Women take back London in annual night march for freedom from sexual violence and harassment.
Thousands of women are expected to take part in a protest against violence and street harassment in London this weekend.
Set for November 23, the “Reclaim the Night” march marks the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Assembling at 18:00 in Hanover Square, the march starts from Great College Street in Westminster at 18:30 and will travel to St Paul’s Cathedral.
The annual march is organised by the women’s pressure group London Feminist Network. With over 2,000 women attending previous events, all women are welcome at the march.
Pressure group London Feminist Network said on their website, “This march is a show of strength and a collective demand for freedom from sexual violence and harassment […] It is hard to believe we are still marching 40 years later, yet the recent outpouring of #MeToo on social media only makes it clear why this is important.”
Reclaim The Night is a women-only march, but girls of all ages and boys under the age of 12 are welcome to attend. Men are welcome at the rally only but can also support the event by joining the men’s vigil.
According to statistics from the ONS, 54,000 rape offences were recorded by police in England and Wales in 2018. The rise in sexual offence crimes has been pronounced – with a 15% increase in offence from 2016 to 2017. This is likely due to better recording practices on the part of police forces rather than a higher number of victims willing to come forward, given that there is “no compelling evidence of an increase in victim confidence to report”, according to a report from the Mayor’s Office for Policing And Crime (MOPAC).
Writing for the Huffington Post last year, organiser Erin Mansell described how she feels when participating in the march: “I cannot describe to you the feeling of marching alongside a thousand women at night, taking over the streets of central London. The noise, the defiance, the joy and the noise! […] And we say to every woman – we are with you. Shout it with me, “Women, united, will never be defeated.”
The Reclaim the Night march is set to mark the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on November 23.