FOLLOWING the death of Sarah Everard earlier this month, people up and down the country have paid tribute to her memory over the weekend.

Ealing residents were also involved, with an 'unofficial' walk through the town centre taking place following a route that women felt unsafe to walk through at night.

Organiser Stephanie Tubbritt told Nub News: "As a teenager I was sexually abused three times and catcalled many more.

"I've yet to meet a woman who hasn't experienced some sort of harassment.

"When I heard about Sarah's death it reminded me a lot of Alice Gross who was in the year below me at school.

"Even in broad daylight, women and children aren't safe and something needs to be done about it."

Stephanie, who's now 21 and lives in Ealing Broadway decided to organise a walk around Ealing town centre on Saturday (March 13) evening.

However, only a couple of hours before the walk was scheduled to go ahead, she received a message from a man telling her that if the walk did in fact go ahead, he would report her to the police for breaching COVID restrictions.

Upon talking to her boyfriend who is a police officer, Stephanie decided it was best to cancel the walk, but made it clear that people were still allowed to walk the route, as long as it wasn't part of an 'official' event.

"I was overwhelmed by the amount of people that joined in, the fact that I was threatened to be reported to the police actually made more people want to walk the route" she said.

"There were around 200 people, including many men and young boys, which was great to see.

"Everyone adhered to the COVID guidelines and stuck to their bubbles, keeping safe distances from others and the vast majority of people wore face masks as well."

Following the success of Saturday's event, Stephanie decided to set up a new Facebook community group called, Reclaim These Ealing Streets, where people can share incidents and ideas on how to stay safe, without worrying about offensive comments.

The group already has over 500 members in less than 24 hours and numerous women have come forward to share their stories with Stephanie publicly and privately.

"When you post on local Facebook community groups about an incident you experienced, in order to make others aware and stay safe, you often receive comments saying you should've done this or the other, often victim blaming instead of tackling the root of the problem.

"On Reclaim These Ealing Streets that won't be the case, you'll be able to report incidents and not worry about people telling you what you should've done," the 21-year-old added.

Stephanie is very critical of the way Cressida Dick, the Met's Commissioner handled the gatherings over the weekend in Clapham.

"Cressida Dick needs to resign," she said.

"You didn't see this type of crackdown when football fans were celebrating or when Black Lives Matter protesters were protesting.

"It's clear those in positions of power within the police force are protecting their own, but women will not be silenced anymore, we are brave enough and strong enough to fight."

Stephanie wanted to remind people that just like you can't tarnish all men with the same brush, the same applies for police officers.

In the meantime however, she calls on men to help women feel safer by doing a couple of simple things.

She said: "I understand men can sometimes forget to cross the road when they're behind a woman on a quiet street, but they can help in other ways, such as validating a woman's concerns and being there for them emotionally.

"It's important to feel reassured and supported as a human and men can help women feel that way.

"The most important thing men can do is call out their mates' inappropriate behaviour and make sure they change their attitude."

Moving forward Stephanie believes this is a 'huge turning point' and that women who have 'lost their voice', will be able to get it back and turn the tide of violence and harassment.

"Once COVID restrictions are lifted, I plan to hold a large gathering in Ealing and write to the local authorities about all the problems women have faced in the local area regarding their safety.

"This is just the beginning."