Research - Part One

Sarah Everand

4^th of March 2021, Sarah Everard was kidnaped, raped and murdered. The crimes were committed by a police officer, Wayne Couzens, who falsely arrested her on allegations of breaking covid restrictions, as a person of authority, Everard trusted him in this situation as anybody would, which inevitably led to her brutal death. Couzens is now serving a full life sentence. During vigils for Everard, police responded by making several arrests for breaching covid restrictions, almost making light of a dark and evil attack (Sarah Everard murder: Wayne Couzens given whole-life sentence, 2021). This is just one example of the more extreme cases of violence women face because of their gender.

Sarah Everard sparked media to ensure women were protecting themselves. And encouraged them to dress appropriately, carry legal self-defence and avoid any risk such as walking alone. This outraged many as this is holding women responsible. North Yorkshire commissioner Phillip Allot made his opinions clear when he stated (and since retracted) that Everard shouldn't have "submitted" to the arrest and suggested that women need to be more streetwise (Sarah Everard: Hundreds complain about police commissioner's comments, 2021).

From a young age women are taught how to protect themselves because by simply being female, you are at risk. Some examples of this are to take an extra layer to wear like a cardigan for to and from a restaurant or bar even in the middle of summer to cover your skin and chest, or to have tracking apps on your phone so your friends and family can know you are where you said you'd be, or to carry your keys in between your fingers to defend yourself from an attacker. All these things could determine whether you return home safely, however, the reality is that you can do everything right like Sarah Everard, and still be vulnerable to an attack.

This conversation is very important to me as I and many friends and family members have experienced situations where we did fear for our safety because of our gender. I feel this conversation won’t end until those who do not understand, learn about the fear women have and why it exists, so we can the explore solutions that don’t leave women with blame and guilt.

 

BBC News. 2021. Sarah Everard murder: Wayne Couzens given whole-life sentence. [online] Available at: <https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-58747614> [Accessed 8 October 2021].

BBC News. 2021. Sarah Everard: Hundreds complain about police commissioner's comments. [online] Available at: <https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-york-north-yorkshire-58834029> [Accessed 8 October 2021].