Disability hate crime: 'It's the worst I've experienced it'

"Steven Lacey Steven Lacey had gone his whole life without being the target of hate crime, until this last year, in which he has already been abused four times. The 52-year-old, from London, is physically disabled. He has a cleft hand, a missing fibula and a shortened tibia. Steven says the last 12 months have been the worst he's experienced in terms of discrimination, and he says he thinks it's not going to improve any time soon."

"Throughout his life, Steven has had to deal with stares, patronising attitudes, and being asked "what is wrong with you?", but he "never felt like it was at a hate crime level". Last December, in Brentford, Steven suddenly found himself surrounded by a large group of 14 to 15 year olds who started filming and laughing at him. "It was terrifying, it was a really intimidating situation. I didn't know if they wanted to rob me or attack me," he says."

"In February, while Steven was standing outside a hotel bar in Twickenham, a young man came up to him and asked if he was "legless". Then, in May, while he was in the foyer of a high-end Manchester hotel, a man in his 30s came up to Steven and asked what hand he masturbated with. Two weeks ago in Feltham, two older teenage boys approached Steven and asked if his parents were related, and if "you had a baby would it look like you?"."

Steven Lacey, a 52-year-old Londoner with a cleft hand, a missing fibula and a shortened tibia, experienced four abuse incidents in a single year. The incidents ranged from stares and patronising comments to being surrounded and filmed by teenagers, verbal insults asking if he was "legless", invasive sexual questions about his hand, and taunts about his family and appearance. He felt physically threatened on some occasions and has not reported incidents to police because he doubts any investigation will follow. He believes disability hate crime is rising amid a polarised atmosphere and toxic narratives, despite official figures indicating a decline.

Read at www.bbc.com