Girls Against

Last updated

Girls Against
Formation2015
FounderHannah Camilleri, Anni Cameron, Anna Cowan, Ava Cadenhead, Bea Bennister
PurposeCampaign against sexual assault at live music events
Website www.girlsagainst.co.uk

The Girls Against is a non-profit organisation formed in 2015 by Hannah Camilleri and four friends, Anni Cameron, Anna Cowan, Ava Cadenhead and Bea Bennister. Camilleri's experience of sexual assault at a Peace gig in Glasgow in 2015 [1] prompted the young women to set up Girls Against to shine a spotlight on sexual assault of young women at gigs, and support victims in sharing and recovering from their experiences. [2]

Contents

History

By 2016, Girls Against had over 80 international representatives actively promoting the campaign by communicating with the press, venues and bands themselves. [3]

In March 2020, Girls Against were featured on the BBC in an interview with Isy Suttie for We Can Change the World. [4]

Support and media coverage

They have been supported by many bands and artists, including Peace, [1] Slaves, [5] [6] Wolf Alice [7] Circa Waves, [8] and The Zangwills [9] and have been featured by Time Out, [10] NME , [11] [3] Dr Martens [12] and Skinnydip London. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Muse (band)</span> English rock band

Muse are an English rock band from Teignmouth, Devon, formed in 1994. The band consists of Matt Bellamy, Chris Wolstenholme, and Dominic Howard (drums).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melanie C</span> English singer

Melanie Jayne Chisholm, better known as Melanie C or Mel C, is an English singer-songwriter and media personality. As one of the five members of the Spice Girls, she was nicknamed Sporty Spice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Courteeners</span> English band

Courteeners are an English band formed in Middleton in 2006 by Liam Fray, Michael Campbell, Daniel "Conan" Moores and Mark Cuppello (bass); the latter was replaced by the band's producer Joe Cross in 2015. They previously toured with pianist Adam Payne, who has been featured on every album, but in 2019 was replaced with Elina Lin. In December 2012, the band dropped "The" from their name, continuing simply as "Courteeners".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Ting Tings</span> English musical duo

The Ting Tings are an English indie pop duo from Salford, Greater Manchester formed in 2007. The band consists of Katie White and Jules De Martino.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Glitter</span> English musician and child sex offender (born 1944)

Paul Francis Gadd, best known by his stage name Gary Glitter, is an English former glam rock singer who achieved success in the 1970s and 1980s. His career ended after he was imprisoned for downloading child pornography in 1999. He was also convicted of child sexual abuse in 2006 and a series of sexual offences in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Groping</span> Touching another person in a sexual way without consent

In a sexual context, groping is the act of intentionally touching another person in a sexual manner without their consent. The term generally has a negative connotation in many societies, and the activity may be considered sexual assault or otherwise unacceptable. Touching a consenting person's body during sexual activity, a massage, or a medical examination is not usually considered groping, though the term is sometimes used to include clumsy, selfish, or inappropriate sexual touching. Areas of the body most frequently groped include the buttocks, breasts, vulva, and thighs on a woman, and the penis, testicles, and buttocks on a man. Gropers might use their hands, but pressing any part of their body against another person can be considered groping.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Self Esteem (musician)</span> English singer-songwriter (born 1986)

Rebecca Lucy Taylor, also known by her stage name as Self Esteem, is a British musician. First known as one half of the band Slow Club, she launched a solo career as Self Esteem with the single "Your Wife" in 2017, followed by the albums Compliments Please in 2019 and Prioritise Pleasure in 2021. A multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, songwriter and theatre composer, she is winner of the 2021 BBC Music Introducing award and Prioritise Pleasure was nominated for the 2022 Mercury Prize.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Yewtree</span> British police investigation

Operation Yewtree was a British police investigation into sexual abuse allegations, predominantly the abuse of children, against the English media personality Jimmy Savile and others. The investigation, led by the Metropolitan Police Service (Met), started in October 2012. After a period of assessment, it became a full criminal investigation, involving inquiries into living people, notably other celebrities, as well as Savile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jimmy Savile sexual abuse scandal</span> Sexual assault scandal about English media personality

It emerged in late 2012 that Jimmy Savile, an English media personality who had died the previous year, sexually abused hundreds of people throughout his life, most of them children but some as old as 75, and most of them female. He had been well known in the United Kingdom for his eccentric image and was generally respected for his charitable work, which associated him with the British monarchy and other individuals of personal power.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chvrches</span> Scottish synthpop group

Chvrches are a Scottish synth-pop band from Glasgow, formed in September 2011. The band consists of Lauren Mayberry, Iain Cook, Martin Doherty and, unofficially since 2018, Jonny Scott. Mostly deriving from the synth-pop genre, Chvrches also incorporate indietronica, indie pop, and electronic dance into their sound.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The 1975</span> English pop rock band

The 1975 are an English pop rock band formed in 2002 in Wilmslow, Cheshire. Now based in Manchester, the band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Matthew "Matty" Healy, lead guitarist Adam Hann, bassist Ross MacDonald, and drummer/producer George Daniel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Blood (band)</span> English rock duo

