PHOTOS: Sisters Uncut set off 1000 rape alarms outside Charing Cross police station
Saturday, March 12, 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
6pm Saturday 12 March 2022
- The action marks the anniversary of the infamous Clapham Common vigil for Sarah Everard, where police beat and arrested women
- Patsy Stevenson, violently arrested by police at the vigil last year, gave a speech to crowds: “I was arrested on the floor for putting down a candle”
- Since the murder of Sarah Everard by serving police officer Wayne Couzens, repeated reports of police sexual abuse have broken into the press
For interview and comment contact: [email protected] / 07436324082
@SistersUncut #BecomeUngovernable
At 6pm on Saturday 12 March, members of feminist direct action group Sisters Uncut set off 1000 rape alarms at Charing Cross police station, the centre of the Met’s misogyny controversy this year. On Twitter, the group said “One year ago today, the police waited until sunset to brutalise us at Clapham Common. Today, we waited until sunset to detonate 1000 rape alarms at Charing Cross station”.
The group were joined by Patsy Stevenson, who gave a brief speech before the alarms were detonated. She said: “I was arrested on the floor for putting down a candle”, and said “shame on you” to police officers present at the protest.
An IOPC report released in February investigated various allegations against officers at Charing Cross police station, including a police officer assaulting his partner, officers having sex while on duty, racist and sexist Whatsapp messages, including some sent within a police officer Whatsapp group that said ‘I would happily rape you’ and ‘if I was single I would happily chloroform you.’(4)
The investigation is the latest in an outpouring of abuse reports within the Metropolitan Police since the Clapham Common vigil, most recently culminating in the resignation of Cressida Dick.
The date of this action marks the one-year anniversary of the Clapham Common vigil for Sarah Everard, which saw police officers ordered to violently manhandle women. The vigil kickstarted the Kill the Bill movement, which has seen thousands of people protest the introduction of expanded policing powers in the Policing, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.
This week, two judges ruled that the Met Police breached the rights of the organisers of the planned vigil for Sarah Everard, who did not attend the vigil itself.
Sisters Uncut maintain that police violence against women is not new. At least 15 women have been killed by police officers since 2009. As reported in the Guardian, according to the Centre for Women’s Justice, one woman a week comes forward to report a serving police officer for domestic or sexual violence.
The action calls for the public to “withdraw consent from policing”, in reference to the tradition of ‘policing by consent’ in the UK. Sisters Uncut say, given the repeated reports of misogyny embedded in the institution, there is no way for women to consent to police power. Sisters Uncut maintain that more police powers will lead to more police violence and a society without police would be much safer.
Sisters Uncut advocate for police budgets to be cut, and funding for domestic and sexual abuse services reinstated.
Quotes
Sisters Uncut member Olga Smith said : ”When we found out about Sarah’s disappearance at the hands of a serving cop, we asked the police, how will you keep us safe? And the police said: stay home. Stay hidden. Carry a rape alarm. When we refused to hide away, when we gathered in grief and anger at Clapham Common to mourn our sister, Sarah Everard, the police brutalised us. Today we say: police are the perpetrators. Police don’t keep us safe. That is why have thrown our rape alarms back at the perpetrators in the infamous Charing Cross police station.”
Cassie Robinson, a 36 year old from London who attended the action said “I was there last year on Clapham Common, and the police’s behaviour was disgraceful. I’ve completely lost faith in the police to take violence against women seriously, and I participated in today’s protest because I am withdrawing my consent for violent men to have any authority in this society.”
For interview and comment contact: [email protected] / 07436324082
Notes for Editors:
- Sisters Uncut are a direct action group protesting cuts to domestic and sexual violence services. The group was formed by domestic violence survivors and sector workers in 2014, and now has a network of groups across the country.
- The Guardian reported that, according to the Bureau for investigative Journalism, 700+ reports of domestic abuse were made against police officers between April 2015 and April 2018 (1)
- Between 2012-18, there were 1,500 accusations of sexual misconduct (including sexual harassment, exploitation of crime victims and child abuse) resulting in only 197 officers being sacked (2)
- Between 2015-17, 415 referrals were made for officers that had abused their position to sexually assault someone, with domestic and sexual violence victims, sex workers and drug users being most at risk of being abused by an on-duty police officer (3)
- The IOPIC (Independent Office for Police Conduct)’s Operation Hotton report can be read here (4). Coverage in the Independent here (5).
Images:
Video of alarms being set off:
IMG_0056
‘Police are the perpetrators’: Sisters Uncut set to take action one year on from Clapham Common vigil
Monday, March 7, 2022
- Feminist action group that launched Kill the Bill movement mark one year since Clapham Common vigil, where women were brutalised by police officers
- Hundreds expected to gather at New Scotland Yard to withdraw consent from British policing
@SistersUncut #BecomeUngovernable
[email protected]
At 5pm on Saturday 12 March, feminist activist group Sisters Uncut will host a mass direct action at New Scotland Yard for the public to withdraw their consent from British policing. Details of the action will not be revealed until the day.
