Grooming Gangs Are a Moral Panic
False Assumption: Concerns about South Asian grooming gangs sexually abusing young white girls in the UK constitute a racist moral panic with no disproportionate ethnic connection to child sexual exploitation.
Written by FARAgent on February 09, 2026
In 2001, Nick Griffin of the British National Party warned that Pakistani pimps were targeting white girls in northern England. Authorities dismissed his claims as racist fearmongering. The assumption that concerns about South Asian grooming gangs amounted to a moral panic gained traction in official circles. Sue Berelowitz, then deputy children's commissioner, issued reports in 2012 and 2013 that cited data showing white men as the majority in group-based child sexual abuse. A Home Office study echoed this, arguing that whites, as the demographic majority, were overrepresented in sexual offenses overall. Critics like journalist Steve Sailer, writing in 2013, pointed to emerging reports of Pakistani networks but found little mainstream attention.
Revelations soon mounted. By 2014, an independent inquiry into Rotherham uncovered that at least 1,400 girls, some as young as 11, had been raped, trafficked, and beaten by predominantly Pakistani gangs over two decades. Similar patterns emerged in cities like Rochdale and Oxford, with estimates suggesting up to 10,000 victims across England. Authorities had often ignored complaints, fearing accusations of racism. Sailer later highlighted how media and officials had downplayed the ethnic dimension for years.
The debate remains hotly contested. Critics argue that mounting evidence challenges the moral panic narrative, pointing to disproportionate involvement of South Asian men in these specific gang abuses. Supporters of the original assumption maintain that broader data on sexual offenses shows no unique ethnic link, and that focusing on race distracts from systemic failures. Official reviews continue, with some acknowledging cover-ups but others defending the earlier consensus.
People Involved
- Sue Berelowitz, as deputy commissioner for child protection, wrote reports that claimed most group-based child exploitation involved white perpetrators. Critics argue these reports downplayed ethnic patterns in grooming gangs. She lost her position after not addressing the issue of Pakistani gangs. [1][2]
- Steve Sailer, a journalist, raised alarms about Pakistani grooming gangs in 2013. He had heard reports for years before that. He positioned himself as exposing a cover-up by the establishment. [1][2]
- Nick Griffin of the British National Party spoke out in 2001 about Pakistani pimps targeting white girls under 16. He repeated the claims in 2004 and faced arrest for inciting racial hatred. [3]
- Jack Straw, a former Labour Home Secretary, noted in 2011 a problem with men of Pakistani heritage targeting vulnerable white girls. He did so after convictions of two pimps and faced backlash. [3]
- Yvette Cooper, another Labour Home Secretary, admitted in Parliament findings from a report showing over-representation of Pakistani-heritage suspects. She noted failures in data collection due to racism fears. [3]
- Baroness Casey led an audit that revealed over-representation of Asian and Pakistani-heritage men in grooming gang suspects. The audit also found 15 years of ignored reports. [3]
▶ Supporting Quotes (8)
“Curiously, the two reports were both by the same first author, Sue Berelowitz. She is a former child protection deputy commissioner, who was let go after she failed to speak out about Pakistani grooming gangs.”— Wikipedia does it again
“I first wrote about the Pakistani pimp problem in northern England in 2013, after hearing about it for years.”— Wikipedia does it again
“the two reports were both by the same first author, Sue Berelowitz. She is a former child protection deputy commissioner, who was let go after she failed to speak out about Pakistani grooming gangs.”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“I first wrote about the Pakistani pimp problem in northern England in 2013, after hearing about it for years.”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“Way back in 2001, Nick Griffin of the British National Party began to point out that Pakistani pimps in Britain were targeting white girls under 16.”— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
“In 2011, former Labour government Home Secretary Jack Straw spoke out gingerly after two pimps were convicted: “Pakistanis, let’s be clear, are not the only people who commit sexual offenses, and overwhelmingly the sex offenders’ wings of prisons are full of white sex offenders. But there is a specific problem which involves Pakistani heritage men…who target vulnerable young white girls.””— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
“Britain’s Labour Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told Parliament on Monday that the Baroness Casey Report on Britain’s “grooming gangs” scandals reveals: But on the key issues of ethnicity that I had asked her to examine, she has found continued failure to gather proper robust national data... And she refers to “examples of organisations avoiding the topic altogether for fear of appearing racist or raising community tensions”.”— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
“Baroness Casey Report on Britain’s “grooming gangs” scandals reveals... In the local data that the audit examined from 3 police forces they identify clear evidence of over-representation among suspects of Asian and Pakistani-heritage men.”— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
Organizations Involved
Wikipedia labeled the concerns about grooming gangs a 'moral panic' driven by right-wing activists. It maintained a page into late 2024 claiming no ethnic link, despite emerging evidence to the contrary. [1][2] The Home Office released a report noting 75% Asian perpetrators in grooming gangs. Yet it referenced earlier studies to suggest no ethnic connection, which media outlets amplified. [1][2] The BBC and other establishment media avoided covering Pakistani grooming gangs for decades. They viewed mentions of ethnicity as racist. [1] British police forces identified over-representation of Asian and Pakistani-heritage men in local data. But they failed to collect national data and once pressured Channel 4 to delay a documentary to avoid aiding the British National Party. [3] The Guardian criticized Jack Straw's comments on Pakistani men targeting white girls as stereotyping. [3]
