Our society is poisoned by discrimination and prejudice against disabled people. Police crime statistics show that the number of disability hate crimes recorded increased by more than 20 per cent in 2010, to 1569, although that is probably a tiny fraction of the real number that occurred. A recent report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission found that ‘many disabled people regard harassment as inevitable’.

In a recently published and acclaimed book, Scapegoat,  Katharine Quarmby asks what can be done to prevent hate crime being perpetrated against disabled people. In her book Katharine analyses the incidence of such crimes and the motivations behind them. And she finds that all too often the assaults were dismissed by social care agencies, before they culminated in murder. Consequently, she asks how and why we are failing disabled people in Britain? Then we must ask, “So where do we go from here? What concrete steps that we can take to achieve much needed and dramatic change”.

‘Scapegoat: how we are failing disabled people in Britain’, was published by Portobello Press on 6 June. It is the first British investigation into disability targeted violence.

Katharine Quarmby is a writer, journalist and film-maker specialising in social affairs, education, foreign affairs and politics, with an investigative and campaigning edge. She has spent most of her working life as a journalist and has made many films for the BBC, as well as working as a correspondent for The Economist, and contributing to British broadsheets, including the Guardian, Sunday Times and the Telegraph.

Katharine was recently the joint winner of the prestigious 2010 Radar Human Rights Person of the Year award for her work on disability hate crime, with friends and colleagues Stephen Brookes and Anne Novis, for their online forum, the ‘Disability Hate Crime Network’. 

Katharine has also won a top award for her groundbreaking portrayal of disability hate crimes, Scapegoat, at the Ability Media International Awards (AMIs) November 2011.

The award was presented at a glittering ceremony at the world famous London Studios. The packed event was attended by some of the UK Arts industry’s most influential and well respected players – including Downton Abbey actor Dame Maggie Smith, childrens’ TV pioneer Anna Home and filmmaker Mike Leigh.

The AMI awards, created by Leonard Cheshire Disability in 2009, identify outstanding creative projects that encourage a more inclusive world for disabled and disadvantaged people.

More details of Katharine’s work can be found at www.katharinequarmby.co.uk

Details of her latest award can be found at http://www.abilitymedia.org