The date marks the one-year anniversary of the Clapham Common vigil for Sarah Everard, which saw police officers ordered to violently manhandle women. This event kickstarted the Kill the Bill movement.
The year since the vigil has seen an outpouring of abuse reports within the Metropolitan Police, most recently culminating in the resignation of Cressida Dick.
Sisters Uncut maintain that police violence against women is not new. At least 15 women have been killed by police officers since 2009. As reported in the Guardian, according to the Centre for Women’s Justice, one woman a week comes forward to report a serving police officer for domestic or sexual violence.
The action calls for the public to “withdraw consent from policing”, in reference to the tradition of ‘policing by consent’ in the UK.
Given the repeated reports of misogyny embedded in the institution, the group states that there is no way for women to consent to police power. Sisters Uncut maintain that more police powers will lead to more police violence and a society without police would be much safer.
Sisters Uncut advocate for police budgets to be cut, and funding for domestic and sexual abuse services reinstated.
Quotes
Sisters Uncut member Gina Cane said: “The police are perpetrators of violence. We saw this in the way they beat women at Clapham Common last year, we saw it in the murder of Sarah Everard, and we’ve seen it in the countless reports of police sexual abuse. When the policing bill passes, we can expect to see more police powers lead to even more police violence. We reject the authority of the police, a racist misogynist institution built on coercion and control.”
Cassie Robinson, a 36 year old from London who plans to attend the action said “policing by consent means the power of the police is dependent on public approval. I am withdrawing my consent for violent men to have any authority in this society.”
Notes for Editors:
- Sisters Uncut are a direct action group protesting cuts to domestic and sexual violence services. The group was formed by domestic violence survivors and sector workers in 2014, and now has a network of groups across the country.
- The Guardian reported that, according to the Bureau for investigative Journalism, 700+ reports of domestic abuse were made against police officers between April 2015 and April 2018 (1)
- Between 2012-18, there were 1,500 accusations of sexual misconduct (including sexual harassment, exploitation of crime victims and child abuse) resulting in only 197 officers being sacked (2)
- Between 2015-17, 415 referrals were made for officers that had abused their position to sexually assault someone, with domestic and sexual violence victims, sex workers and drug users being most at risk of being abused by an on-duty police officer (3)
Police are the perpetrators: Sisters Uncut call mass national action against police
Friday, February 11, 2022
Feminist direct action group Sisters Uncut are calling a national demonstration for people to withdraw their consent from police power.
On Saturday 12 March, Sisters Uncut invite the public to gather outside Scotland Yard, headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, at 5pm. No further details are revealed at this stage.
The date marks the one-year anniversary of the Clapham Common vigil, led by Sisters Uncut, where women were beaten and arrested by Metropolitan police officers. The police violence triggered Sisters Uncut to launch the ‘Kill the Bill’ mass movement, which has mobilised thousands of members and the public and politicians to reject the proposed expansion of police powers in the Policing, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. Sisters Uncut maintain that more police powers will lead to more police violence.
In the past year, there have been countless reports of serving police officers committing rape, sexual harassment and domestic abuse. As public trust has been severed, Sisters Uncut maintain that a society without police would be much safer.
A spokesperson from Sisters Uncut said:
“Cressida Dick is resigning but she is leaving behind an institution that is rotten to the core. The police are perpetrators of violence, whose power remains unchallenged and intact. The Met police who beat women at Clapham Common are still yet to be handed unprecedented powers through the Policing, Crime, Sentencing and Court Bill. The issue has always been institutional, not individual.
“Policing by consent is a story this country likes to tell about itself. The reality is that policing is unaccountable, aggressive and violent. We withdraw our consent from policing, and encourage the wider public to as well.”
Justice for Jasmine: Sisters Uncut solidarity with Jasmine York, facing jail for Kill the Bill protest
Monday, January 31, 2022
Today we are picketing the trial of Jasmine York at Bristol Crown Court. We stand in unconditional solidarity with her. Jasmine was charged by police after she complained about her injuries.
Jasmine York was brutalised by police and badly bitten by police dogs at last year’s Bristol Kill the Bill demonstration. But today she’s the one on trial, facing up to 14 years in prison. Her case symbolises the very worst of police violence against women, and abuse of police powers.
Whilst attending the protest against increased police powers on 21 March 2021, Jasmine was badly beaten by police officers and bitten by a police dog. Photographs of her injuries have been widely circulated on social media, and received press attention in the Guardian at the time.
On 22 March 2021, Jasmine complained to the police about her injuries, who informed her that an investigation would be opened.
On 31 March 2021, Jasmine was informed by police that no investigation into her injuries would take place, and instead Jasmine was arrested and charged. It seems that the police used her complaint, and her comment in the Guardian, as an opportunity to avoid scrutiny for their actions and make an example of her.
On 31 January 2022, Jasmine faces trial for riot and arson in Bristol Crown Court, and could spend 14 years in prison.
