The Duchess of Cambridge attends the Sarah Everard vigil

[JamesMiddletonsMarshmallows]

My respect for the Duchess has just shot up. For a Royal, this is pretty bold and brave.

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/sarah-everard-vigil-kate-middleton-london-b1816862.html

Not forgetting other women - if you attended the vigil tonight, thank you for sticking up for women's rights. Let's hope this is an opportunity for the Met Police to review and change how they treat both offending officers and female victims

“ you can always tell the strong women - they are the ones lifting each other up instead of putting each other down”

Not sure who said it but good to remember.

I am truly appalled by the posters saying because DoC is who she is she can't possibly understand - utterly depressing. So your background, how rich you are etc determines if you can have harassment experiences or not or how much sympathy you get? She's rich so can't have happened/isn't as bad? What the hell. And even those who (thank god) have never been subjected to this stuff - can't they show support?

• what happened to Sarah made me look back, remembering back to the experiences I had (started at 10 yrs old with some guy touching me between my legs while in church - yes I shit you not) And have pushed to the back of my mind. The stand out one because of the involvement of a policeman was at aged 28 on a busy street early evening and a stAnding at a crossing waiting for the lights to change being grabbed by a man around my neck - running down a road and him chasing me and seeing two policeman walking up and shouting out to them - never felt so relieved in my life when they ran up to meet me to see what was wrong - never occurred to me that I could meet the wrong kind of policeman.

I'm not being over dramatic of course this is one guy not all policeman but I'm saying Sarah's story has had me thinking of stuff I haven't for a long time - we cannot judge how it might impact people including the DoC

This is about Sarah and getting her justice but it's also about women generally for whom walking home is literally possibly dangerous - leave the its pr stuff for another day

@SpanishLady agree. Lots of memories will be flooding back to women. Was chatting with my DS about it this week.

This thread is truly depressing reading. Some nasty women hating people on here. Pitching women against each other. Assuming women’s intentions (as bad). Yuck.

Oh FFS why does everything get linked back to bloody Matkle😡😡😡😡
Maybe Kate actually feels compassion for what’s happened and wanted to pay her respects in a genuine way. Total nasty but he’s those of you saying just a PR stunt.

RickiTarr

Yes, that would explain why they wanted his special skills.

‘Bloody markle’?

Nice. Respect and solidarity for women

Hmm if she'd had a mask on and hair not blown dried to an inch of its life then no one would have known. I'm calling PR stunt.

She was there with an undercover protection officer. If you watch the video, you can see, as she leaves the flowers, a woman in a puffer jacket, walks behind her almost immediately.

She was filmed by a journalist who was there to take photos of the tributes. It doesn't seem there were any other journalists there. He claims he didn't have prior knowledge. I find that hard to believe. I do think it was a PR exercise but I'm not a H&M fan, far from it.

I think she probably does feel compassion & it was a bit of a PR stunt. Perhaps KM will focus more on violence against women which would be a great thing.

Look at the front pages of most of the press in their first editions for confirmation of a PR stunt. Most dominated by a big picture of Kate at Clapham Common. It shouldn't be about her but about the brutal kidnapping and murder of a young woman and a family who have suffered a terrible loss. Just imagine the responses if it had been Meghan Markle who had attended!

I doubt it was a PR move. This has become political, especially with the criticism of the police. I doubt the palace would want her anywhere near it. No one have noticed if she hadn't gone.
I've never really thought much about her before. I'm not much of a royal watcher but huge respect to her for this. She didn't have to go but she did anyway. It feels like a gesture of solidarity in sisterhood. Good for her.

@RoisinD

Look at the front pages of most of the press in their first editions for confirmation of a PR stunt. Most dominated by a big picture of Kate at Clapham Common. It shouldn't be about her but about the brutal kidnapping and murder of a young woman and a family who have suffered a terrible loss. Just imagine the responses if it had been Meghan Markle who had attended!

Where is the logic in your point?

Just because there is ONE photo of her which all the papers paid for, doesn't equate to a PR stunt.

I feel sorry for her. Because whatever she did would be wrong according to someone on MN.

If she didn't show support in some way she'd be accused of being out of touch.

When she did go, she's accused of it being a PR stunt.
That's just nasty and cynical to think of it that way.

I think you are missing the point hugely.
SHE doesn't decide what the papers put on their front pages.

I am no royalist but good for her.

I think calling it a PR stunt is extremely unfair. It could have massively backfired as there are many who think the event was wrong and the police had even banned it. The fact KM normally is super careful to be non controversial makes her sticking her neck out on this impressive

I agree that this should s about Sarah not Kate. Kate should have shown support behind the scenes. Written to the family and put forward a series of causes to support.

