You will recall me posting regarding the death of Fiona Pilkington and her disabled daughter after suffering at the hands of her neighbours and the authorities failing to take any action as they deemed the harassment  ‘low level’ and not worth investigating, or in other words you have a disabled child you must go away and hide your shame! I was hoping the press would take this sad, but all to common, story and run with it.  I switched on the TV this morning and was immediately met with the BBC running a story on Fiona Pilkington and the condemning results of the Enquiry, ‘no excuses over family’s death’.  I then did a quick search on the net and was pleased to see the amount of coverage is vast and Mencap was on board too.  There is wide spread condemnation toward the Police, Local Authority and Social Services for their failure to act in defence of Fiona and her family, well nothing new there it goes on up and down the the country.  Heck , say disability hate crime to the antisocial team at your local authority and they will deny all knowledge of it’s existence, the police with make you feel like you are making ‘a mountain out of a mole hill’  Well with any luck not any more!

The extensive press coverage will and is bringing this ’silent’ crime into the public eye and people and not happy about it.  No longer will the powers that be be able to dismiss this kind of crime and try and brush it under the carpet, well not in the near future any way. Any Police Officer, Local Authority work, or Social worker that tries will be subject to a barrage of press coming down on them like a ton of bricks, and so they should.  The common man on the street is angry that this goes on all to often, and not just to Fiona and her family and the press are ensuring other incidents are exposed, the more the merrier and the more the blinkers will drop.  To long have the human rights of the disabled been dismissed, especially in the mentally disabled who’s voice is week and the often do understand what is going on.  It’s not just the authorities this happen but in the medical services, hospitals to.  How often have I over heard ‘oh he is backward he wont understand just do it’ being whispered in corners.  How many hospital staff, particularly doctors, slam doors in the face of the mobility challenged?  Yes they do I have had it happen to me which met with a loud gasp from the nurse behind and a loud ‘ignorant doctor’ comment being thrown in any general direction for all around the hear.

The legacy of Fiona Pilkington is that she has highlighted the outrages behaviour toward the disabled, particularly those with a learning difficulty.  But what a shame she had to die, and murder, to do this.