Sarah Everard’s death marked I know what it’s like to walk about London as a woman
Kate joins thousands to pay solemn respects
THE Duchess of Cambridge made a poignant visit to a memorial for tragic Sarah Everard yesterday.
Kate, 39, arrived unexpectedly at Clapham Common in South London – close to where the 33-year-old marketing executive disappeared – to pay her respects.
Thousands of women attended the memorial – along with others across the UK including Manchester, Birmingham and Bristol – after Sarah’s death highlighted fears for women’s safety walking alone at night.
At around lunchtime, off-duty and dressed down in a dark green coat, Kate appeared emotional while laying a bunch of daffodils she had personally picked from the gardens of her home at Kensington Palace.
There was no visible security as she spent several minutes looking at hundreds of other flowers and messages of condolence placed around the common’s bandstand.
Feelings
A palace source last night said: “The Duchess wanted to pay her respects to Sarah and her family.
“She remembers what it felt like to walk around London at night before she got married.
“There was no fanfare, this was a private matter to her and she wanted to show unity with everyone else who is having the same feelings right now.”
It is not known what time exactly Kate arrived but videos were posted on Twitter at 4.44pm and 5.04pm.
Another famous face offering condolences to Sarah’s family was campaigning Manchester United footballer Marcus Rashford, 23.
He tweeted: “This should have never happened. Men we have a role to play. To listen, to protect, and to allow women to feel safe at whatever time of day. I have sisters, nieces... just horrible. I’m sending my love to Sarah’s family.”
Kate had made the four-mile journey from Kensington Palace just hours after cop Wayne Couzens appeared in court accused of murder.
Before getting married, Kate had shared an apartment with sister Pippa in Chelsea – just two miles away from where Sarah was last seen walking home to Brixton on March 3. Kate’s brave intervention came after a difficult week for the Royal Family, in which she was accused of making sister-in-law Meghan Markle cry in a row before the Duchess of Sussex’s wedding in 2018.
Among those gathered on Clapham Common was Emily Pite, 23, who said: “Anger and despair brought us here today. I cried at work yesterday. I’ve never felt so emotional about someone I didn’t know.”
Charlotte White, 22, said: “The Met tried to stop us coming, but everyone here has turned out in Sarah’s memory.” Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted: “Tonight Carrie and I will be lighting a candle for Sarah Everard and thinking of her family and friends.
“I will do everything I can to make sure the streets are safe and ensure women and girls do not face harassment or abuse.” Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon also lit a candle and Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford paid tribute. But campaigner Owen Jones condemned the police’s response to the vigil and called for a march today.
The Met Police tweeted last night: “The gathering at #Claphamcommon is unsafe. Hundreds of people are tightly packed together in breach of the regulations and risking public health. We are urging people to go home and we thank those who have been engaging with officers and leaving. We understand the strength of feeling and share Londoners’ outrage at the disappearance and death of #Saraheverard.”
Later, an unofficial vigil, which police ruled was illegal, was held at the site Kate had visited.
Last night, scuffles broke out between officers and the women, with some being arrested and dragged away to cries of “Shame on you” and “You’re supposed to be protecting us.” Police vehicles were spray-painted with graffiti.
Some said peaceful protesters were being unfairly targeted by police.
Issy Skellett, 20, said she witnessed the arrests of four women.
She said: “One of the women they arrested because she wasn’t wearing a mask. We were all saying that that’s not a valid reason and chanting ‘Let her go’.
“Police trampled on the vigils, shattering glass and treading on flowers, to get to the bandstand and violently dragged them away.”