Founded November 2014 Location United Kingdom | Type Activist group | |
Focus Anti-austerity, Feminism, Intersectionality, Domestic violence, Trans feminism, Black feminism, Working class feminism Method Demonstration, Direct action, Civil disobedience, Community work | ||
Sisters Uncut is a British feminist direct action group that is opposed to cuts to UK government services for domestic violence victims. It was founded in November 2014. Its gender inclusion policy states that "the group is open to all women (trans, intersex and cis), all those who experience oppression as women (including non-binary and gender non-conforming people) and all those who identify as women for the purpose of political organising". The group aims to organise non-hierarchically and uses consensus decision-making.
Contents
Background and founding
In a situation in which two women in England and Wales are killed by a current or former partner every week on average, the British government under Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron cut funding for domestic violence services, leading to concern from groups such as the Women's Aid Federation of England that the cuts could leave victims of abuse with no ability to escape their abusers. It became a point of contention in the 2015 General Election, with major parties making election promises related to domestic violence services.
The group was founded in November 2014 by women from the group UK Uncut, and its name is a reference to that group. The group is not affiliated to any political party.
Activism
The group held its first sisters-only protest in London on Valentine's Day 2015.
On the 4 May May Day bank holiday the group staged a demonstration and occupied the roof of the London Councils building and set off smoke flares in the street.
On 20 June Sisters Uncut attended the People's Assembly Against Austerity national demonstration against austerity and the Tory government.
On 1 August 2015 the group held a march through Kensington to the Daily Mail headquarters and burned copies of the newspaper to protest the "anti-migrant propaganda" of that newspaper. The paper had called for British troops to be sent to Calais refugee camps to stop migrants reaching the UK.
On 8 August 2015 members of Sisters Uncut along with other groups - including Movement for Justice By Any Means Necessary - protested at Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre to demand an end to immigration detention and an end to abuse of migrant women that takes place inside of them. Sisters Uncut organises intersectionally and see the struggle against racism and borders as intimately connected to the struggle against violence women face.
On 9 August 2015 Sisters Uncut joined other activist groups in a remembrance gathering for Michael Brown, who was shot and killed by officer Darren Wilson on August 9, 2014 in Ferguson. Sisters Uncut support anti-police brutality campaigns and see a connection between state violence against women and state violence against people of colour.
On 12 September 2015 Sisters Uncut attended the 100,000 strong demonstration in solidarity with migrants fleeing war-torn countries. They held a sit-in outside of Downing Street (the residence of the British Prime Minister) alongside activist groups Black Dissidents and The London Latinxs.
On 19 September 2015 Sisters Uncut joined Focus E15 Mothers campaign in demanding the government provides working-class people with social housing and puts controls on landlords and rents. Linking the issue of housing and austerity to violence against women, they chanted "How can she get away, when she's got nowhere to stay. You cut her benefits, and you took her job away".
Sisters Uncut came to international prominence after demonstrating at the 7 October London premiere of the 2015 film Suffragette against cuts to domestic violence services. Their tagline was "Dead women can't vote". The film's star Helena Bonham-Carter described the protest as "perfect.. If you feel strongly enough about something and there's an injustice there you can speak out and try to get something changed". Carey Mulligan, another actress who performed in the film, said that the protest was "awesome" and that she was sad she had missed it.
On Friday 16 October 2015 Sisters Uncut joined The London Latinxs and Black Dissidents in organising a demonstration that caused severe delays to the Eurostar rail line at St Pancras International station. Migrant solidarity work plays a central role in the work of Sisters Uncut out of the belief violence against women is intimately connected to racism and xenophobia.
On 31 October 2015 Sisters Uncut attended the annual United Families and Friends Campaign march against deaths in police custody in the UK. Believing that state violence is connected to interpersonal violence, Sisters Uncut support the struggles of families seeking justice for a death in custody.
On 21 November 2015 Sisters Uncut joined staff and service users of Apna Haq (a specialist BME domestic violence service in Rotherham) to protest the funding cuts that threaten to lead to the closure of the service.
On 28 November 2015 Sisters Uncut hosted a funeral march and dyed the fountains in Trafalgar Square red to symbolism the blood of women who are murdered at the hands of abusive partners. This was their biggest street march, which was attended by around 500 women and non-binary people. The date was chosen to coincide with the week George Osborne delivered his Autumn Budget where, Sisters Uncut argue, cuts and policy were announced that would have a devastating effect on survivors of domestic violence. This action marked their final protest of 2015.
Activism in Portsmouth
On 8 December 2015 Sisters Uncut joined local activists, service workers and domestic violence survivors in a rally outside Portsmouth Guildhall to protest the proposed £180,000 cuts to domestic violence services proposed by Portsmouth City Council. Sisters Uncut then went on to shut down the council meeting by unfurling a banner that read cuts to domestic violence services kills women and chanting "they cut, we bleed".
Out of this protest a local Portsmouth Sisters Uncut group was formed and launched in January.
9 February Council Meeting Protest and Arrest
On 9 February 2016, Sisters Uncut London groups and Portsmouth chapter held a second rally outside Portsmouth Guildhall where the final decision about the proposed cuts was to be decided. They staged a "die-in" on the steps of the Guildhall to represent the women who die due to domestic violence and not having access to safe services.
During the council meeting on the 9th, Sisters Uncut released 4,745 pieces of confetti to symbolise the number of recorded instances of domestic violence in Portsmouth in 2014.
One member of Sisters Uncut was targeted by security and police for releasing the confetti in the meeting. Commenting on the arrest, a member of Sisters Uncut said:
It’s outrageous that throwing confetti is considered to be a crime, yet decimating life-saving domestic violence support services is not. The councillors who want to make these cuts are the real criminals here.
Regional Growth of Sisters Uncut
In January 2016, Sisters Uncut announced that Portsmouth Sisters Uncut would be its first regional group outside London. At the beginning of February Sisters Uncut announced that it would be splitting its London group into three separate, mostly autonomous groups based in North, East and South London. The momentum for this expansion came from the group's rapid growth in 2015 and the group's decision to move more towards community based organising. They are also working on setting up groups elsewhere around the UK.