Sadiq Khan has offered his thoughts on gender equality in line with his year-long campaign to mark the centenary of women’s right to vote in the UK.
The need for greater gender equality has been simmering under the surface for decades. It is true that women have come a long way. Women are now more independent than ever. The matter of whether they are given the same opportunities or enjoy the same rights and freedoms as men is still questioned.
In recent years the debate on gender equality has once again been placed at the forefront of the public agenda. Protests about the gender pay gap, the increasing number of allegations of sexual harrassment in the work place, the recent Women’s March. There is still much to be done to achieve greater gender equality.
The #BehindEveryGreatCity year-long campaign will celebrate the progress made in gender equality and the role of London in the suffragist movement. It will also seek to further promote women’s progress in all aspects of life.The campaign was launched just before the New Year at Platanos College in Lambeth.
The campaign is taking place the year in which the UK celebrates 100 years since the 1918 Representation of the People Act gave some women the right to vote for the first time: “Milestones like this are a time to look back and mark the huge strides that have been made towards gender equality, and to celebrate the success of women in our great city. It is also a time to take stock of the huge inequality women still face.”
A recent study shows that the gender pay gap in London has only been reduced by half a percent in the last twenty years. A study conducted by City Hall shows that three times more women than men feel that gender hinders their work progression.
During the centenary, “we will redouble our efforts in the fight for gender equality.” Public figures will be working with leaders from all industries to ensure and support the continuing success of women.
As part of the campaign a statue of leading suffragette, Millicent Fawcett, by Turner prize-winner Gillian Wearing, will be unveiled in Parliament Square. It will be the first statue of a woman to be displayed at the location.
The statue to celebrate those great women who gave so much of their time and risked their lives so that women of future generations could enjoy greater freedoms and rights was commissioned after Caroline Criado-Perez campaigned to have a statue of a woman placed in Parliament Square.
Art on the Underground has also commissioned works from women artists to be exhibited on the London Underground. The works will be part of an exclusively female year-long art programme. Just under six million trips are made on the Underground every day. The all-female art programme will give women artists a greater voice in public spaces.
Inevitably, “Behind Every Great City is equality, opportunity and progress – regardless of your gender.” The campaign slogan #BehindEveryGreatCity is a play on the 60s and 70s feminist slogan “Behind every great man stands a great woman”. The campaign will highlight that great women don’t stand behind great men. They are strong and independent. What they say and do contributes to power great cities.
“Over the next year, and beyond, we will highlight how women of all ages, ethnicities, faiths and backgrounds make London the great city it is. During this momentous year and beyond, we must do all we can to remove any barriers to women’s success and to unlock their full potential.”
#BehindEveryGreatCity campaign events will be happening throughout the year across London.
> Naomi Round
