Liam Hackett (activist)
| Liam Hackett | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 19, 1991 Liverpool, UK |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | University of Sussex |
| Occupation | Founder and CEO of Ditch the Label and Managing Director Hackett & Tiger, a digital marketing agency. |
| Website | liamhackett.co.uk |
Liam Hackett (born 19 January 1991 in Liverpool) is an English activist best known as the founder of the anti-bullying charity Ditch the Label. He is also the founder and managing director of Hackett & Tiger, a digital marketing agency.[1]
Contents
Early life[edit]
Hackett grew up in Liverpool, experiencing both physical and emotional bullying at school. In the last few years at his secondary school, he was physically assaulted outside of school, causing him to be hospitalised.[1] Hackett has said in some interviews that the bullying was because of homophobia.
Hackett first came out as bisexual and, in his college years, he came out as gay. After college Hackett then moved to Brighton to study business and management at the University of Sussex.[2][3][4]
Ditch the Label and Hackett & Tiger[edit]
Hackett officially launched Ditch the Label in 2012 when he was 21 and is now the CEO of the charity. Also in 2012, Hackett launched a digital marketing agency Hackett & Tiger, of which he is the managing director.[5]
Press and media[edit]
Liam regularly speaks throughout the press on a range of issues surrounding bullying, cyber bullying, digital technology and young people. In one of his first interviews, Liam spoke on The Surgery with Alex for BBC Radio 1 about his own personal experiences of bullying.[6] He has also commented on how bullying can affect children from wealthy families for articles in The Daily Telegraph and The Independent.[7][8]
On July 2014, Liam gave an exclusive insight into his experiences with homophobic bullying and his coming out story to Gay Star News [9]
Liam spoke on Sky News about the sudden rise in cases of cyber bullying,[10] he later debated the issues on Channel 5 News, where he frequently discusses bullying and the lives of young people.[11][11][12] Following a major new Ditch the Label, Liam gave advice to young people via Sky News on how to overcome cyber bullying.[13] Liam also spoke about the report on Good Morning Britain and urged key stakeholders to take action.[14]
Liam has contributed articles about the current climate of bullying within the UK's education system for SecEd Magazine and the British Journal of School Nursing.[15][16] In October 2013, Hackett was interviewed on Chinese state television broadcaster CCTV discussing issues surrounding cyberbullying.[17]
Accolades[edit]
Hackett received a grant from St Helens Chamber of Commerce before he was 18, enabling him to launch the Ditch the Label website in July 2007 that later evolved into the charity.[18] In September 2013, Hackett was nominated as "Entrepreneur of the Year" in the National Diversity Awards. The Ditch the Label charity he founded was shortlisted as "Organisation of the Year" in the same year. In 2014, Hackett was invited to become a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.[19][20][21]
In December 2014, Liam won "Young Business Person of the Year" in the Sussex Business Awards for his work with Ditch the Label and Hackett and Tiger.[22]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Bhandari, Bibek (6 August 2012). "Liam Hackett: It Does Get Better". Retrieved 3 August 2014.
- ^ "Liam Hackett - Founder and CEO Profile". Ditch the Label. Retrieved 2 May 2013.
- ^ "Introducing: Ditch The Label". attitude.co.uk. Retrieved 11 March 2013.
- ^ "R u coming out features: Liam Hackett". Retrieved 1 August 2014.
- ^ Hackett and Tiger LimitedEdit details. "Hackett and Tiger Limited, Company House Information in St. Helens". Duedil.com. Retrieved 11 March 2013.
- ^ "Ditch the Label Radio 1 Interview - Liam Hackett". YouTube. 2013-02-04. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ Henry, Julie (3 February 2013). "Children bullied because of their wealthy backgrounds, study finds". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ Garner, Richard (2013-02-03). "Children from wealthy homes more likely to be bullied at school, research claims - Home News - UK". London: The Independent. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ "Bullies nearly gay-bashed me to death, now I’m fighting back". GayStarNews. 2014-07-30. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
- ^ "Ditch the Label - Sky News Cyberbullying Feature - October 2013 - Liam Hackett". YouTube. 2013-10-29. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ a b "Channel 5 Live News - 30th October 2013". YouTube. 2013-10-29. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ "Bullied young people fear they won't be taken seriously, says campaigner". YouTube. 2014-01-08. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ "Sexting: What Should You Do If Your Photos Are Shared Online?". YouTube. 2014-10-15. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ "1 in 4 Young People Have Had a Naked Selfie Shared". YouTube. 2014-10-16. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
- ^ Hackett, Liam (2013-04-25). "Seven in 10 Under 18s Still Experience Bullying". SecEd Magazine. Retrieved 2 May 2013.
- ^ Hackett, Liam (2013). "Seven in 10 Under 18s still Experience Bullying". British Journal of School Nursing (British Journal of School Nursing) 8 (3): 147–148.
- ^ "[视频]英国：三分之二英青少年曾遭网络欺凌 ([Video] UK: two-thirds of British teenagers experienced cyberbullying)" (in Chinese). CCTV. 15 October 2013. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
- ^ "Activist calls on people to ditch LGBT labels". PinkNews.co.uk. 2008-03-27. Retrieved 11 March 2013.
- ^ Ledward, James. "Ditch the Label CEO receives honour". Gscene Magazine. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
- ^ "Liam Hackett FRSA". Retrieved 3 August 2014.
- ^ "CEO Liam Hackett elected Fellow of Royal Society of Arts". Retrieved 10 August 2014.
- ^ "Sussex Business Awards". Retrieved 28 March 2015.