▶ Supporting Quotes (7)
“Wikipedia, that eternally trustworthy fount of neutral knowledge, headlines: Grooming gang moral panic in the United Kingdom”— Wikipedia does it again
“A report from the Home Office was unable to prove any link between sexual assault and South Asian ethnicity.”— Wikipedia does it again
“But the Nice People at the BBC and the like considered it racist and xenophobic to mention this pervasive sex abuse of adolescent English girls by Pakistanis, so The Establishment covered it up for decades.”— Wikipedia does it again
“One of the more shameful epsisodes in Wikipedia history was the posting in the fall of 2024, long after the truth of the vast Pakistani Grooming Gang scandals were obvious to any careful obvserver, a page asserting that it was a “moral panic” rather than actual scandal.”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“A report from the Home Office was unable to prove any link between sexual assault and South Asian ethnicity. ... So [the Home Office report] says that 75% of perpetrators were Asian! (In UK this term is used for their Indian and Pakistani populations.) This is out of a 4.4-6.9% share of the population in 2001-2011.”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“In the local data that the audit examined from 3 police forces they identify clear evidence of over-representation among suspects of Asian and Pakistani-heritage men... a decade ago when a Channel 4 documentary crew working on a snoozer about social workers in Bradford stumbled upon this widespread practice, the police insisted that Channel 4 postpone the documentary because it might help the BNP in upcoming elections.”— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
“The Guardian tut-tutted: “The former home secretary Jack Straw has been accused of stereotyping Pakistani men in Britain after he accused some of them as regarding white girls as “easy meat” for sexual abuse.””— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
The Foundation
The assumption rested on studies by Sue Berelowitz that claimed a majority of group-based child abusers were white. These studies appeared credible as official data at first. But critics argue they were flawed due to poor recognition of grooming gangs, confusion over ethnicity, and errors in pre-arrest identification. [1][2] The idea that whites, as the UK majority, dominated sexual assaults overall helped dismiss specific ethnic patterns in grooming. This ignored data showing 75% Asian involvement against a population share of 4.4-6.9%. [1][2] Mounting evidence challenges the belief that mentioning ethnicity in grooming cases was mere stereotyping or racism. This belief sustained sub-ideas, such as white girls being seen as 'easy meat' due to naivety, and assumptions that parents did not care since no vendettas followed. [3]
▶ Supporting Quotes (5)
“the Home Office report also describing two previous reports, which claim that the majority of group-based child exploitation were by committed by Whites. However, the Home Office report notes that the data from these two reports relate to a time period when many agencies were less familiar with grooming gangs, and "very little was recognised or recorded about this kind of offence or offender by police at the time." Furthermore the reports say that "Ethnicity and Nationality were sometimes confused. Unless a perpetrator had actually been arrested, it was difficult to be sure whether or not their ethnicity had been correctly identified."”— Wikipedia does it again
“So [the Home Office report] says that 75% of perpetrators were Asian! (In UK this term is used for their Indian and Pakistani populations.) This is out of a 4.4-6.9% share of the population in 2001-2011.”— Wikipedia does it again
“the Home Office report also describing two previous reports, which claim that the majority of group-based child exploitation were by committed by Whites. However, the Home Office report notes that the data from these two reports relate to a time period when many agencies were less familiar with grooming gangs, and "very little was recognised or recorded about this kind of offence or offender by police at the time." Furthermore the reports say that "Ethnicity and Nationality were sometimes confused."”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“White perpetrators, who make up the majority race in the UK, have been shown to be more represented in sexual assault and group-based sexual abuse crimes than any other ethnicity in the United Kingdom. The report suggests there is likely no connection between ethnic groups and child sexual abuse.”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“Noticing patterns is now derided as “stereotyping.”... The pimps seemed convinced that since their victims’ families haven’t organized lethal vendettas against them like any honorable Pakistani family would, they must not have cared.”— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
How It Spread
Newspapers highlighted parts of the Home Office report that cited unreliable studies claiming no ethnic link. They often skipped the report's own finding of 75% Asian perpetrators. Wikipedia then used this to frame concerns as a moral panic. [1] British media underreported South Asian grooming cases while emphasizing white abusers. This reinforced the narrative of no ethnic pattern. [1][2] Wikipedia continued the spread by keeping claims of no ethnic connection, even after folding the moral panic page into a broader one. It noted disproportionate reporting on white perpetrators. [2] Media and authorities accused those raising ethnicity issues of stereotyping. They delayed exposés to prevent gains by right-wing groups. [3]
▶ Supporting Quotes (5)
“So how did that turn into the claims in the newspaper articles and the Wikipedia page? They come from the Home Office report also describing two previous reports... So the newspapers skipped over where the Home Office report says that Asian grooming gangs are the majority, and instead focused on the Home Office report also mentioning these reports which were based on unreliable data”— Wikipedia does it again
