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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Jon Brady

Hundreds join Reclaim the Night Dundee march against violence on women

Over 500 people marched through the streets of Dundee demanding change to make the city safer for women to walk through at night.

The Reclaim the Night march saw hundreds gather in City Square before proceeding along the Murraygate, Meadowside, Reform Street and the Nethergate.

The event was organised by the Women's Rape And Sexual Abuse Centre Dundee and Angus (WRASAC) as part of Dundee's efforts to mark the United Nations' 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.

Katie Hardy-Jensen, WRASAC centre manager, told Dundee Live the attendance was the biggest she had seen in the city, in a year that has prompted furious conversations about women's safety in the wake of the murder of Sarah Everard.

Police stopped traffic for the march, which passed without incident (Jon Brady/Daily Record)

Sarah, 33, was kidnapped, raped and murdered by Metropolitan Police officer Wayne Couzens as she walked home in south London in March.

Couzens, who used his police warrant card and handcuffs to kidnap Sarah, is serving a whole-life sentence for his crimes.

Katie said: "After Sarah Everard, our politicians and people in charge said they were going to do something about women's safety even though Sarah was number 23 in a list of murdered women this year that's now 128 long.

"The #MeToo movement kicked the conversation off again but we didn't see change from that. A lot of lip service has been paid.

"People promise that things are going to change and things don't."

The 128 figure is sourced from the Twitter account @CountDeadWomen, which tracks incidents and allegations of men convicted and charged with the killing of a woman.

Protesters chanted slogans like "Whose streets? Our streets!" and "Whatever we wear, wherever we go, yes means yes and no means no!" as they marched through Dundee, carrying placards emblazoned with mottos calling for an end to gendered violence.

The march ended at the city's Bonar Hall, where feminist speakers called for more to be done to make nights out safer for women.

Dads, husbands and boyfriends were among the hundreds-strong march, which passed without incident.

Katie Hardy-Jensen, of local support charity WRASAC (Jon Brady/Daily Record)

Katie added that she was pleased to see so many men joining the fight to make Dundee's streets safer for women.

The city has been plagued by a recent spate of incidents against women, including allegations of spiking by injection.

She added: "The key thing for people to understand is that this is not a women's issue - this is everybody's issue.

"We need men to stand with us - for men to challenge other men on their behaviour, and to stand with us in solidarity and sympathy.

Charities say more needs to be done to discourage sexual harassment and assault (Jon Brady/Daily Record)

"Because women are tired - we are tired of talking about this, tired of it being our responsibility, and tired of being told to feel a certain way about our sexuality.

"I feel we are at a pivotal moment - I just hope this time all this talk leads to meaningful change. But I don't think we will see it in my lifetime."

The Reclaim the Night movement can trace its roots back to a feminist society in Leeds, which began marching to protest sexual harassment in the 1970s.

Dozens of other walks are taking place across the UK this week.

Last month, Police Scotland launched its Don't Be That Guy campaign to encourage men to call out problematic behaviour.

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