Brutal, people can be so cruel.
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“People stared and laughed — I don’t want others to go through that.”
8 May 2018
Rory McGuire, a young man who was bullied over his appearance, is using his painful past to help others avoid the same suffering.
Born with a vascular birthmark that covered his lip, Rory was tormented from an early age. Despite undergoing over 20 operations to treat the condition, the emotional scars from constant abuse have proven far more painful than the physical ones.
Now 24, Rory is leading a campaign to encourage victims of abuse related to facial differences to report such incidents as hate crimes.
He says simply: “Any hate crime is unacceptable.”
“This is how life is going to be”
By the age of six, Rory already felt “different.” He recalls the heartbreak of being constantly stared at, laughed at, and ridiculed. The abuse became so overwhelming that at one point, he hoped he wouldn’t wake up from surgery.
“It was at its worst in my late teens,” Rory told BBC Radio Scotland’s Kaye Adams Programme.
“I thought, ‘This is it — this is how life is going to be and I just have to deal with it.’
My close friends didn’t know the extent of it. My mum and dad saw it affecting my confidence, but there were a lot of things I didn’t tell them.
Anywhere I went in public, I knew I was going to get stares, laughs, or comments. I’d hear people whispering and laughing — it was constant.”
After years of surgeries and sharing his experiences through blogging, Rory found the strength to speak out and stand up for others.
Speaking up for others
Rory, from Ayr, is now the face of a campaign by Changing Faces, a charity supporting people with visible differences. The campaign urges victims of appearance-related abuse to report it as a hate crime.
“I’m happy to be the face of a campaign that’s about making a difference — to stop others from having the experience I had,” he says.
“If I can help as many people as possible, that’s my goal. None of it is acceptable. If someone is being put down to the point where they can’t cope, they need to know there’s help out there.”
“Motivated by malice”
Rory shares heartbreaking stories of being compared to TV characters, called names, and even being cornered by groups who competed to see who could insult him worst.
He was excluded — both actively by others, and passively because of his own fear and shyness. Now, he wants others to know: you don’t have to stay silent.
“It is absolutely unacceptable that people face prejudice for things beyond their control,” Rory says.
“You can report it. You can get help. Don’t bottle it up.”
A survey by Changing Faces found that 1 in 3 people with a facial disfigurement have been victims of a hate crime — but very few report it.
Rob Murray from the charity explains:
“Many don’t come forward due to a lack of trust in the police or because they think it’s just part of life.”
Inspector Claire Miller from Police Scotland added:
“Hate crime is any crime perceived by the victim or another person to be motivated by malice or ill will toward a social group.
It can include vandalism, anti-social behaviour, or physical assault — none of which should be tolerated.
We take hate crime very seriously. Victims or witnesses should report it.”
'People stared and laughed and I don't want others to go through that'
Taunting someone facially different is a hate crime and campaigner Rory McGuire wants everyone to know that.
www.bbc.com
“People stared and laughed — I don’t want others to go through that.”
8 May 2018
Rory McGuire, a young man who was bullied over his appearance, is using his painful past to help others avoid the same suffering.
Born with a vascular birthmark that covered his lip, Rory was tormented from an early age. Despite undergoing over 20 operations to treat the condition, the emotional scars from constant abuse have proven far more painful than the physical ones.
Now 24, Rory is leading a campaign to encourage victims of abuse related to facial differences to report such incidents as hate crimes.
He says simply: “Any hate crime is unacceptable.”
“This is how life is going to be”
By the age of six, Rory already felt “different.” He recalls the heartbreak of being constantly stared at, laughed at, and ridiculed. The abuse became so overwhelming that at one point, he hoped he wouldn’t wake up from surgery.
“It was at its worst in my late teens,” Rory told BBC Radio Scotland’s Kaye Adams Programme.
“I thought, ‘This is it — this is how life is going to be and I just have to deal with it.’
My close friends didn’t know the extent of it. My mum and dad saw it affecting my confidence, but there were a lot of things I didn’t tell them.
Anywhere I went in public, I knew I was going to get stares, laughs, or comments. I’d hear people whispering and laughing — it was constant.”
After years of surgeries and sharing his experiences through blogging, Rory found the strength to speak out and stand up for others.
Speaking up for others
Rory, from Ayr, is now the face of a campaign by Changing Faces, a charity supporting people with visible differences. The campaign urges victims of appearance-related abuse to report it as a hate crime.
“I’m happy to be the face of a campaign that’s about making a difference — to stop others from having the experience I had,” he says.
“If I can help as many people as possible, that’s my goal. None of it is acceptable. If someone is being put down to the point where they can’t cope, they need to know there’s help out there.”
“Motivated by malice”
Rory shares heartbreaking stories of being compared to TV characters, called names, and even being cornered by groups who competed to see who could insult him worst.
He was excluded — both actively by others, and passively because of his own fear and shyness. Now, he wants others to know: you don’t have to stay silent.
“It is absolutely unacceptable that people face prejudice for things beyond their control,” Rory says.
“You can report it. You can get help. Don’t bottle it up.”
A survey by Changing Faces found that 1 in 3 people with a facial disfigurement have been victims of a hate crime — but very few report it.
Rob Murray from the charity explains:
“Many don’t come forward due to a lack of trust in the police or because they think it’s just part of life.”
Inspector Claire Miller from Police Scotland added:
“Hate crime is any crime perceived by the victim or another person to be motivated by malice or ill will toward a social group.
It can include vandalism, anti-social behaviour, or physical assault — none of which should be tolerated.
We take hate crime very seriously. Victims or witnesses should report it.”
