Beginning in Leeds in 1977 as part of the Women's Liberation Movement, Reclaim the Night is an annual march throughout the UK against sexual violence, calling for gender equality, and women’s right to be safe on the streets at night. Katherine Monk-Watts recounts the profound experience of attending the event for the very first time...
One night in October, a week before the clocks went back, an army of women marched through the city centre. Beginning at Sneinton Market, we moved through Hockley, through the centre, up to Shakespeare Street, and on to Nottingham Trent University Students’ Union. Shouting from the top of our lungs, there was a captivating atmosphere of powerful solidarity and sisterhood.
The Rhythm & Joy Drumming Project at When Women Gather led the march, hyping us all up with their lively rhythms, kept the energy going from start to finish. The talented Divina Songbird shared her beautiful poetry. Moving speeches from Mel Duffill-Jeffs, former CEO of Nottingham Women's Centre, founder of Reclaim the Night Nottingham and founder of the Misogyny as a Hate Crime campaign in Nottingham.
There were three types of men we encountered during the march. The first were the allies. The second were the blatant misogynists. And the third were the silent watchers. Intimidated by hundreds of defiant women together, chanting for safer streets
There were three types of men we encountered during the march. The first were the allies, nodding, smiling, telling us we needed to “shout louder!” and clapping along with genuine support. The second were the blatant misogynists, who angrily swore, sputtered and shoved past us. And the third were the silent watchers. Intimidated by hundreds of defiant women together, chanting for safer streets.
Each was a very telling response. Violence and sexual offences against women make up 32% of Nottingham’s crime rate, the highest and most common crime (for those reported.) According to Refuge, one in four women in England and Wales will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime, and the Cambridge Rape Crisis Centre reported that 71% of women of all ages in the UK have experienced some form of sexual harassment in a public space. One in thirty women are raped or sexually assaulted every year and most survivors don’t report it to the police. Here in Nottingham we’ve made headway in certain areas, with catcalling and other related misogynist behaviours classified as hate incidents since 2016. Our city, therefore, is certainly well suited for having these honest conversations and facing down the issues head-on, both now and in the future.
As we all tucked into the delicious soup and samosas, kindly provided by the Nottingham Women’s Centre, we had permission to feel and share our experiences in a safe affirming space: how we constantly have our guard up as soon as the sun goes down, dreading the darkness from 4pm. Never allowing yourself to feel angry, sweeping everything under the carpet. Planning on what times we would walk back to town together, before going our separate ways alone. The frustrations of how men don’t have to think like this. That we should all feel safe alone, as well as together.
I proceeded to ask how they found the protest - how did it feel marching through the City Centre at night, surrounded by like-minded chanting women, in comparison to travelling home alone? These are some of the answers given:
Feeling seen: “When a girl lost her voice from shouting the chant and became quiet, I screamed louder for her. It felt like I was screaming the chants not just for the women at the march, but for the women and girls who are silenced.”
Feeling empowered: “Carrying my stark black and white sign: ‘My rapist walks free’ felt like an act of reclaiming my voice. It expressed a truth that’s often suppressed. The reality that I was raped, took my rapist to court, and watched him walk free, just like over 99% of other rapists in this country. While they walk freely, we are left carrying the weight of what they did. How can anyone see that statement, and not feel sickened by this glaring, unforgivable failure in our country?”
Feeling united: “I felt united by group action by women for the benefit of everyone. It was great to talk with women with the same aim for safer streets. Marching through the city centre at night, surrounded by strong, beautiful women, I felt none of the usual fear or vulnerability – instead I felt safe, seen and supported.”
Reclaim the Night took place on 19 October 2024.
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