Challenging Racist Hate Crime: interview with Daphne
You really listened … Advocacy helped me to know my rights … you were there when I needed it
Daphne [not her real name] was referred to Connected Voice’s Hate Crime Advocacy Service by Victims First. She wanted to tell her story and explain how advocacy made a difference so we interviewed her.
Do you want to explain a bit about your case to start with?
I was in a difficult situation with my former landlord, who was racist and abusive to me, for over five years. I had no written contract or tenancy agreement and I paid my rent by cash – he said that he could only take cash to avoid tax. I reported him for this but, as a private tenant, I wasn’t believed. He used the lack of contract and informal payments to intimidate and control me, claiming that I hadn’t paid when I had.
The landlord verbally abused me with racist name-calling, saying that Black people are only good for sex and being cleaners. He was physically violent and forced me to clean his house for free, saying it was to replace the rent I hadn’t paid, even though I had paid. He never gave me any written documents to prove that I had paid the rent even though I kept asking for them and he said he would pay me next time I cleaned, but he never did. When he started to force me to clean for him I reported to the police but was told it was a civil matter and that I needed to negotiate and reason with him. This was impossible to do because he was such a violent person.
He continued making accusations that I hadn’t paid him rent. He manipulated the situation and services repeatedly took his side. People who I spoke to in different services thought the reason I didn’t have a tenancy agreement was because I was having an affair with the landlord, which was not true, but no-one came to investigate any of the reports I made so the situation worsened. The racist verbal abuse and the physical abuse escalated and I was repeatedly told that it wasn’t possible to investigate because there was a lack of evidence. It was impossible for me to take photos or make recordings of his violent behaviour towards me inside the house and as it was indoors there were no witnesses so nothing that was considered as evidence.
What would you say to professionals who get reports like this about abuse from landlords?
I was ignored for so long – no-one wanted to listen or to see the situation I was living in. They have to listen when people are complaining. If someone approaches you with something like this, you should give them a chance to be listened to and investigate their story, particularly when someone has complained on multiple occasions as I had.
When someone is sharing something with you like this, be mindful of the trauma that people have experienced. When someone has experienced something like this, they will already be feeling scared and ashamed. A negative response from someone that they confide in for help is very demoralising and can make them totally shut down. It feels like there is no hope and it becomes harder to open up. Your confidence goes in a situation like this. I started to blame myself and feel like it was my fault as no one listened but I couldn’t have known. It was hard for me to leave the situation and I was in a difficult financial situation because he kept demanding more money. If someone had listened earlier, I would have been in a better situation now. With what I know now about housing rights, I could perhaps have taken him to court, but I didn’t get the information I needed at the right time.
What advice would you give to someone in a similar situation?
My advice for someone in my position is to keep going and speaking to lots of different services - don’t be ashamed to speak to as many people as possible. Tell your story exactly as it is. The more people are negative and jump to conclusions, it starts to make you feel ashamed and you get into your shell and it’s harder to come out and talk to people but don’t give up. Talking to lots of different people you can hopefully find someone who will be more empathetic and listen to you and help. Hopefully you will eventually speak to someone who is able to help and can take action.
In the end I met somebody (my Advocate) who listened, wrote up a report and followed it up the following day. They signposted me to the right people, helped me to move out and taught me about my rights. If there is anything that could be used as evidence, make sure that you keep it, and keep your own copies if you give it to professionals. Make a note of the names of the people that you speak to, their contact details if possible, and the dates that you speak to them so that you can come back to these and refer to them if needed.
My main message is not to be ashamed – it’s not an easy situation when you’re facing negativity and not being listened to but keep going.
How did advocacy help?
We discussed our action plan together step by step. Nothing was vague and you were very clear with me about what you could do to help me move forward. You really listened and it made it easier for me to open up. It was hard for me to speak to services directly after my experiences so it was very helpful to have someone who could speak on my behalf. Advocacy helped me to know my rights and that helped a lot. There was no hidden agenda and I knew you wanted to help. You always gave me information and feedback on any information from services – you were there when I needed it.
As a result of our Independent Advocacy, Daphne:
- Had improved support with Police and Criminal Justice System procedures
- Has improved access to services
- Has improved knowledge of her rights
- Has improved confidence
- Is better able to cope with everyday life
Watch our film Hate relationships: New understandings of hate crime to hear victim/survivors talk about their experiences and the difference support from our Hate Crime Advocacy service has made.
Find out more about our Hate Crime Advocacy Service
If you would like to make a referral for yourself or someone else to this to our Hate Crime Advocacy Service please go to our Referral section