This is PR and foolhardy during Covid times.

I can understand taking a risk to stand up for something no one else will. Or a unheard of cause. But in this case, what was the point? The whole nation is outraged, we really don’t need the distraction.

Hmm if she'd had a mask on and hair not blown dried to an inch of its life then no one would have known. I'm calling PR stunt

Why are some posters here making such nasty comments?

You don't have to wear a mask outside.
Her hair was not blow dried to an inch of its life.
She is wearing what looks like an old coat which is all creased down the back.

If you watch the other video which was in the Mail, she approaches across the Common with 1 PPO (youngish woman in puffa jacket) and no one even notices her! She walks by a few other women and no one even turns to look at her.

As for the other nasty comment that she was driven there with security, she usually drives herself all over London and I expect she did the same yesterday with her PPO in the back seat.

Only she’s knows her motives for going.
However it will be sad if that’s the main headlines this morning.
It will be interesting to see if any headlines show the brutal treatment if woman at that vigil. What this shows about men yet again.
How very very sad.

@Sprining

I agree that this should s about Sarah not Kate. Kate should have shown support behind the scenes. Written to the family and put forward a series of causes to support.

This is PR and foolhardy during Covid times.

I can understand taking a risk to stand up for something no one else will. Or a unheard of cause. But in this case, what was the point? The whole nation is outraged, we really don’t need the distraction.

This is getting ridiculous.

Of COURSE it's about Sarah! That's the whole point of D of C going to show her support.

Do you genuinely think that the D of C chose to be on the front covers?

Take your issues to the editors of the papers.

You are showing huge naivity if you think the papers would not put that photo on their front pages.

It IS about Sarah and having D of C showing her support for women only emphasises it's about Sarah.

There are some really nasty and deluded posters here.

@MsTSwift

I am no royalist but good for her.

I think calling it a PR stunt is extremely unfair. It could have massively backfired as there are many who think the event was wrong and the police had even banned it. The fact KM normally is super careful to be non controversial makes her sticking her neck out on this impressive

I think this month there is a PR element to every sneeze from a royal. Simply because they are surrounded by PR people who operate in total cooperation with their security people and other courtiers Given what’s happened this month, nothing is personal, everything is political at the palace.

That doesn’t mean Kate’s motivation is wasn’t 100% genuine and sincere.

It seems highly possible to me that she insisted on doing it in a low key way and someone in palace comms nevertheless had a quiet word with the journalist.

I'm not sure why saying it was PR is nasty. It doesn't mean she also doesn't feel compassion.

have so far called police sexist, incompetent, misogynist, underfunded and I can’t now remember what else.

@Thewithesarehere ive actually looked through all your posts and the only one of those words you've directly used to describe the Met Police is underfunded. You actually told people to "stop crying misogyny" and said that people calling officers incompetent are "obtuse".

You did however use 'brave' to describe them and blamed IT systems for them allowing a man who committed a sex crime to continue serving as an officer, rather than people.

I see you. You are not an ally, and I NEVER do this but as his was supposed to be a thread about awareness raising for female victims and you've hijacked it for some weird pro-police agenda, I am politely asking you to leave and give up whatever you're doing here

I am struggling to see who wouldn’t feel compassion for Sarah. It is utterly saddening and appalling what happened.

It is not the time got a photo op.

@burgerjack

I'm not sure why saying it was PR is nasty. It doesn't mean she also doesn't feel compassion.

Well maybe you need it pointing out. A PR exercise means it's premeditated and not sincere. It means it's not about her feelings, but about 'show'.

Do you really believe that someone said 'Come on Kate, we need you to get over to Clapham to show some support.'

I doubt that very much indeed.

She looks to me as if she grabbed an old coat, picked daffs from the garden and drove herself over there with one or two PPOs.

On the other hand some people who only want to stir the pot and make snide, cynical comments, will always believe otherwise.

I would imagine that as the RF have 24/7 "tax payer security", there's no additional cost for her visit. I dont imagine that whenever Catherine or William get the opportunity to go out on their own business, they call their PPOs and ask them to tag along for a bit of overtime

FWIW I dont think it was a PR stunt, but I agree, if it was, so what? It sure says a lot, without Catherine saying anything at all.

Well maybe you need it pointing out.A PR exercise means it's premeditated and not sincere. It means it's not about her feelings, but about 'show'.

I think it can be about her feelings & about show.

On the other hand some people who only want to stir the pot and make snide, cynical comments, will always believe otherwise.

I'm not interested in stirring any pot, I just don't think the Royals are above PR particularly in light of current press.

Why do you doubt it? It could well have been someone in PR who said go in and show support.

Doesn’t mean that she didn’t feel compassion. You’d have to be a sociopath not to