UK Women’s March, Belfast: “Women are not free until all women are free”.

By Luella Coley

On Saturday 18th January, almost 100 activists took to the streets of Belfast City Centre, marching towards City Hall to stand in solidarity with the UK Women’s March movement.

The organisation behind these coordinated marches is not a long standing one, but rather a response to the accelerating threats on women’s rights across the world, with Donald Trump set for his second US presidency to commence on January 20th, and encroaching fears of a mirrored pro-life campaign beginning in the UK at the hands of Nigel Farage and Reform UK.

The official mission statement was published on the UK Women’s March Instagram page on December 15th, 2024, citing the motivations behind the cause as taking a stance against anti-abortion movements, fighting the national emergency of violence against women and girls in the UK, and showing solidarity for all women who are affected by misogyny and the patriarchy around the globe. The detailed statement is concluded with a call to action:

“Women are not free until all women are free. It’s time to march.” [1]

As the organisation began to rally around this central movement, Joanne, co-organiser of the UK Women’s March in Belfast, recalls seeing the rising attention it was gathering on Facebook and feeling compelled to make sure the event went ahead in Northern Ireland. With the deadline to confirm each location’s participation just 2 days away, Joanne ‘bit the bullet’ and ended up putting in a form and taking up the reins of organising the event – a daunting feat as it was not something she had ever done before.

Soon enough, she had the assistance of Chelsea, her co-organiser, who she met for the first time on the day of the march after countless voluntary hours spent together on social media organising the event.

“We fell into it, but we’re glad that we did and that we were able to inspire people to come out today.”

The pair, overwhelmed by the success of the event, shared their personal stories and the passion they felt towards the cause, noting its significance in Northern Ireland – since having been widely reported as ‘the most dangerous place in Europe for women’ [2], with increasing credibility sourced from the violent murders of 25 women in Northern Ireland since 2020. [3]

The organisers also discussed the controversial threat posed by ‘Gender-Critical’ countermovements rallying against the UK Women’s March organisation’s explicit all-inclusive, intersectional stance.

Joanne bravely spoke on her motivation for supporting the cause, sharing her experience of turning to Women’s Aid following a violent relationship some 20 years ago – a charity she then went on to volunteer for years later. The stories she heard from other women at the time, and years later are horrendously consistent in their nature, revealing very little progress in protecting women and girls from violence.

“The only difference now is that women and girls are doing more things to keep themselves safe”

Chelsea shared this sentiment, talking about the measures women go to in order to feel safer – keys held between knuckles, and phone calls to friends or family while walking home after dark. The movement seeks to denormalise these behaviours and conversations, demanding that institutional measures are put in place to protect all women, from educating the youth and filtering up into policing safer streets.

The movement also demands equality for all women, amplifying the voices of transgender women and bringing awareness to their unique struggles. It was this aspect of Saturday’s marches, however, that brought threats of counter-protests and even violence across the UK. TERFism or ‘Gender-Critical’ feminism is a view that does not align with the aims set out by the UK Women’s March movement – leading to many of the 22 participating cities facing fears of their purpose being undermined.

Joanne and Chelsea deem themselves ‘lucky’ to have not had their intricately organised march disrupted by such views, but they worried for their fellow organisers across the country, whom they shared a group with on social media, as they discussed the threats they had been facing in the lead up to the event. This increasing controversy culminated in the mutual stepping down of transgender Activist Sarah Jane Baker as a speaker at the London march, with a statement published online noting that ‘the safety and well-being of our organisers must take precedence’. [4]

Here in Belfast though, the march was a successful event and with Joanne and Chelsea ‘amazed and overwhelmed by the turnout’. They firmly believe this is just the beginning of a widening awareness on Women’s Rights in Northern Ireland, and they hope to keep the conversation going – aiming to assemble again for International Women’s Day this year.

References

[1] “UK Women’s March on Instagram: ‘Our Official Statement'” Instagram, 2025, https://www.instagram.com/p/DDmZKBTo-lc/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&img_index=1

[2] “Violence against Women and Girls – Hansard – UK Parliament,” Parliament.uk, 2024, https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2024-10-23?showNoDebateMessage=True.

[3] Dungan, I., “A Picture of Violence: The 24 Women Killed in Four Years,” BBC News, 16 Oct 2024. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp8memlgdrgo.

[4] “UK Women’s March on Instagram,” Instagram, 2025, https://www.instagram.com/reel/DE716YBoFYv/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlO DBiNWFlZA