More than 4,000 people have signed a petition urging Newcastle City Council and Northumbria Police to take action against what they describe as the “exploitative” filming of vulnerable individuals on the city’s streets. The change.org petition calls for a crackdown on content creators who film people who are sleeping rough, intoxicated, or experiencing a mental health crisis, labeling the practice “public humiliation for entertainment”.
Petition Launched by Concerned Resident
Christine Gray, a 29-year-old from North Shields, launched the petition after becoming distressed by the number of videos appearing on her social media feeds. She told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that the clips show people in Newcastle who may be homeless, struggling with addiction, or in distress. “These are people who cannot defend themselves. There are people creating content from these vulnerable people and making money off them,” she said.
The petition describes such videos as “harassing, dehumanising, and dangerous” and calls for intervention from Newcastle City Council and Northumbria Police. However, when contacted by the LDRS, both the council and police declined to comment.
Legal and Safeguarding Concerns
While filming someone in a public place without their consent is not illegal in the UK, Christine believes that repeatedly videoing vulnerable people on the street “should be classed as harassment”. She added: “If you went into a care home or a hospital and started videoing people that would be classed as a safeguarding emergency.”
The petition requests “stronger enforcement” of laws around harassment and asks authorities to consider issuing a Community Protection Notice (CPN) against certain content creators. It also calls on the council to issue “clear” guidance on the filming of vulnerable people and to provide support for those who become targets of such videos.
Demands for Social Media Platforms
In addition to local authority action, the petition urges social media companies to remove content that “violates privacy, exploits vulnerable people, or encourages harassment”. The petition states: “No one should be filmed while in distress, intoxicated, sleeping rough, or experiencing a mental health crisis. These individuals deserve safeguarding, privacy, and dignity. Not public humiliation for entertainment.”
The petition concludes: “Newcastle is a city known for compassion, community, and solidarity. Exploitative filming does not represent us. We urge local authorities and online platforms to act now to protect those who cannot easily protect themselves.”
