‘Muslim grooming gangs’ have become a defining feature of media, political and public debate around child sexual exploitation in the UK. The dominant narrative that has emerged to explain a series of horrific cases is misleading, sensationalist and has in itself promoted a number of harms. This article examines how racist framings of ‘Muslim grooming gangs’ exist not only in extremist, far-right fringes but in mainstream, liberal discourses too. The involvement of supposedly feminist and liberal actors and the promotion of pseudoscientific ‘research’ have lent a veneer of legitimacy to essentialist, Orientalist stereotypes of Muslim men, the demonisation of whole communities and demands for collective responsibility. These developments are situated in the broader socio-political context, including the far Right’s weaponisation of women’s rights, the ‘Islamophobia industry’ and a long history of racialising crime. We propose alternative ways of understanding and responding to child sexual exploitation/abuse. We contend that genuinely anti-racist feminist approaches can help in centring victims/survivors and their needs and in tackling serious sexual violence without demonising entire communities.

中文翻译：

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失败的受害者，助长仇恨：挑战“穆斯林美容团伙”叙事的危害

“穆斯林美容团伙”已成为围绕英国儿童性剥削的媒体、政治和公共辩论的一个决定性特征。为解释一系列可怕案件而出现的主流叙事具有误导性、耸人听闻的特点，并且本身就助长了许多危害。本文探讨了“穆斯林美容帮派”的种族主义框架如何不仅存在于极端主义的极右翼边缘，而且也存在于主流的自由主义话语中。所谓的女权主义者和自由主义者的参与以及伪科学“研究”的推广，为穆斯林男性的本质主义、东方主义刻板印象、整个社区的妖魔化和集体责任的要求提供了合法性的外衣。这些发展处于更广泛的社会政治背景下，包括极右翼将妇女权利武器化，“伊斯兰恐惧症行业”和种族化犯罪的悠久历史。我们提出了理解和应对儿童性剥削/虐待的替代方法。我们认为，真正的反种族主义女权主义方法可以帮助集中受害者/幸存者及其需求，并在不妖魔化整个社区的情况下解决严重的性暴力问题。