Men, it’s time to step up

“Send me a text when you’re home.”

It’s a message that’s been instilled in women since our youngest teenage years – albeit for many of us, it initially took the form of three rings on a landline.

We’ve never questioned it, simply taking it as part of the routine that, when followed, will ensure we stay safe, along with keys between our fingers, walking against the flow of traffic and calling friends on our journey. The walk home has never been simple for women. What is becoming increasingly, shockingly clear, is that many men did not know that, or did not care to know.

While Sarah Everard’s murder is far from the first – make no mistake, the conversation about how we centre cis white victims of crime is coming and it's long overdue – there’s something about this case that has stirred the public consciousness like rarely before, sparking a collective rage that reached a pinnacle on Saturday night as mourners on Clapham Common were manhandled, cuffed, arrested by police officers trusted to protect us.