There is some art that begins with anger. Art that is fuelled by fury and made to revolt. From paintings and performance, music and writing, female art has stemmed from rage for hundreds of years. But perhaps no piece of feminist art is quite as distinguished or as striking as the protest sign. For votes, for rights, for equal pay and for choice, protest signs have always been necessary in fighting for equality and for safety of women around the world. A form of resistance that dates back hundreds of years, women have had a lot of time to perfect the ultimate protest placard. It is therefore no surprise that the signs on display at the annual Reclaim the Night march were thought provoking, powerful and increasingly relevant.
“My body, my choice”, “I want to be safe not brave” and “Girls just wanna walk home” are only a few examples of the homemade signs and placards seen at this year’s Reclaim the Night protest. The annual campaign to fight for the safety of women and marginalised genders has been going strong since 1977 and with the march in its 47th year, I wanted to take a closer look at the art that these women carry along with them to make their voices heard. The banners and signs that are held high above heads are brandished in anger, fury and sadness but, above all else, hope. Hope for change
As heavy flurries of snow fell onto Oxford Road, angry and freezing fingers held soggy, drooping cardboard signs high into the air. The dripping paint howled for women’s safety and roared of bodily autonomy; the voice of women everywhere was written in glitter for all to see. As the snow bore down, the signs were held higher, above the crowds, the first to be hit by the weather. Underlined in thick red marker pen the words: “Being safe should not be a privilege!”. The sign’s anger seemed to be laced with a desperation, an exhaustion of having to fight for something that should be a right; getting home safely. The fury was palpable. It is tiring and beyond maddening having to fight for something that your grandmother’s rage has already tried to fix. But you could feel the pride as the women and students marched for their own future daughters and granddaughters, a battalion with cardboard as their swords and shields.
Fuelled by the injustices faced by women and marginalised communities, the signs present at Reclaim the Night were an ode to angry women everywhere with many slogans and designs inspired by pro-choice rallies from the 1970s and the original Reclaim the Night marches. Over the last century, signs made and held by women have brought about the right to vote, a decline in the pay gap, and the Sex Discrimination Act. Women have had so much practice at creating protest signs, 100s of years of practice. I have a feeling we have many more to come. We should never have had to become experts at fighting for our rights, but experts we became. Dare I say maestros.
Here are some of the brilliant and impactful signs created by students at this year’s Reclaim the Night march. Powerful, thought provoking and expert, these signs are steeped in the history of women’s rights and hold the weight of decades of a fight for equality and safety for women and marginalised communities. For your next march, protest or demonstration, here is some inspiration to create your next sign to continue the fight.
