Why girlhood reclaimed?

In 2024 the Labour government called Violence Against Women and Girls an epidemic, citing misogyny as a root cause[i]. In their 2024 attitude survey, the Girl Guides gathered data that showed 3 in 4 girls aged 11-16 see or experience sexism, increasing to 95% for young women aged 17-21. They also noted an increase of 30% over the last 10 years of girls feeling less safe as a result of sexism[ii].

Recently I completed my MA in Women and Child Abuse at CWASU, London Metropolitan University.  As part of my dissertation research, I delivered focus groups with 26 girls, gathering data that explored the experiences and understanding of their safety and safety work. Many of them spoke about an increase in sexism and misogyny within their lives, both online, in school and public spaces. This was impacting their physical freedom and their mental well-being. The normalisation of misogynistic behaviour increased their feelings of being unsafe.

I came away from my MA with a strong feeling that I needed (and wanted!) to keep exploring the ways in which young women, girls and non-binary folk are experiencing and understanding the impact of dominant narratives of misogyny.

Girlhood Reclaimed is more than just exploring this dominant narrative.

We want to ensure that the voices of these young women, girls and non-binary folk are heard…that they are understood…and that we are doing something to respond to misogyny’s dominance and harm. We offer safe spaces that offer a collective approach to making sense of the harm whilst also offering a place of engagement with feminist activism, where we explore what feminist activism looks like for them and embed a reclaiming of joy in our girlhood. Finally, Girlhood Reclaimed aims to educate those adults working and journeying with young people to ensure they understand deeply the impact and harm caused by the normalisation of misogyny in the lives of their young people. Misogyny needs a whole community response, so we aim to deliver a whole community approach to our work.

So why the focus on Girlhood and why are we reclaiming it?!

Kate Manne talks about misogyny primarily targeting women because they are women in a man’s world, a historically patriarchal one. It’s not simply about the hatred of women, but it’s a system that polices and enforces gender norms and punishes those who deviate from the societal expectations, particularly those tied to the service or supporting of men. Misogyny is the practical enforcement of these roles and arises when women challenge or fail to conform to the roles prescribed by sexism[iii].

By centring experiences of girlhood, we aim to be inclusive and intersectional in our approach. Girlhood isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ experience – it’s impacted, formed and shaped by our experiences, identities and cultures. We want to understand not only the impact misogyny is having on the formation of girlhood, but how our different intersections impact on how we experience the harm caused by misogyny.

We also recognise that women and girls have been heavily held responsible for not only the harm that has been caused (“yeah but, what were you wearing?” being a classic and one of many victim blaming responses we face when reporting abuse) but for also carrying the weight of responsibility for fixing the epidemic that is male violence against women and girls.

Within our approach we want to disrupt victim blaming narratives and offer space within our fight against male violence for joy, where our feminist activism isn’t just about raising our voices, educating others on the impact this is having on us, but giving ourselves space to reclaim the joy of girlhood that is taken when we live with a sense that male violence is an inevitable part of our girlhood.

Misogyny is not going anywhere anytime soon…so we look to come alongside and journey with the young women, girls and non-binary folk who have been, and continue to be, harmed by its policing and enforcement of harmful gender roles. We want to give you space to be angry, to make sense of the harms it is causing but also prioritise space for the joy there is in your girlhood, however that looks and feels like for you, because a joyful girlhood is what we deserve and what will sustain us as we continue to experience and stand up against the harms of male violence against women and girls.

[i] The Labour Party (2024) ‘Labour Party policy on crime and antisocial behaviour: How we will take back our streets’, 25 June. Available at: https://labour.org.uk/updates/stories/labour-party-policy-crime-antisocial-behaviour-how-we-will-take-back-our-streets/

[ii] Guides, G. (2024) Girl’s attitude survey 2024. Girl Guides. Available at: https://www.girlguiding.org.uk/globalassets/docs-and-resources/research-and-campaigns/girls-attitudes-survey-2024.pdf.

[iii] Manne, K. (2019) Down girl: the logic of misogyny. London: Penguin Books.