Alex Brown retweetledi
People often ask me why I speak publicly about grooming gangs and child sexual exploitation, and why I hold MPs to account regardless of party.
This is why.
In 1998, my teenage sister was abducted and subjected to hours of rapes and sodomy, he left her for dead. What was done to her changed the course of her life. She lives with severe mental illness and addiction, which are recognised consequences of prolonged childhood sexual trauma. She has received no meaningful, consistent support since the offence occurred.
Because of that trauma, her children were removed from her care. I know this intimately, because I fostered two of them. They are my niece and nephews. Our family has lived with the impact of this crime for more than 27 years.
The man responsible was convicted of multiple offences involving underage girls. At the time of sentencing, in open court, he shouted that he would come back and sexually assault every woman and child in our family. That threat was made while judgment was being passed.
He was given a lengthy prison sentence.
Since then, I have been repeatedly drawn back into the justice system through parole reviews. During the pandemic, Humberside Police’s serious crime unit contacted me to inform me he was again being considered for release.
I provided a victim impact statement on my sister’s behalf, because she is not well enough to do so herself.
What is less often understood is that the harm did not end with my sister.
Because of the threats made in court, and further conduct over time, I required legal protection. A non-molestation order and an exclusion zone were put in place to protect me, my children, and other women in our family.
I am now also formally recognised as a victim of his actions.
After serving over two decades in custody, he was released and then recalled to prison within months for breaching his licence conditions. He is currently back in custody. I am never told the full details. I am simply summoned again, year after year, to repeat the same process.
This is not a political position I have adopted.
This is not something I have joined late.
This is my family’s lived reality.
This is why I speak.
This is why I refuse silence.
This is why safeguarding and accountability matter to me.
When I talk about child sexual exploitation, I am not speculating. I am describing a life my family has lived for more than two decades.
My position is clear.
Life should mean life, I will continue to fight for life without parole for child rapists.
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