UPDATE: This event is cancelled
A #ReclaimTheseStreets solidarity vigil is due to be held in Margate on Saturday, from 6pm. All from the Thanet area are welcome.
It is scheduled to run at the same time as a vigil in Clapham for Sarah Everard whose body was found in Great Chart after a large police operation.
Sarah had been at a friend’s house in Clapham on the evening of Wednesday, 3 March. At approximately 9pm she left and began walking to her home address in Brixton. She had not been seen or heard from since then and a police operation was mounted. On March 9 officers arrested a man at an address in Deal in connection with the disappearance of Sarah
The man, named as Wayne Couzens, is a serving Metropolitan Police officer. He has since been arrested on suspicion of the kidnap and murder of Sarah.
He has been further detained in custody at a London police station and an application to extend his detention was granted at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court.
A woman aged in her 30s, who was arrested at the same time on suspicion of assisting an offender, has been released on bail to return to a police station on a date in mid-April.
The investigation is being led by Specialist Crime detectives who are drawing on expertise and skills from hundreds of colleagues across the Met. They are also being supported by Kent Police.
Following the arrest many women have spoken out on social media about safety fears. A vigil, due to take place at Clapham Common bandstand in south London on Saturday, has been organised although the Met Police has reversed its position on allowing the event to go ahead due to covid restrictions.
Organisers of the vigil in Margate say strict Covid-19 safety guidelines, including compulsory mask-wearing and social distancing, will be observed.
It will be held at the Main Sands steps in Margate tomorrow from 6pm
An organiser said: “This event is for and about those who identify as women and non binary, but open to all. Bring a light and wear something black to remember those we’ve lost.”
People are asked to tweet #ReclaimTheseStreets and/or light a candle at 6pm on Saturday if they cannot attend because of your location, self isolating or shielding.
The Clapham Common vigil, if it goes ahead, will be livestreamed at: https://fb.me/e/25nqZlDAg
The event page says: “In Clapham, police told women not to go out at night this week. Women are not the problem.
“We’ve all been following the tragic case of Sarah Everard over the last week. This is a vigil for Sarah, but also for all women who feel unsafe, who go missing from our streets and who face violence every day.”
