With an alarming rise in the incidents of ‘acid attacks’ sending shivers through the nation a former gang member has revealed why it is a current ‘weapon of choice’.
Jermaine Lawlor appeared on Good Morning Britain to give some insight into why gangs have moved onto using acid to hurt others.
The reasons ranged from ease of access to how well it could be concealed, but the most disturbing of the explanations was that acid was used instead of guns and knives because it caused the maximum damage with the minimum retribution.
You can see Jermaine’s interview here:
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Jermaine is now a youth activist whose aim is to solve the foundational issues which cause gang violence.
Speaking to Piers Morgan on the ITV breakfast show, Jermaine said:
You can’t bring a knife to a gun fight. Using acid, you’re going to cause a person to be a victim for life.
And if you get caught, you’re not going to get that harsh a sentence compared to if you were carrying a knife, and you use that knife, there’s a good chance that person is going to die.
I’ve been speaking on acid attacks for over five years, and I believe the solution is the same as that for knife or gun crime.
[We ne[We need to]at these communities and look at the multiple factors affecting these vulnerable individuals in communities.
These are things like lack of opportunities, lack of resources, low income, poor employment, and lack of positive role models.
There were 431 acid attacks last year compared to 261 the year before.
The most recent acid-related tragedies include when five attacks took place in East London in just 90 minutes, and when 21-year-old Resham Khan was brutally attacked on her birthday.
Action needs to be taken to stop the rise in the use of this weapon which has merciless effects on the victim and yet is comparatively inconsequential for the attacker.