“Despite the lack of evidence, British media outlets have reinforced the stereotype by disproportionately reporting on South Asian group-based sexual assault crimes at the expense of other similar cases involving White abusers.”— Wikipedia does it again
“So how did that turn into the claims in the newspaper articles and the Wikipedia page? They come from the Home Office report also describing two previous reports... So the newspapers skipped over where the Home Office report says that Asian grooming gangs are the majority, and instead focused on the Home Office report also mentioning these reports which were based on unreliable data”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“By November 8, 2024, the Grooming Gang Moral Panic page had been folded into a more general page entitled “Child sexual abuse in the United Kingdom.” But Wikipedia still featured some doozies”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“The network complied... According to The Telegraph, when you stop and think about it, the decade’s delay was mostly Griffin’s fault: “No doubt Griffin feels vindicated today: for telling the truth before anyone else. And yet, paradoxically, it was his thuggish intervention that gave society another excuse to ignore the scandal.”— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
Resulting Policies
Police and children's services in English towns like Rotherham, Rochdale, and Telford covered up Pakistani grooming gangs for decades. They prioritized avoiding racism accusations over protecting victims, leading to few prosecutions despite knowledge of the crimes. [1][2] UK authorities hushed scandals and limited prosecutions, allowing the gangs to continue operating. This stemmed from fears of being labeled racist. [2] A key failure was the lack of robust national data on the ethnicity of grooming gang suspects. This persisted for years, as later confirmed by the Baroness Casey audit. [3]
▶ Supporting Quotes (3)
“countless people in positions of authority, in children’s services and police, knew about it.”— Wikipedia does it again
“in which 1,400 girls as young as 11 were found to have been raped, trafficked, abducted, beaten, and intimidated by men predominantly of Pakistani heritage over a period of 15 years with limited prosecution.”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“she has found continued failure to gather proper robust national data, despite concerns being raised going back very many years.”— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
Harm Caused
In Rotherham, around 1,400 girls as young as 11 endured rape, trafficking, beatings, and intimidation by mostly Pakistani men over 15 years. Prosecutions remained limited. Similar patterns emerged in Rochdale and Telford, affecting about 1,000 girls in the latter. [1][2] Across dozens of English cities, up to 10,000 girls suffered rape and abuse over two decades due to these institutional cover-ups. Observers have called it an unprecedented horror in modern English history. [1][2] Victims as young as 11 or 12 faced gang rape, trafficking, beatings, drugging, and threats. Perpetrators often received only short sentences. [2] Over a decade of inaction allowed continued exploitation and violence against children, despite 15 years of reports that went ignored. [3]
▶ Supporting Quotes (5)
“in which 1,400 girls as young as 11 were found to have been raped, trafficked, abducted, beaten, and intimidated by men predominantly of Pakistani heritage over a period of 15 years with limited prosecution.”— Wikipedia does it again
“As many as 10,000 girls were raped in this way... There is simply no crime or horror like this in modern English history”— Wikipedia does it again
“As many as 10,000 girls were raped in this way... Here, in a town of 140,000 or so people, some 1,000 young girls were systematically raped and sexually abused by gangs of men over a number of years”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“The girls, as young as 11 or 12, were given drink and drugs, gang raped and passed around, and threatened if they told the police. ... seven men went to jail, although five were given relatively short sentences”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“We have lost more than a decade. That must end now... there have been 15 years of reports, reviews, inquiries and investigations into these appalling rapes, exploitation and violent crimes against children – detailed over 17 pages in her report – but too little has changed.”— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
Downfall
The 2014 official report on Rotherham documented the scale of the scandal. This allowed reporters to cite it without fear, starting to break the long cover-up. [2] In 2025, the UK Labour government admitted that Pakistani grooming gangs had been hushed up for decades. Critics argue this confirmation challenges claims of a mere moral panic. [2] The Baroness Casey Report exposed systemic failures and ethnic over-representation in suspects. It led to the Home Secretary's public admission in Parliament, raising growing questions about the assumption. [3]
▶ Supporting Quotes (3)
“Finally, a year later in 2014, the obscure English city of Rotherham ... commissioned an Official Report on the pimp problem in Rotherham. Reporters love Official Reports because they can’t get in trouble for quoting them.”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“Now that the UK’s Labour government has admitted that the Pakistani grooming gangs scandals were hushed up for decades”— Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocities
“Mr Speaker, these findings are deeply disturbing. But most disturbing of all, as Baroness Casey makes clear, is the fact that too many of these findings are not new.”— Britain Finally Admits It Covered Up Its Pakistani Gang Rapist Problem
Sources
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[1]
Wikipedia does it againopinion
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[2]
Naming Co-Conspirators in the Cover-Up of the Pakistani Grooming Gang Atrocitiesreputable_journalism
- [3]