LONDON – Thousands of people gathered in South London on Saturday for a vigil in honor of Sarah Everard, the 33-year-old marketing executive whose murder sparked a national reckoning on violence against women despite warnings from police in London. that the event would be illegal.
When darkness fell, a growing crowd shouted “What a shame!” and “How many more!” In what became a demonstration against gender violence, some clapped and others held candles or signs that said “End violence against women” and “She was just coming home”.
The event, at Clapham Common, near where Everard was last seen on March 3, on returning from a friend’s house, attracted small groups at first, with people gathering in silence around a memorial where flowers were placed . Previously, Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, was among those who placed flowers at the memorial.
Several women were arrested at the event and handcuffed by the police, in scenes that drew outrage from a broad spectrum ranging from feminist organizations to conservative politicians.
Other protesters, some unmasked, fought tense confrontations with the police, but on Saturday night the force’s response threatened to put the Metropolitan Police in crisis. Leading officials, including the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, and Interior Secretary Priti Patel, asked for the answer disturbing and unacceptable, and said they had asked for a report on that.
“Clapham Common scenes are unacceptable”, Mr. Khan said on Saturday night. “The police have a responsibility to enforce Covid’s laws, but from the images I saw, it’s clear that the response was sometimes neither appropriate nor proportionate.”
A court ruled on Friday that the meeting could be considered illegal because of Covid-19 restrictions, and the police asked people to stay at home. The vigil organizers eventually gave in and called for a national vigil, although in the end it did not dissuade people from flocking to the park.
A 48-year-old policeman, Wayne Couzens, who appeared in court on Saturday, was charged with kidnapping and murdering Everard. On Saturday, crowds shouted “What a shame!” and “Hold yours!” the police who tried to disperse the protesters.
More than 30 meetings were planned across Britain on Saturday, in what organizers hope will convey the outpouring of solidarity and anger that Everard’s assassination sparked this week.
Thousands of women shared their own stories of harassment on the streets and assaults on social media, with Everard’s case now symbolizing a problem that many say plagues Britain: the insecurity that women face daily, at home or in public spaces .
While officials have tried to reassure the public that kidnappings in London are rare, the city’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, also acknowledged that its streets are not safe enough. Many women said that, as blocking restrictions have cleared the country’s streets, they felt unsafe to walk in public.
Mrs. Everard was last seen alive at around 9:30 pm on March 3. She had left her friend’s house at around 9 pm, and the walk home should have taken 50 minutes.
Her family described her as “a shining example for all of us”, who was “kind and caring, caring and trustworthy”.
“Sarah was brilliant and beautiful – a wonderful daughter and sister,” they added.
Lawmakers, activists and women’s rights organizations have asked people to meet on Saturday at Clapham Common, South London’s park near where Everard was last seen. But the organizers, nine women from the umbrella group Reclaim These Streets, said the police had told them they would face a £ 10,000 ($ 14,000) fine if they went ahead with their plans.
Jamie Klingler, one of the planners, said that the organizers had unsuccessfully suggested alternatives such as splitting the meeting into several intervals or organizing a walking memorial.
“We are protesting violence against women and being closed down by the police,” said Klingler, a 42-year-old event manager, in a telephone interview on Saturday. “I am perplexed.”
At the Saturday night rally, several protesters shouted “Who do you protect?” in the police forces. The police forcibly removed the protesters who were under a pavilion in the park, which was transformed into a memorial for Everard.
The Metropolitan Police has been criticized for days. On Thursday, the police watchdog said it was investigating whether two police officers “responded appropriately” to an allegation of indecency against Couzens, the police officer accused of killing Everard and suspected of being exposed to fasting. South London food restaurant days before Everard’s disappearance. It is not clear why he was not suspended.
In an image that went viral on social media, hundreds of people turned on their smartphone lights in honor of Everard as they faced a line of police officers standing in the park. In another, a policeman appeared mounting a masked protester who was later arrested.
The scale of the meeting on Saturday, coupled with the profusion of reports of harassment this week, is likely to increase pressure on Boris Johnson’s government, which is scheduled to reveal a plan to combat violence against women and girls later this year. Interior Minister Priti Patel said on Friday that a request for testimony about harassment, which received 15,000 contributions, would be extended for two weeks.
Lawmakers are also expected to debate a domestic violence bill next week, with growing momentum among party lines to include an amendment that treats misogyny as a hate crime.
Several lawmakers supported the advance of the vigil, despite restrictions.
“Even in a pandemic, could a small, responsible and risk-sensitive vigil certainly be accommodated?” Joanna Cherry, a legislator for the Scottish National Party, said on Twitter. “Women’s fear of hatred and violence against us needs expression.”
As an alternative to the vigil, the organizers asked people to hold a light at their door at 9:30 pm local time. Several officials, including Prime Minister Boris Johnson, said they would light a candle for Everard.
But the South London event turned out to be a big meeting, echoing a general feeling that flooded social media throughout the week: that women were tired.
In a statement published hours before the rally, Reclaim These Streets organizers said: “We are sure that the voices of women will not be silenced, now or never.”
Nailah Morgan and Christina Kelso contributed reporting from New York.