For the first time, the United Kingdom government is planning to treat extreme misogyny as a form of terrorism.
The Telegraph reported that UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has issued an order to review the country’s counter-terrorism strategy to address violence against women, identify gaps in the current laws, and study emerging ideologies.
This move will put violence against women in the bracket of far-right extremism.
Under the proposal, it would be compulsory for school teachers to refer students they suspect of extreme misogyny to the government’s counter-terror program.
The local police will assess anyone who is referred to the program to see if they display signs of radicalisation and need to be deradicalised.
Speaking with The Telegraph, Cooper stated, “For too long, governments have failed to address the rise in extremism, both online and on our streets, and we’ve seen the number of young people radicalised online grow. Hateful incitement of all kinds fractures and frays the very fabric of our communities and our democracy.”
The Labour MP added, “Action against extremism has been badly hollowed out in recent years, just when it should have been needed most.
“That’s why I have directed the Home Office to conduct a rapid analytical sprint on extremism, to map and monitor extremist trends, to understand the evidence about what works to disrupt and divert people away from extremist views, and to identify any gaps in existing policy that need to be addressed to crack down on those pushing harmful and hateful beliefs and violence,” he stated.
This comes after a senior police official warned last month that social media influencers like Andrew Tate could radicalise youth into extreme misogyny in the same way terrorists draw in their followers.
Calling it “quite terrifying,” Deputy Chief Constable Maggie Blyth stated that the Online Safety Act needs to advance further and that rapid actions should be taken in order to protect children.
Earlier last month, the UK’s National Police Chiefs’ Council released a report on violence against women and girls, calling it a “national emergency.”
