“I don’t know one woman who would tell you that having random groups of men who are private citizens aggressively patrolling the streets would make them feel safer,” says women’s rights campaigner Jess Davies. She’s referring to Reform MP Richard Tice’s chilling call to action, suggesting that groups of men should patrol the streets in the name of women’s safety.
Of course, Tice framed his suggestion as a response to very real fears over women’s safety, which was declared a “national emergency” last year, but the underlying message is far more troubling. It normalises the idea of taking the law into your own hands. He is far from the only public figure tapping into societal fears to promote the idea of self-appointed “protectors,” and it dangerously blurs the lines between justice and vigilantism.