Royal Blood are an English rock duo formed in Worthing in 2011. The current lineup consists of Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher (drums). They were signed by Warner Chappell Music in 2013 and have since released three studio albums: Royal Blood (2014), How Did We Get So Dark? (2017), and Typhoons (2021).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catfish and the Bottlemen</span> British indie rock alt from Wales

Catfish and the Bottlemen are a British indie rock band formed in Llandudno, Wales, in 2007. The band's debut album, The Balcony, reached number 10 in the UK Albums Chart and achieved Platinum status on 30 December 2016. The band have toured in South America, Japan, UK, Europe, North America, and Australia performing a wide selection of festivals including Lollapalooza, Glastonbury, Latitude, Falls Festival, Community Festival, Reading and Leeds, T in the Park, Governors Ball, All Points East, Bonnaroo, Splendour in the Grass, and TRNSMT. They won a Brit Award for British Breakthrough Act on 24 February 2016. On 27 May 2016, they released their second album, The Ride, which reached number 1 in the UK Albums Chart and has sold 300,000 units in the UK since its release. On 26 April 2019, they released their third album, The Balance, which reached number 2 in the UK Albums Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soft Play</span> English punk rock band

Soft Play are an English punk rock duo formed in Royal Tunbridge Wells in 2012, consisting of Isaac Holman and Laurie Vincent. Their music has been described as "British punk with harsh bluesy garage riffs".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tilian Pearson</span> American singer-songwriter

Tilian Pearson, also known mononymously as Tilian, is an American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer born in Clearwater, Florida. Since 2012 he has been the third clean vocalist for the post-hardcore band Dance Gavin Dance. Pearson began his music career as the lead vocalist and guitarist in the progressive rock band Tides of Man, releasing an extended play and two studio albums before leaving in 2010.

Mass sexual assault is the collective sexual assault of men/women, and sometimes children, in public by groups. Typically acting under the protective cover of large gatherings, victims have reported being groped, stripped, beaten, bitten, penetrated and raped.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Viola Beach</span> English indie rock group

Viola Beach were an English indie rock group, formed in Warrington, Cheshire, in 2013. The band's final line-up consisted of Kris Leonard, River Reeves (guitar), Tomas Lowe, and Jack Dakin (drums). All four, along with their manager Craig Tarry, were killed when their car fell from a bridge in Södertälje, Sweden, on 13 February 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Zangwills</span> Indie rock band

The Zangwills are a UK based indie rock band from Cheshire. The band members are Jake Vickers Sam Davies Ed Dowling (bass) and Adam Spence (drums) they formed in June 2017, releasing their first single, New Heights in December the same year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taylor Swift sexual assault trial</span> David Mueller, terminated DJ, convicted August 2017

The Taylor Swift sexual assault trial was a legal case held in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado. The trial involved David Mueller, a former DJ, filing for defamation against singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. He claimed she had him wrongfully terminated following an incident at a 2013 meet-and-greet. Swift then counter-sued Mueller for battery and sexual assault, seeking a symbolic $1 in damages. The trial lasted one week, beginning on August 7, 2017, with both Mueller and Swift appearing in court. It concluded on the evening of August 14, 2017, with the jury ruling in Swift's favor and ordering Mueller to pay her $1.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ginger Banks</span> American pornographic actress

Ginger Banks is an American webcam model, pornographic actress and sex worker advocate.

References

  1. 1 2 "These young women are fighting against groping at gigs". BBC News. 26 November 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  2. Eaton, Joanie (14 December 2015). "The Girls Against guide to gig etiquette". the Guardian. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  3. 1 2 "Why I Joined Girls Against And The Fight Against Sexual Assault At Gigs | NME". NME | Music, Film, TV, Gaming & Pop Culture News. 24 October 2016. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  4. "We Can Change The World - Girls Against with Bea and Georgia - BBC Sounds". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  5. "Slaves join anti-harassment campaign and vow to halt gigs if they see groping in crowd | NME". NME | Music, Film, TV, Gaming & Pop Culture News. 27 November 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  6. "Slaves vow to stop gigs if they see groping in crowd". BBC News. 27 November 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  7. "In The Middle with Girls Against – The Gryphon". www.thegryphon.co.uk. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  8. "Girls Against on Instagram: "@circawaves we 💜 you thank you for the amazing shout out and wonderful support - can't believe how crazy this week has been for us! Thank…"". Instagram. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  9. "Warrington band The Zangwills talk about 'surreal' opportunity working with Game of Thrones star". Warrington Guardian. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  10. contributors, Time Out Teen Takeover. "Meet six teens doing amazing things in London". Time Out London. Retrieved 6 March 2021.{{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  11. "Girls Against: The Teenagers Trying To Eliminate Groping At Gigs, And How We Can Support Them | NME". NME | Music, Film, TV, Gaming & Pop Culture News. 24 November 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  12. "THE ORIGINALS SERIES: GIRLS AGAINST". Dr. Martens Blog. 5 April 2017. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  13. "Girls Against on Instagram: "Head on over to @skinnydiplondon to view our Q&A with them! We're really humbled and thankful for them giving us this platform to speak…"". Instagram. Retrieved 6 March 2021.