise of ethnic conflict - Battle of Ideas festival debate (2024):

This debate from our most recent Battle of Ideas festival looks at how mass migration and identity politics have fuelled a rise in inter-ethnic conflict in the UK. Given the details of how some grooming gang rapists harboured an intense racial hatred of their white victims, this is an issue that requires serious thought.

Our friends at Worldwrite have the video of the opening speeches:

From grooming gangs to child protection a scandal in plain sight? - Battle of Ideas festival Buxton debate (2022):

From our festival in the northern town of Buxton, this debate asks if there a crisis within the criminal justice system and statutory services, or if a society-wide preoccupation with political correctness and safety culture distracted agencies from protecting those children most at risk from exploitation, abuse and neglect? Listen here.

From safeguarding to grooming gangs: is child protection working? - Battle of Ideas festival debate (2018):

This debate asks how the grooming gangs scandal was allowed to happen, and whether an elite focus on “child protection” paradoxically distracted attention from genuine threats to young people. Listen here

https://battleofideasarchive.podbean.com/e/from-grooming-gangs-to-child-abuse-is-social-work-working/