Violence Against Women and Girls 

I was wrong.

My mother was born in 1926. I was born in 1968. My daughter was born in 2004. Across three generations, violence against women and girls has remained a reality in my family and in society at large. The forms it takes may change, but it continues.

This is not just a women’s issue. It is a society issue. It affects families, communities, workplaces, education, health, public services and the freedom of over half the population.

Here are 11 reasons why violence against women and girls must stop, and why every one of us should care.

1. Violence against women and girls is wrong. Period.

Let’s start with the obvious.

Nobody should live in fear of being attacked, abused, intimidated, controlled, stalked, harassed or assaulted. Nobody should have to plan their life around the possibility of violence.

It is wrong. Full stop.

Everything else follows from that simple truth.

2. It continues across generations

This is not a problem from the distant past.

My mother, born in 1926, experienced assault on the street when she was a young teenager. She did not report it or talk to her family about it.

I experienced assault aged 20 and had to be coaxed by college friends to report it.

My daughter has experienced verbal abuse on her first walk into a new town.

Three generations. Nearly a hundred years apart.

That should make us stop and think. If the same problem is affecting women born in the 1920s, the 1960s and the 2000s, then we still have a great deal of work to do. Let’s do it!

3. We thought violence against women and girls would be eradicated

Many women of my generation grew up believing things would improve dramatically.

We were told society was progressing. We saw women’s rights advance. We believed the future would be different.

Yet here we are.

Progress has been made, but not enough. Women and girls are still adjusting their lives, changing routes home, carrying keys between their fingers, sharing taxi details and messaging friends and family to say they’ve arrived safely.

That isn’t equality. It is adaptation to risk.

4. Fear restricts educational opportunities

When girls and women do not feel safe travelling, particularly after dark, opportunities are lost.

A college course. An evening class. A training programme. A networking event.

Many opportunities take place outside normal daytime hours. If someone feels unsafe attending, they may simply not go.

The result is that violence and fear of violence limit educational opportunities and life chances.

5. Fear restricts employment opportunities

The same applies to work.

Shift work, hospitality, healthcare, retail, events, transport and many other industries require travel at unsociable hours.

Women may turn down jobs, promotions, training opportunities or career development because of concerns about safety.

No one should have to choose between personal safety and professional opportunity.

6. Let’s reclaim the streets whatever the time

Too often, discussions focus on women walking home in the dark.

But violence against women and girls does not operate to a timetable.

It can happen in broad daylight, online, at work, on public transport, in schools, at universities, in shops and in social settings.

Treating it as a “nighttime problem” misses the reality of women’s everyday experiences.

7. It is not just a street issue

I was attacked on the street in the South.

My mother was attacked on the street in the North.

My grandmother was attacked in her own home by her husband.

During the years when the Yorkshire Ripper was at large, women were told to stay at home for safety. Yet many women including some Ripper victims were living in abusive relationships behind closed doors.

The truth is uncomfortable but important to face.

Many women are not safe on the street.

Many women are not safe at home.

Violence against women and girls is not confined to one place. That is exactly what makes it so difficult and so urgent to address.

8. Women should be free to enjoy their lives

Women and girls should simply be able to enjoy themselves.

Go out with friends.

Attend a concert.

Go dancing.

Watch a film.

Visit a restaurant.

Take a walk.

Travel.

Live.

If women just want to have fun, they should be able to leave the house without fear, without anxiety and without their heart racing as they make their way home.

Freedom matters.

Joy matters.

9. Authorities must take it seriously

Many police officers work hard and genuinely want to protect the public.

But every report of violence against women and girls must be taken seriously.

Women and girls need to know they will be believed, supported and protected.

We must also acknowledge something difficult: when police officers themselves commit abuse against women and girls, whether against members of the public, colleagues or partners, trust is damaged. My daughter did not report what happened to her saying she had no faith in the police after “what that policeman did to Sarah during Covid.”

Those entrusted with protecting people must be held to the highest standards.

10. It happens more often than many people realise

One of the challenges in tackling violence against women and girls is that much of it remains hidden.

Many women never report what happened.

Many blame themselves.

Many fear they will not be believed.

Many are traumatised.

Some are so traumatised that they cannot remember events clearly or in chronological order, which can make reporting even harder.

The absence of reports should never be mistaken for the absence of harm.

11. What could be a bigger issue than this?

Over half the population lives with a great degree of awareness, caution or concern about violence against them based on their gender pretty much from at least teenage years until death and often earlier.

Think about that.

What other issue affects so many people, so often, over such a long period of time?

Violence against women and girls influences where people go, what they wear, which jobs or volunteering opportunities they take, how they travel, who they trust and how safe they feel in the world.

That should concern everyone, not only women.

Conclusion

Violence against women and girls is real.

It has affected generation after generation.

It affects opportunities, freedom, confidence, relationships and lives.

Most importantly, it is not inevitable.

Change happens when people acknowledge the problem, refuse to minimise it and decide that enough is enough.

It will take all of us. Women. Men. Families. Friends. Schools. Employers. Communities. The police. Politicians. Traditional media and online platforms.

All of us.

Because violence against women and girls is not something that happens to “other people”.

It happens here. It happens now. It happens far too often.

And until we are willing to say that loudly, repeatedly and collectively, it will continue.

The first step is simple: acknowledge that it happens, acknowledge that it matters, and commit to tackling it together. The Government can do important things to help tackle violence against women and girls and should. It takes every individual and organisation to effect mass cultural change. Only then can future generations of women and girls live with the freedom and safety they have always deserved.