UK : Jeremy Corbyn's Commitment To Equality Makes Him The Best Candidate For Women
The chair of Owen Smith's campaign has accused Jeremy Corbyn of not understanding the barriers and prejudices facing women in our society and not providing the leadership on gender equality
Jeremy Corbyn has been accused of not responding strongly enough to misogynist online abuse. However, this week Corbyn's team announced a detailed plan to deal with online harassment by strengthening laws and increasing the responsibility of social media giants, organisations and employers to promote safe and respectful standards within online spaces.
Within our own party, the first ever modern inquiry into discrimination will be used to produce a comprehensive Equal Opportunities Policy, along with training and guidance to stamp out sexism and all other forms of discrimination within our movement.
The current epidemic of misogynistic online abuse means that women who express political opinions are targeted - whoever we support, whatever our political persuasion. Some of the most serious danger to Labour women has come not from the leadership election but from a vocal far-Right; such as the racist recently jailed for antisemitic abuse directed at Luciana Berger, and the coordinated abuse organised by neo-Nazis against Rhea Wolfson when she ran for Labour's NEC.
I'm voting for Corbyn because his commitment to women's equality has been consistent from his days as a trade union worker supporting women in the fight for equal pay, to the far-reaching and comprehensive set of policies on women's equality he announced this week.
There are more women in our shadow cabinet than ever before and Corbyn is supporting 50:50 representation for women within Parliament and across all public offices. For first time an expert panel of women will directly advise the Leader's Office, and every policy will be audited to ensure all of Labour's policies are making progress on women's equality, while Labour's Women's Conference will have a far greater role in shaping our Party's policy.
But we need to go further than representation. Tory cuts have disproportionately harmed women - we have lost our through job cuts in the public sector (65% of public sector workers are women), lost our access to vital and lifesaving services, and have been subjected to a vicious welfare regime where policies like the benefit cap, the bedroom tax and disability support cuts have fallen on the most vulnerable women. With 20% of homeless women having escaped violence, the housing crisis is an issue with a severe impact on women - and policies like Corbyn's secure homes guarantee provide solutions.
In just a year we have shifted the consensus on austerity. After this leadership election we can go beyond that, and make a case for a fairer alternative.
Corbyn's national education service will provide opportunities for women, and take on occupational segregation to get more women into sectors like Science, Technology, Engineering and Manufacturing, while equal pay audits will help to close the gender pay gap by forcing companies to open their books and penalise those that continue to treat women as second-class employees.