Location: United Kingdom, London
Date: May 25, 2020

London- Chief reporter for the Mail in Barrow, Amy Fenton was put under police protection after repeated threats targeting her and her daughter. Over the past few months Amy had received rape and death threats in person as well as online due to the nature of her work. The situation has continually gotten worse, raising serious concerns regarding her and her family's safety.

Amy Fenton took to her Twitter account to announce that her family and herself have been put under police protection due to repeated threats. In the tweet she shared one of the threatening messages she received online, and added that behaviour like this is not okay, in fact it is illegal.

This is not the first time Amy is being made to face these threats. In February, a man was jailed for five months who said that she "needs raping" in response to one of her Facebook posts. Following that at least twelve men gathered outside her office to scream provocative and threatening messages against her and other journalists working at the premise. On May 24, the police finally addressed the issue. “We’ve reassessed the risk and we do believe your life is in danger now. We need to get you out of there," they informed her. As a result, she has been forced to relocate outside Cumbria and is unsure when or whether she can return.

The Coalition For Women In Journalism is extremely concerned about Amy Fenton's safety and urges an immediate investigation into the matter. What is happening to Amy is a reminder of the dangerous landscape that women journalists in particular have to navigate. They are vulnerable to such gendered threats and attacks in a way that their male colleagues rarely face. Thus, this just does not remain a question about freedom of the press, but also links itself to larger questions of misogyny and the patriarchal culture we perpetuate.

The CFWIJ strongly condemns the police brutality against journalists. We demand the immediate return of the press cards seized from the security forces. Policies to intimidate journalists should be abandoned, and journalism should be practiced under the criteria of freedom of the press.

If you have been harassed or abused in any way, and please report the incident by using the following form.