Ash Sarkar shames the corporate media for endangering survivors of abuse to protect Boris Johnson

Ash Sarkar and Boris Johnson


Support us and go ad-free

Novara Media senior editor Ash Sarkar has brought shame on the corporate media and right-wing MPs for sidelining domestic violence to protect Boris Johnson’s reputation.

Speaking on the Andrew Marr Show on 23 June, Sarkar called out the pundits who have been downplaying a woman shouting “get off me” late at night. That’s what Johnson’s neighbours reportedly heard when they called the police in the early hours of 21 June.

Still, hard-right figures like James Cleverly MP are painting the neighbours as politically motivated:

 

“Irresponsible” approach

On the BBC, Sarkar branded the narrative “incredibly irresponsible”. On 23 June, more of Johnson’s neighbours came forward, with one saying:

It was a proper tear-up. Glasses being smashed, screaming and a lot of arguing. I thought someone was being murdered.

According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) “two women are killed each week by a current or former partner” as a result of domestic violence. And the ONS has also reported:

In the year ending March 2018, an estimated 2.0 million adults aged 16 to 59 years experienced domestic abuse in the last year (1.3 million women, 695,000 men).

Johnson, meanwhile, is somebody who once conspired to have a journalist’s ribs broken.

“The reason I feel so strongly about this”

Sarkar said:

I think that this coverage of the political views of the neighbours is actually weirdly Mcarthyite. This idea that because they voted Labour, because they were  pro-EU, because she gave the finger to Boris Johnson in the street, the way like 50% of Londerners I think would, that they shouldn’t be trusted and that their motivations for recording the row, the screaming, the smashing were malign.

And she then spoke of the consequences:

The reason I feel so strongly about this is that I think this has negative consequences beyond the Westminster pony show… Having a row in which you shout and you say things you don’t mean, that’s a normal part of relationships. Screaming ‘get off me’ at midnight, hearing thuds, hearing smashing… physical intimation is not a normal part of relationships… To see MPs and right-wing pundits just fall over themselves to normalise it, I think is incredibly irresponsible.

On social media, one barrister hammered the point home:

Suggesting people shouldn’t phone the police when they think they’ve heard domestic violence is dangerous. And male violence against women is an ongoing problem that we need to do more to tackle, not less. What’s concerning is Sarkar was a rare voice of sanity in the corporate media, while right-wingers rushed to protect Johnson – a frequent liar and cheat who apparently has no problem with violence. Utterly shameful.

Featured image via The Left Bible/ Twitter and Guardian News/ YouTube

Support us and go ad-free

We need your help to keep speaking the truth

Every story that you have come to us with; each injustice you have asked us to investigate; every campaign we have fought; each of your unheard voices we amplified; we do this for you. We are making a difference on your behalf.

Our fight is your fight. You’ve supported our collective struggle every time you gave us a like; and every time you shared our work across social media. Now we need you to support us with a monthly donation.

We have published nearly 2,000 articles and over 50 films in 2021. And we want to do this and more in 2022 but we don’t have enough money to go on at this pace. So, if you value our work and want us to continue then please join us and be part of The Canary family.

In return, you get:

* Advert free reading experience
* Quarterly group video call with the Editor-in-Chief
* Behind the scenes monthly e-newsletter
* 20% discount in our shop

Almost all of our spending goes to the people who make The Canary’s content. So your contribution directly supports our writers and enables us to continue to do what we do: speaking truth, powered by you. We have weathered many attempts to shut us down and silence our vital opposition to an increasingly fascist government and right-wing mainstream media.

With your help we can continue:

* Holding political and state power to account
* Advocating for the people the system marginalises
* Being a media outlet that upholds the highest standards
* Campaigning on the issues others won’t
* Putting your lives central to everything we do

We are a drop of truth in an ocean of deceit. But we can’t do this without your support. So please, can you help us continue the fight?

The Canary Support us

Related articles