On Saturday 8 March, a vigil was held to mark International Women’s Day, followed by a protest around the city centre.
The event was organised by International Women’s Day Bristol and began at Castle Park. The bandstand was decorated with the flags of Palestine, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as a large poster listing UK women killed by men in 2024.
Candles were handed out and lit, with attendees holding a three-minute silence in remembrance of these women.
Writer Muneera Pilgrim gave a speech representing Bristol Palestine Alliance, saying that ‘colonial sentiments are embedded in the movement we are in’ and ‘there is so much to celebrate, but we also have to lift up the rug from where the dust lies.’
Another speaker shared her experience living in the West Bank and her subsequent struggles with fibromyalgia, a chronic illness that predominantly affects women.
Afterwards, attendees marched through Bristol city centre. Chants of ‘free Palestine’ and ‘occupation no more’ could be heard among the crowd, with some releasing smoke flares into the sky. Protestors stopped outside businesses including H&M, the Apple Store, Barclays and McDonalds chanting ‘shame on you’ and calling for boycotts. One protester said that drinks were thrown on them during the march.
In a social media statement, IWD Bristol said:
‘We know that our freedom from sexual and domestic violence, from endless wars, our freedom of choice over our bodies, our freedom to be, and to love, depends on the freedom of women globally.
Therefore we answer the call from Palestinian feminists to resist our government's collaboration with Israel in the ongoing genocide. We stand in solidarity with all who disrupt the violence of Imperialism - from Bristol to Palestine, West Sahara to Kurdistan, Congo to Sudan - we rise together, united in resistance.’
