I write interviews, reviews, investigative features and longform explainer articles. Please find below some of my recent work:
Northern Ireland’s Epstein: Power, privilege and the PR ‘guru’ determined to protect his pervert son
Jeffrey (Jeff) Anderson pleaded guilty on 27th May 2020 to 10 separate charges of voyeurism against 10 women, recording a female doing a private act for his own sexual gratification, knowing she did not consent to being recorded, sexually assaulting one woman, and assaulting one woman, occasioning her actual bodily harm.
The Incarcerated Firefighters Risking Their Lives for $1 an Hour
Following the introduction of the 13th Amendment, the abolition of slavery left huge gaps in the American labour market. Work that had once been carried out by force, for free, was no longer being completed. Meaning former slave owners and heads of industries that once utilised slave labour needed another way to fill the void of labour following the ‘end’ of slavery.
The Gulf State’s Missing Princesses
In a chilling video declaration made by Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed al-Maktoum before her infiltrated escape attempt, Latifa tells us “I hope this video gets deleted and we’re all okay. My father is the worst criminal you can ever imagine in your life. He doesn’t care. They’re not going to take me back alive.”
Child Slaves of the Cosmetics Industry
The beauty industry is no stranger to moral debate, from animal testing and plastic pollution, to the perpetuation of unachievable standards in physical appearance for women and young girls; campaigns have been fought and won and the ever-changing face of beauty has been forced to adapt to escape its ugly depths.
Tourism, Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking
Slavery and human trafficking may seem like phenomena of the past, horrors best left to be commemorated at vigils, memorials or by sharing a Facebook post on a particular day of the year. Perhaps they represent something happening on the other side of the world. However, modern slavery and human trafficking is affecting people in almost every community around the globe. From slave labour to debt bondage, forced criminal activity and sexual exploitation; modern slavery takes on many forms that can be hard to detect and dangerous to escape.
Interview with BBC Radio 4 Resident Poet Hollie McNish
Hollie’s work explores heavily the theme of modern day motherhood, experiences around the shame of breastfeeding and the anonymity one feels once you become ‘mum.’ Quite uniquely, and most likely why she caught the attention of the Ted Hughes panel, Hollie uses these accessible themes to engender a dialogue around much broader, more politically weighted topics.
The Chilling World Of Instagram’s Child Sex Models
Type #teenmodel on Instagram’s search facility and you may find yourself suddenly aware of who is overlooking your screen. The hashtag count currently stands at 1.1 million images and whilst Instagram requires a user to be 13 years of age before they open an account, this is rarely upheld and virtually impossible to enforce.
Let’s Talk about Regent, Rugby and Rape
There were two types of kids in my school, ones who attended Medallion parties and ones who didn’t (disclosure: I didn’t). Medallion parties where hosted after every match during the season by a member of the Medallion rugby team.The Medallion rugby team was made up of the best rugby players in the year, all boys aged between 14 and 15. The parties were hosted at the home of one of the players and in attendance where the most popular, outgoing and beautiful people from that school year. If you are picturing something from an American high school teen movie, you’re probably on the right track.
Syrian Refugees: Speak of Their Experiences of Being Resettled in Leeds
All too frequently the stories of unrelenting courage, determination and resilience in the face of adversity, the true day-to-day accounts of so many fleeing their homeland, are lost.
How Can Britain Claim to be Progressive When it Continues to Detain Vulnerable Women?
Hunger strikes, forced labour, indefinite detainment, inhumane treatment carried out against victims of rape, human trafficking, forced marriage and gender based sexual violence. This list of human rights abuses reads like the crimes of a foreign nation placed on a UN watch list, rebuked by the UK for its corruption and exploitation.
Regardless of the Outcome, Repeal the 8th is a Testimony to the Power of Women
Ireland is a country in which a woman’s autonomy over her body has always been institutionalised. Previously enforced by the state through the Magdalene Asylums and restrictive access to contraception (all forms of contraception were illegal in the Republic of Ireland until 1980) and now, by criminalising abortion.
Fast Fashion and Climate Change
It takes 2,720 litres of water to make a cotton t-shirt and 10,850 litres to produce a pair of jeans. With Primark selling men’s t-shirts for as little as 80p and men’s jeans for as little as £5, the social costings of these items doesn’t equate to the retail value.
