‘Sam’ is a passionate and articulate advocate for people with lived experience of modern slavery and women who have experienced violence and rape. She campaigned tirelessly to ensure that her rapist and exploiter was brought to justice, advocating not only for herself but for a wider group of women, not only in leading her legal case and providing peer support, but also in bravely sharing her experience in a documentary: Catching my Rapist. Sam advocates for the importance of survivor voice in telling their story and achieving justice, her work within her case, and to create and publicise her documentary, demonstrates her tenacity, and encapsulates the importance of survivor voice.
Jade, a rape survivor and campaigner, draws from her personal experience with the criminal justice system to advocate for change. Her case was abruptly dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service just before trial due to a rare sleep disorder defence; her story was highlighted in the BBC Three documentary ‘Sexsomnia: Case Closed?’, which followed her battle for justice.
Jade now speaks out about her case’s flaws and their repercussions, striving to improve the system for other survivors of rape and sexual assault. She is a founding member of the Met Police Victim Voice Forum and participates in discussions and training with the Metropolitan Police and CPS. Furthermore, she shares her insights as a guest speaker and panellist at events in the justice, charity, and education sectors.
Lisa-Marie co-founded FiLiA and has been leading it for over 10 years, becoming CEO when it gained charitable status in 2015. FiLiA puts on the largest annual grassroots feminist conference in Europe (if not the world!), bringing the wide array of women’s rights issues to thousands of women and playing a significant role in growing the women’s liberation movement.
In addition to the various significant campaigns against VAWG that Jill has either initiated or been actively involved with, of which the most recent was setting up the Tees Valley Sexual Violence Forum, she is also a feminist academic and writer of huge importance to the moment, having published, among other titles, Femicide (with Diana Russell), and the Lesbian Custody Project (about the systematic attack on lesbian parenting). It is singularly fitting that Jill is the first recipient of this award as she worked with Jalna over the years, as we are indebted to both of these remarkable women for the grit and determination they have both brought to the fight against VAWG and the difference they have made.
Nominees
Ali Morris
Ayse Hussain
Ellie Wilson
Natasha Benjamin
Sharon Holland
Sisters Salon (Brighton Women’s Liberation Collective)