"Hundreds defy ban to attend Clapham vigil"

[TheRabbitOfCaerbannog]

www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/sarah-everard-vigil-defy-police-ban-clapham-common-b923959.html

Interesting that the Rangers fans up here in Scotland were pretty much left to get on with it when celebrating en masse on the streets as were Liverpool fans last summer.

Couldn't believe the scenes tonight.

@rosetylersbiggun

I'm fine btw! Thank you!

Thank goodness, and thank you for sharing your experience. The behaviour of the Police makes no sense at all. Priti Patel has also asked for a full report. Let's hope something good comes out of this public exposure of Met misogyny.

I'm actually in tears watching this on the news. Absolutely awful the way the Police have handled this protest.

@Dustyboots I feel exactly the same.

Protests are ALWAYS policed politically, and the Met made it clear which side their politics are on - posters talking about covid-related issues are spectacularly missing the point.
Obvs the scenes of footie men having an escort from Strathclyde police last weekend wasn't a good optic - this catastrophe by the police was much worse.

What the hell did they think was going to happen?

@oakleaffy

Why were MEN even there? Men being gobby is not what is needed.

The 'MEN' could be Reporters? Police? Partners of the women attending?

Protests are ALWAYS policed politically

It was meant to be a peaceful vigil.

I feel sickened by the police intervention this evening.

Here are the scenes of the football fans (men) to compare and contrast:

twitter.com/folklorefairies/status/1370832230008946698?s=21

@rosetylersbiggun thank you for attending and glad you got home safely

Met police,

There is nothing short of disgust for your actions.Thugs against women, wearing a uniform. Those that can do, those that can't police. Scum.

Yes, When, and if you read the account on this thread it was peaceful, until the Met police decided otherwise.

@OldRailer

Interesting that the Rangers fans up here in Scotland were pretty much left to get on with it when celebrating en masse on the streets as were Liverpool fans last summer.

Couldn't believe the scenes tonight.

The basic problem with policing stuff like this is that at George Square the police couldnt have done anything realistically, they were extremely outnumbered by a drunk aggressive male crowd.

When a crowd is made up of women though, much easier to police...

You have summarised perfectly why I cannot condemn or condone this 'event'.

I feel this way too, and hate that the event turned into this. If the police had targeted and removed the anti-police, anti lockdown and SWP protesters things may have turned out differently.

Football protest gets a Police escort.

Women holding a vigil, get arrested.

We have such a long way to go.

Some police were ok and studiously ignored the streams of women children and families pouring across the park, but there was a huge police presence all day in the area and the noise of the helicopters was deafening. Really aggressively loud and low, making even more of a contrast with the silence around the bandstand.

[quote TheRabbitOfCaerbannog]Here are the scenes of the football fans (men) to compare and contrast:

twitter.com/folklorefairies/status/1370832230008946698?s=21[/quote]
This was an organised march.
You can see that the police are leading and controlling it. The men walk with the police ahead of them and stop when requested.
Today was a free for all.

There is a full feed on YouTube if you want to watch. You can see it was peaceful at the beginning, what happened when the police rocked up, and you will see it is calm and peaceful again now that the police have gone.

This is what happens at virtually every peaceful protest in the UK which cause isn’t backed by some powerful establishment voices - be it anti capitalist protest, environmental protest etc.

1. Things are peaceful, but police decide to lock it down forcefully rather than let it expire naturally in the next 1/2/3 hours.
2. So police move in and start getting heavy handed and trying to kettle.
3. Then you get pushing and shoving both ways and more aggressive kettling. People cant leave. Can’t get home. Can’t go to toilet.
4. Next day the right wing establishment press claims “violent protest”, echoed word for word in the BBC, and the majority of readers/viewers lap it up.

I think the saddest part is, we all knew this was going to happen.

I was there this evening - women were quite subdued and quiet - as were most of the men who were largely there with their partners. Women start to speak out and the police muscle in and arrest them. I have always in the past had the utmost respect for the police who were wonderful to me when I was mugged by a couple of men and supported me through the court proceedings afterwards. No longer - this was a brutal suppression of women's voices. Hats of the the DoC for stepping up and being counted.

I'm really torn here.

I was there in the day time and it was incredibly peaceful, poignant and inclusive. The bandstand was off limits, because why would you go up there?

No one said anything, everyone paid their respects with flowers, stood and then left.

It feels, from what I've read, this evening has become incredibly politicised, and the original purpose has been overtaken. Even the fact that people were on the bandstand seems really disrespectful. Maybe I'm wrong.

The law does not prevent an event like this from taking place. It is for the police to review on a case by case basis: I hate to keep banging on about this but when you police a densely populated city and an event has taken place that has resulted in an outpouring of grief and countless stories of male violence against women, then they might have wanted to take this case more seriously & been a bit more sensitive about the context.

It'sallgoingtobefine: I feel this way too, and hate that the event turned into this. If the police had targeted and removed the anti-police, anti lockdown and SWP protesters things may have turned out differently

Absolutely.
They made the mistake of saying no to the 'vigil' and were left with an angry crowd of people doing whatever they chose to do.

The contrast with BLM & the football parade in Glasgow this week is dreadful.

Women, do as you are told.

The police should have been there in order to exclude men from the vicinity.

The ‘press’ should have sent gender photographers.

The police should have had female officers in the inner circle near the bandstand. Keep the male officers in the outer circle excluding men.

Awful.