Budgets, layers, and motorbikes

Reflections of a feminist

As Chancellor George Osborne prepares to amuse us with an emergency budget (aka "summer budget 2015")  - amongst other things seeking to cap benefits at 20K outside London and introduce further austerity measures, I get a lot of questions about the impact of further cuts on women.

Without a doubt, women will be bearing the brunt of austerity most.

Before we even get to the question of gender equality in the face of tightening budgets, let's take a step back and see all extra levels of vulnerability that come with age, ethnicity, documented presence in the UK, and others. Creating various layers of vulnerability to austerity is not helpful. We are all in the same boat, and the boat is sinking.

In the face of a neoliberal budget proposal, we should stay united. United across age, gender, race and ethnicity. United - dare I say it - even across right to live and work in the UK.

It would be no different than looking at violence and abuse against women. Is creating layers of abuse going to be helpful to anyone? Oh, she nearly died when she was last assaulted so deserves support, while somebody who is mentally abused on the daily basis - well, she needs to climb up some steps of abuse before we get to help her.  Abuse is just that - abuse. There is no little abuse, or somewhat abuse, or OMG abuse.

By layering up these levels of vulnerability, we create a platform for these policies of austerity to flourish. By giving in to the thought that we need to classify people and put them inside boxes of deserving and undeserving, we are playing their game. 

Well I say game over. 

The way things are run now is not working and we don't have to accept them as a given. Time to get on that motorbike and ride into the sunset or something.