To be loud and annoying is the definition of a protest, so it’s shocking that the new Police Crackdown bill would criminalise this. Time to raise our voices while we can
I am a feminist but one time I went on a women’s rights march, popped into a department store to use the loo, got distracted trying out face cream and when I came out the march was gone. The first time I admitted this in public I was worried I would get kicked out of the feminist club, but I discovered that many, many, many women have left a march at half-time. Some quite famous feminists have told me they have snuck off to the pub for a cheeky half, planning to go back out, and woken up with a hangover. Still, I have to think that going to a protest, being counted and raising your voice is, like many things in life, better than not going at all – even if you get overwhelmed by the crowd and don’t quite make it to the finish line.
The British have a reputation for being quiet and polite but there’s a long tradition of us being noisy and annoying. It is how we got everything we treasure, from votes for people who aren’t posh landowners to gay weddings. We even protested to get two days off a week and invented the weekend. We have saved libraries, protested both for and against Brexit, and last summer overturned dodgy exam algorithms. We ended the European Super League before it began. Taking to the street with a wry placard that reads: “I’m very cross!” or: “I can’t believe I’m still protesting this shit” is our way of life.
