I’m a Londoner is a new series from the Evening Standard that hopes to reveal the beating heart of the capital through conversations with people living in this vibrant city.
From bus drivers to 7/7 survivors, these stripped back and unheard stories will give you a glimpse into a London you may never have seen before. We aim to highlight the real voices of Londoners; to understand their experience of living in the capital and give a platform for them to tell their own stories and challenge stereotypes.
With almost nine million people living in the capital, London is a diverse city. Through this series we hope to shine a light on the things that unite us rather than divide us as Londoners.
In the second episode of our series, we spoke to Gina Martin, an activist based in the capital who fought for the upskirting law and made it a criminal offence. Since her incredible achievement, an allegation of upskirting has been reported to police nearly every single day since the law was changed.
Growing up as a chatty child constantly stopping her schoolmates from working, Martin reveals how her insatiable passion and enthusiasm has helped her cause societal changes she never even thought were possible.
"One person can change the world"
The Londoner discusses what activism means and how anybody is capable of making a difference.
“No one can tell you you’re not the right person to make the world a better place,” she explains.
In the summer of 2017, a then 25-year-old Martin was enjoying herself at BST Festival in Hyde Park when she caught sight of a man’s phone screen. On it, a woman’s underwear and thighs were on full display. She soon realised it was her own body that had been photographed without her knowledge or consent.
While the police were sympathetic, they told Martin that there was nothing they could do as the culprit had “done nothing illegal”. Angry and determined, she started a petition which eventually came into law and now sees upskirting offenders face jail time and be placed on the sex offenders’ register.
Martin’s journey to reach this success was not smooth and she faced a horrific amount of abuse along the way. Here the campaigner reveals how the challenging process has only made her stronger.
I’m a Londoner and an activist. I guess I started in the public with the upskirting campaign but I’ve always been someone who wanted to push for positive change. I brought a stray dog back from Greece three years ago and when I was in advertising, I started a collective where we’d do marketing work pro bono for charities.
I never thought we’d actually change the law. When I started the upskirting campaign I thought oh, I’ll give it a go. I’ll see what I can do and I’ll try. My boyfriend said to me on the phone: “But imagine if you actually did it?” And I laughed and was like, “there’s literally no way!” But then the momentum just took over and I got a lawyer involved and that got me really serious and strategic.
There was a lot of online abuse, a ridiculous amount. I’d literally had rape threats for a year and a half. It was really hard. But I think having gone through that campaign, not being academic, or someone in law or politics, it’s really given me a lot of hope for society. It’s shown me that when people really care about something, they actually can push things together.
You can’t teach passion. You can teach anything else but you can’t teach passion. So you can’t lose that because that is the difference between a successful campaign and an unsuccessful campaign. It’s the energy you have, the passion you have – being able to get people on board in an emotional way.
I get billed as a feminist hero all the time. And I’m like, “sure!” But also, I’m just a regular person who works really hard. I think it’s way more helpful if I’m honest about that and I don’t keep my cards close to my chest. I try and show people how they can do the same thing.
One person can change the world. It’s really exciting – unlike with everything else, like with a job, activism is the only thing you can do that no one can tell you you can’t do. We need more people to do it. Because one person can make a difference, I’ve made a difference. I didn’t think I could but it’s definitely possible.
I'm a Londoner is a new weekly series from the Standard. Make sure you don't miss out by following us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. If you would like to take part in the series or have someone in mind that you'd like to nominate, please contact mar.campdepadros@standard.co.uk
