Irate member of the audience at the Miss Southall beauty contest confronts women pickets issue Women showing porn against women. How did the campaign in South London begin?
TM:About ten months ago a woman in the area was raped. She knocked on the door or a local feminist to ask for help, having already tried several other doors without success We realised that there was nothing in the area for women in her situation. The police weren't any help, especially the woman was black.
DO ilsu talked about retaliation, like picketing the workplace WICIC LIC volved in this case worked. But we decided that this might only back the woman herself. So we called a demonstration which was very successful.
What do you think the campaign has achievpol nationally and locally?
It's brought the issue into people's minds and the press have been quite favourable, locally and nationally. There's a growing interest in self-defence classes for women - they are springing up all over London.
What about chandes in the law as a focus for the campaign?
Were are changes that are needed, such as the quesion of rape within marriage which still cannot be prosecuted under law.
months. picketed cinemas MA: I don't see the point of changes to the law because une courts and police will be the same. Lord Hailsham, ample, said that 'no' calcall 'yes'. Stiffer sentences are no good since luries would stop convicting.
I think changes in the law are important because arsome state you have to reveal the role OT the state; you can't simply alm campaign to show awful men alc You have to fight the system that puts women in chains. BG: Personally I'm not interested in spending time talking to men. our object is to make women strong, not lust on the violence issue but on all issues affecting them.
What is the meaning of the demand for a curfew on men? MA: I think it was to invert the logic of the police who were calling for a virtual curfew on women. don't think it was meant seriously because wouldn't be practicable.
But it did shock men into thinking about their relationships kape is about power: men's power over about Mary Whitehouse's support for the campaign? BG: She can't really support us. She doesn't support women's liberation. We don't want her support. sex, full stop. We're not She's abortion and week LASEr when murder suspect Peter •ITCITE WAS TAKeN TO court there were big side the court deman ding that hanging should be brought MA: We've debated in the group about stiffer penalties. people in the group would be in favour of hanging. But surely don't want to give the state use as they please, in cluaing against radica women.
BG: Yes, but the problem is what else can you do! We may not like this society and want change it but how do you control anti-social behaviour in the here and now?
Hanging certainly doesn't do that BG: True, we can't rely China they have people's courts which are more directly popular control. Does the campaign around the cinemas aim merely to expose the films or to stop Taen Wouldn't the latter be censorship?
MA: Most things I'm interested in are never pul the screen anyway Ull and that's censorship. TM: We have to say we don't want these types of films. We wouldn't give a platform to fascists. BG: In the '60s defended permissiveness in the end We defended magazines like O and 11 was very sexist.
But who decides what should be censored and who does the cen soring?
TM: Women should decide.
But women? Can we speak for all women MA: No, • whal we want don were micre is less and less demand for pornography literature which exploits In this society you can't distinguish between erotic literature and porlucianil occausi much of exploits women.
Would vou have suo ported the banning of Lady Chatterley's Lover? MA: Lawrence's writing is pretty violent towards women, but I don't think should banned. That would repressive BG: Even magazine vou had to de fend it because of what it represenied al the fight against state repression and censor.
MA: We are not calling for censorship. We want peopic iu stup wartille last thing wIlt that we would like to ask for broad support TOr Women against Violence Women have had ten members arrested our cam paign so far.
United States have obtained
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DIRECT action by women against sexual violence has been a major
over the past few have
members of the Women Against Violence Against Women group in
films and violence JUDITH ARKWRIGHT interviews