Hello and welcome to our first episode of “Yo Is This Sexist?” For this podcast, I, Cameron Allen, will be your host and for today’s podcast I would like to discuss an issue that occurred just last month in South London’s Braxton Hill district. On March 3rd of 2021, when Sarah Everard was walking home from her friends house in Clapham Common, the trip did not go as planned. A journey that should have only taken 50 minutes ended up taking her entire life. Before leaving her friends house, Sarah called her boyfriend and had a 15 minute long conversation, she took the safest route home and did everything right by the book; however, she never made it home. This is unfortunately not a new story. This is a story experienced by billions of women around the world on a daily basis. This tragic narrative must change. When Sarah didn’t make it home that night her boyfriend filed a missing persons report to the London Metropolitan Police Force. Many events quickly unfolded as the hunt for Sarah began. On the 9th of March, a 48 year old London police officer by the name of Wayne Couzens was arrested on suspicion of kidnapping Sarah Everard. Later on the same day, the remains of Sarah were found in the woodland. A day later, Wayne was then arrested a second time on suspicion of murder due to the remains of the body being found. Three days later, on the 12th of March, the remains found were officially declared to be Sarah’s. The same day, Couzens was charged with kidnap and murder.
Even though Sarah did everything right, she still lost her life to a gruesome murderer. This could have happened to any female you know walking alone on the street, which is why drastic change is a necessity. Sarah was described by her mother as a shining example of what a strong, beautiful, and bright woman should be. She was a wonderful sister and daughter, and was further described as kind and thoughtful with a great sense of humor. In order to honor Sarah’s life, a public vigil was organized in London which was then canceled to conform to COVID safety laws; however, the laws were unclear on matters as important and grave as a public vigil. Because of the unclear laws regarding safety protocol, an unofficial vigil still took place where hundreds of people attended and mourned the loss of a still young and great soul. However, matters quickly took a turn for the worse due to the London Metropolitan Police being unsure of how to handle such large crowds along with being unsure of how to handle the new COVID regulations. The police were seen manhandling and confronting dozens of attendees at the vigil, which caused a great deal of controversy regarding the criminal justice system and how the police force handles safety, especially when it is in regards to women. Along with this, another debate was sparked revolving around the security of females around the world.
As a man, I recognize that I will never be able to understand how women still are unable to have their basic safety rights recognized in the year 2021. This narrative must change, we must hold each other accountable, we must hold men accountable for their words and actions. Even today, women are unable to walk home without the fear of being raped, murdered, or kidnapped. This is unacceptable. The way that women are treated daily, is a consequence of the idea that many people hold that men are superior to women. To these people, women are simply viewed for their reproductive capabilities and as a result, their basic rights are stripped from them. These prejudices, and in certain cases, outright discrimination is what makes the world so unsafe for women. You would think that things like this only happen in third world countries; however, even in a country as rich and safe as America, every 73 seconds, an American is sexually assaulted. These statistics are disgusting, maddening, and aggravating because when I hear numbers like this, I think of the women in my life and cannot imagine something as awful as this happening to them. Likewise, even if you are not a female, you should think of the women that are close to you, the ones that inspire you, the ones that empower you, and even the ones that birthed you and feel motivated to create the change that is needed to make the world a better place for these women that are so important to us.
Knowing how vital these women are to us, how are we still able to commit these horrendous acts, how can we as men do better? When I asked the women in my life what they thought the answer to this important question is, they answered by offering a few trivial but essential things that we can do to make them feel safer and more secure. While I understand that these are not permanent solutions, or even a solution at all to the bigger problem, these ideas offer a feeling of security. As men, doing these small actions is our responsibility. The first idea that was discussed was to be walked home after dark. In many places, especially urban places such as a city or college campus, it is unsafe for women to walk alone. Even though this may seem like just a small gesture, it provides a great deal of much needed comfort and support to them. Another small action that was suggested was to maintain a reasonable distance behind them when walking, or if possible, to walk in front of them. When a man closely follows behind them it creates a perpetual and instinctual fear that they could suffer a fate similar to that of Sarah. While it shouldn’t have to be this way, after how many crimes have been committed, women unfortunately have to expect the worst at any given time from any man that they see walking at night. It is not a narrative that all men are rapists or sexual predators, but enough men have tainted the reputation of all men that this fear is innate in nearly all women. A third example that was offered by my female friends was to check in with them to make sure that they made it home safely. Simply calling or texting is enough as long as you are actively participating in making sure that they are secure and safe. These are all small actions, but they can make a massive difference in regards to their safety and wellbeing.
The bigger and more permanent solution to this modern day crisis is accountability. We as men should be holding each other accountable. The most important part of this is to not let each other fall into complacency and passively follow the previously ingrained path of patriarchy. In simple terms, don’t simply be a bystander. Simply saying and knowing that you aren’t a predator isn’t enough, you have to take responsibility for what happens behind the scenes. One key example of this is to not just be a bystander, if you witness something inherently sexist and morally wrong then you should make a point to talk about it, even if the conversation is uncomfortable. Every change starts with a conversation. For example, if you hear someone make an inappropriate sexual or misogynistic joke, you shouldn’t encourage them by laughing or adding on because this creates an environment where females don’t feel safe or comfortable with the men around them. Even if you think that the women around you are comfortable with them, these jokes often represent the internalized patriarchy that has been manifested throughout generations. Since the beginning, women have been oppressed and reduced to a status lower than men by the system perpetuated by structural injustice. The tragic death of Sarah and incredibly high statistics of rape and assault are consequences of generations of upheld structural injustices that must be overturned. This unrecognzed patriarchal mindset often contributes to the issue of rape culture and locker room talks. I understand that achieving full equality will not happen in a matter of days or months, but we must do better as men and as a society. What we are doing right now is not enough. It will take at least a few more decades to achieve true equality, but in the meantime, let’s do everything we can to make sure that women feel safe and protected. Let’s make sure that basic rights such as the feeling of safety are not optional and that men and women all over the world are able to be granted the same unalienable rights.
This concludes our first episode of “Yo Is This Sexist?” with your host Cameron Allen. Thank you for listening and tune in next week for our next episode. I hope that you were able to learn something important from today and that you can make a real and impactful change in the world around you.