International Women’s Day Action: UnVioladorEnTuCamino!

12PM – BRIDGE STREET (going over plans and practicing the performance)

2PM – BRIGGATE (performance and march)

On the 8th of March women and feminized people across the world will take to the streets to call for and end to the multilayered violence we continue to endure. We are angry and we are rising. We will be performing “Un Violador en tu Camino” / “ A Rapist in your path” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5AAscy7qbI) which was first born in November 2019 as a response to the cases of harassment and sexual abuse carried by the Chilean police and Chilean state in the context of social uprising. The chorus “The rapist is you/ It’s the police/ The judges/ The state,” resonates across the globe. It firmly positions sexual violence as a structural problem, produced by states and powerful institutions.

In the United Kingdom we are facing another 5 years of Conservative austerity which have left us on a knife edge. Traditional expectations of womanhood linked to the unpaid labour of motherhood and care makes us more dependent on public services and benefits, both of which have been cut to the bone. On top of this, when these services roll back, we are expected to replace them ourselves.

The number of women killed at the hands of a partner or ex-partner has skyrocketed to an average of three deaths per week. Sexual violence, from assault to everyday workplace harassment is at the centre of our exploitation. The number of women killed by former and current partners has increased to an average of three deaths per week. We demand collective solutions to our individual experiences of violence whether they occur in the home, on the streets or at work. With cuts to domestic violence and rape services, rising racism and nationalism, and record numbers of women suffering violence we need to build a feminist movement from below that strikes at the heart of our oppression and exploitation.

We borrow this performance from our Chilean sisters and siblings who are a tremendous source of inspiration and who we firmly stand in solidarity with. We demand an end to patriarchy worldwide, from Britain to Chile, from Leeds to the world!

We will be posting a video tutorial and lyrics for anyone wanting to learn before the day, we’ll also be meeting a few hours before to go over everything so all can join!

FOR WOMEN AND NON-BINARY PEOPLE