Harmukh Doshi sentenced to 28 months’ imprisonment on 9 separate accounts of racially-aggravated harassment and offensive communications
At Leicester Crown Court yesterday, Hasmukh Popatlal Doshi was convicted on six counts of sending offensive or menacing communications and three of inflicting racially-aggravated harassment, alarm or distress to Leicester East MP Claudia Webbe.
This is far from the first time that Ms Webbe has been targeted by racists. In 2021, a British man was arrested in Ireland and ultimately convicted for threatening to kill the MP. Skwawkbox exclusively revealed that Claudia Webbe was the target of the man’s threats, while ‘mainstram’ media outlets who bothered to report the arrest chose not to mention her name.
Ms Webbe was also among the Members of Parliament targeted by Ali Harba Ali, who went on to murder Sir David Amess MP.
Ms Webbe said of the harassment and abuse that led to the conviction of Hasmukh Doshi:
This has had a profound impact on me. I was deeply hurt. It was painful to be targeted with such racist and misogynistic abuse. It caused me to question my job, that no matter how much I helped and regardless of the success of some of the outcomes achieved, it was never enough, I would still be the target of hate and regarded as inferior. The racism and misogyny was to belittle and demean me, to cause me hurt. I was absolutely devastated.
As a Member of Parliament, I have come to learn that the role comes with a huge level of criticism and with 40 years of public service and being Black and female, I have learnt to pretend that I am superwoman, in that I had developed ‘a thick skin’ so that nothing could hurt me but this one really did hurt, causing me stress and anxiety, it brought me to tears.
When it comes to Black women, I am all too aware that the public will have heard very little of these past incidents or even the current case, as the media rarely if ever focuses on Black people as victims of crime and very little is mentioned of the abuse and hate Black female MPs experience. “For my own part, I intend as always to keep working for the people of Leicester East and for understanding, unity and cooperation among all our communities.
While abuse toward white women MPs is extensively covered by the press and broadcasters, the horrific and far more common abuse, racism and misogyny toward black women parliamentarians usually receives little or no media attention, especially those on the political left.
Doshi has been sentenced to a total of twenty-eight months’ imprisonment. He is also subject to a three-year restraining order banning him from contacting the MP directly or indirectly, or from making racially-based comments to anyone else.
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