We stand in unconditional solidarity with Jasmine. She could be any one of us. Police violence against women protestors like Jasmine is state-sanctioned violence against women. We launched the Kill the Bill movement last year in response to the police violence against women protestors at Clapham Common. It was evident then, as it is now, that police are drunk on the powers they already have, and Jasmine’s case is further proof that police cannot be trusted to have more. More police powers will lead to more violence against women.
The events surrounding the disappearance and murder of Sarah Everard ignited a movement against policing. Jasmine is part of that movement. This movement, to kill the police crime sentencing and courts bill, was ignited after Sarah Everard was kidnapped, raped and murdered by a serving metropolitan police officer and after the police brutality meted out against mourners at Sarah’s vigil disgusted millions of horrified onlookers.
We attended the vigil for Sarah and everyone who faces gendered violence. We attended because the police told women to stay indoors when Sarah went missing, and when a vigil was called to stand up to this example of police sexism, the cops took every opportunity to intimidate the organisers into calling it off. We attended because we would not obey police orders.
We attended on the principle of defending the right to protest, the right to freedom of assembly, and the right to hold the police to account when they rape and murder our sisters! When 1000 of us turned out to stand up to police intimidation, they lay their hands on us, they chased us, they forced us to the ground, they handcuffed us, and they carried us away into the dead of night on Clapham Common. This was just minutes away from where one of their own kidnapped Sarah Everard. The outcry over Sarah’s murder and the police brutality at the vigil in her name quickly pivoted towards the governments planned power grab the following week, which would give the police unprecedented powers to unleash violence against women, protestors and working class, Black and Gypsy Roma Traveller communities.
In the days after the vigil, Jasmine joined thousands across the country to protest the government’s plans to give the police any more powers through the Policing, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. Jasmine joined them to stand up against police misogyny, police racism, police brutality, and police intimidation. When Jasmine came out on the streets, as is her right, she was beaten by police, and viciously attacked by police dogs. She went home with the evidence of police brutality across her body.
Jasmine has a protected right to protest, a right to assemble. In exercising that right, she made a complaint to the police about her injuries. In what seems like an attempt to avoid accountability and scrutiny, the police made a counter claim against Jasmine, accusing her of initiating the violence. This is an age-old tactic by the police. The cops cannot tolerate any challenge to their authority and have repeatedly shown that they will smear the reputation of those who seek to hold them for their violence and corruption.
The cops are so intolerant of any scrutiny, they will mete out violence against anyone who challenges them. Last week, we heard that Dr Koshka Duff was arrested for giving a 15-year-old boy a bust card while he was being stop and searched. She was pinned to the ground by police officecrs, strip-searched, subjected to misogynistic jokes and humiliation for exercising her right not to give her name. This can only be described as state sanctioned sexual assault.
The police sent police to infiltrate and spy on Doreen Lawrence’s justice campaign for her murdered baby boy Stephen. Spy cop tactics were used against a string of women in the climate justice movement such as Kate Wilson, who was targeted with state-sponsored rape to gain access to and dismantle a movement fighting against the destruction of our planet.
Since Sarah Everard’s murder, the media have finally shone a light on what some of us have known for years: that the police are an institutionally misogynistic gang that use their powers to beat, sexual assault and murder women both on and off duty. Thousands of reports of domestic and sexual violence by cops continue to go uninvestigated.
From 2015-17, 415 reports were made against officers who abused their position to commit sexual assault. And who do the cops target for sexual assault when they are on duty? Domestic and sexual violence victims, sex workers and drug users. Women they are banking on being unprotected, vulnerable and unlikely to be believed. What happened to Sarah Everard, to Doreen Lawrence, to Kate Wilson, to Koshka Duff, to Jasmine and the countless women subjected to violations and violence at the hands of cops show us that the police are the perpetrators.
The police have the monopoly on violence in our society, and the only way they can maintain that violence is through a culture of impunity. They know that if they are to maintain their authority, they must resist any criticism from outsiders.
If you give a class of people legal powers, handcuffs, tasers, spray, batons and even guns to carry out their legal powers and then ensure that they are only accountable to themselves, they are going to use those powers both within the law and outside of it, to hurt and oppress those most exploitered in our society. Because the job of the police is to side with and protect the powerful.
Police will repeatedly use their powers to ensure those most exploited stay in line, whether women, black and white working-class communities, Gypsy Roma and Travellers, migrants, queer, trans or disabled people. We are in the midst of an abolitionist movement based on solidarity between all those who face police oppression. Through deep community organizing such as community self-defense and CopWatch, we will resist every stop and search, every police assault, every police kidnapping, and we will make ourselves ungovernable to the police crime sentencing and courts bill and all police power. We will withdraw our consent.
If we have any hope of winning, we must also stand in active solidarity with all those facing police repression for holding cops to account. We are proud to stand in solidarity with our brave sister and comrade Jasmine. We demand that Jasmine is found not guilty of all charges and we make a promise here today: if they won’t give us justice than we won’t give them peace.
