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Next month on February 19, protesters will gather nationally outside Atos centres to peacefully protest the inhumane treatment of people receiving employment support allowance, and its predecessors incapacity benefit and the severe disablement allowance.
The protests will be spearheaded by disabled activists who have had to bear the brunt of the cuts made by the government of millionaires.
A key demand of these protesters is that the government no longer uses ATOS to preform these assessments.
Campaigners come from a wide diverse section of society ranging from disabled people who are directly effected by the changes in the administration of benefits to concerned citizens worried about the treatment of the most vulnerable in society.
Protesters are also calling for an apology from Iain Duncan Smith and Thierry Breton, Chairman and CEO of ATOS to the six families of benefit claimants who took their lives following decisions made by ATOS:
Tim Salter, a 53 year old blind man suffering with agoraphobia.
Lee Robinson, 39, of Crawley, Sussex, who was the first person in whose suicide could be attributed to the government’s changes.
Shaun Pilkington, 58, who was sent a letter saying he was to lose his Employment and Support Allowance, which he got after a long-term illness.
Edward Jacques, 47, of Sneinton, Nottingham, who took a fatal overdose after his benefit payments were stopped. Richard Sanderson, 44, of Southfields, south-west London, stabbed himself in the heart.
Jacqueline Harris, a 53-year-old former nurse from Bristol, was found dead at her home, likely having taken an overdose of medications after she was pronounced fit for work in November 2012.
Campaigners are worried this list is set to grow and grow unless urgent action is taken to reverse the perverse treatment and demonisation of benefit claimants.
Although the idea is laudable the media isn’t interested as there is more to be made by demonising the sick and disabled than the truth. If the demonstration were to affect parliament or disrupt London traffic it would get a lot more coverage from the media. I think that we have to remember that the dogs behaviour is usually down to the training from the owner and if you only shoot the dog the owner just gets another dog so maybe it would be better going after the owner to start with.
Not sure about the dog analogy – they can’t shoot us all.
I agree that waving placards ineffectually down at Westminster at people behind security cordons who don’t give a fuck is a waste of time. Civil and peaceful disobedience is the way to go in my view.