Fairy jobmonster

I took a deep breath and pressed played. Indeed I was watching Fairy Jobmother. The language from the start including the voiceover stated that there was £87billion spent on welfare that was a “burden” on the tax payer… Well, I’ll tell what really is a burden is tax evasion and avoidance by the wealthy but I don’t see any programme encouraging 4 rich tax thieves resplendent with a fairy pay-your-tax-mother  patronising and irritating them with psycho-babble all the way to coughing up the cash.

But no….. we get the usual bilge from the bourgeois media regurgitating Dail Mail headlines, “Workshy” and going on about “unemployed who can work do work”… Yada, yada, yada and so on.

So out of the ether pops Hayley Taylor …. fairy jobmother at your service, a former A4E boss. All perky, pushy, peppy ……..  and a pain. She goes to Bootle armed with tough talking with a mission to get 4 unemployed people jobs in 14 days. Bootle has 64,000 residents, quarter of them claiming benefits.

Taylor’s MO comrpises of tough talking, tough love, oh, tough sh*t if you dare to be selective cos fairy jobmother believes that the unemployed are far TOO selective in choosing jobs. Four individuals (Dave, Louise, Sue and Alex) come up against Taylor’s intensive training as it is all about “structure and routine”. The four of them have different expectations and ideas about work; some have worked before, some have qualifications and so on. Alex wanted to be a cop but dropped out of training due to his mum dying bereavement made him go off the rails, Dave had the measure of Taylor and saw it for what it was while his daughter Louise had never had a job and had very little confidence. Similar to Sue as well.

Taylor gave the 4 challenges which, supposedly, built their confidence and self-worth. Also the experience of work (such as working for free cleaning cars) and pretending to be a town crier where it was all about better communication yet it just seemed like pure humiliation. Then putting Louise onto a checkout which culminated in her bursting into tears. I think no-nonsense Taylor thought it would be useful in throwing Louise into the deep end, one size fits all, no specific tailoring Louise’s needs because fairy jobmother believes as the tax payer is paying the benefits then you shouldn’t have the choices. Any old bloody job will do… oh, and there’s loadsa jobs out there. I suspect there are, but what of the quality? I bet they pay just about the minimum wage. Why can’t unemployed people be allowed to be selective and able to choose what job they want along with qualifications and experiences. But hey, fairy jobmother thinks we are all cogs in the capitalist machine, drones for exploitation.

Eventually, after cajoing and bullying by no-nonsense Taylor combined with the psycho-babble the 4 had interviews. Some successful some not so. The reason I believe, specifically, Louise and Sue had gained self-confidence and self-worth was more to do with the solidarity of the group. The group dynamics showed the lack of belief in themselves but that exposes how many in this society perceives themselves. A society that demonises, vilifies and stigmatises the powerless and this is translated in annoying programmes like “Fairy Jobmother” where unemployed people are given the no-nonsense and bullying treatment. Get a job, any old job, you don’t have the right to choose…..

The jobs they did get were based in the private sector. But ask yourself, how long will these jobs last? Sue seemed happy with her job while Louise got work experience in a garden centre (again she seemed happy), Dave got a job in security and Alex got the job with a cleaning company (though it seems he later got a job in a pub).

What I despise about these programmes and the ethos of Hayley Taylor with her A4E bullshit is the bullying. People already at a low and frustrated ebb psychologically and here comes fairy jobmother to cheer you into the low paid job market. But hey, you can’t be choosy!! It’s conveyor belt one size-fits-all “help”… It’s not based on the terms of the individual but on the terms of the establishment. It’s ideological bullying forcing people into dead-end jobs. Taylor mentioned to the 4 that the changes in welfare would mean that they would be sanctioned if they turn down work and she says that in a serves-you-right tone of voice. The system has failed people but they are blamed, it’s degrading telly. Not so much kindly fairy jobmother but more fairy jobmonster…

If you can stomach it you can see the programme here.

Stop the deportation of Betty Tibakawa

Trigger warning

Betty Tibakawa, a young lesbian living in Uganda, had gone for a walk on the beach when she was approached by three men she did not know, but who knew her by reputation, who began taunting her about her sexuality. They took her to a disused building where she was violently assaulted. The men kicked her in the stomach, pinned her down and branded her inner thighs with hot irons. She lost consciousness and when she woke up, the men were gone. Her injuries were so severe that she could not leave her home for two months.

In February, Ugandan magazine Red Pepper outed Betty as a lesbian, publishing an article about her illustrated with photos, and the claim that she is ‘wanted’ for being a lesbian. It has become incredibly dangerous for her to return to Uganda, where she has been disowned by her family and faces the risk of violent persecution for being gay. As a named lesbian, she is at risk of being targeted for her sexuality, experiencing further violence, imprisonment or even death. Betty has gone from being a bubbly young woman with a bright future at university, to being withdrawn, feeling worthless, frightened and depressed.

Betty Tibakawa has had her asylum application turned down and is facing deportation back to Uganda, where homosexuality is illegal. Gay women who are deported to Uganda risk being raped and assaulted whilst they are in custody. We are petitioning the Home Office to overrule this decision from the UK Border Agency, to give Betty the chance to live a life free from violence and fear. No one should be deported to country where they will be persecuted for their sexuality. We owe those seeking asylum in this country better than this.

Please sign the petition to stop the deportation of Betty here