Stop Whistling, Start Listening

Reclaim The Night

Last Saturday night was the 8th annual Reclaim The Night march and rally in London. It felt brilliant to be on the march again, having missed it the last two years. The website can you give you more information on the background and aims of the march but the main point is to draw attention to violence against women in our society. 

The atmosphere was amazing and as always, felt like more of a celebration than a protest (in spite of the vast number of placards provided by the London Feminist Network and sponsored by NASUWT). The route took us from Whitehall Place, past Trafalgar Square and then up Charing Cross Road and most of Tottenham Court Road. Charing Cross Road is always the interesting bit, especially around Leicester Square where there are loads of pubs and plenty of drunken men lining the streets. Predictable chants of ‘get your tits out’ greeted us as we passed but they were well drowned out by the singing and chanting of the women around me. The police are also a reassuring presence on these marches but in truth are rarely required. At one point an old man did wander into traffic to come over and tell us to ‘piss off’ but was quickly grabbed by a police officer and told to ‘mind his language’ before being escorted away. My friends and I were highly amused. 

Fantastically, everywhere we looked we also saw women clapping and cheering us along, often to the bemusement of the men they were with. Unfortunately, this was more often true of older women than younger ones, but that’s the confidence that comes with age (I like to think). At one point a bus on Charing Cross Road was stopped by the march, heading in the opposite direction. The female bus driver had been smiling and cheering us along but eventually gave in and beeped the horn to add to our noise. We erupted in cheers in response. It was a brilliant and fun moment.

One of the main aims of Reclaim The Night marches is to bring women together and allow us to walk the streets strongly, proudly and in numbers (check out the photos on their Facebook page). It is genuinely empowering to do it and I recommend that all women who live in a city that holds one of these marches join in and get involved. You’ll love it, and find yourself hoarse in no time from chanting (‘whatever we wear, wherever we go, yes means yes and no means no’). If your city doesn’t have a march, then start one. You won’t regret it.