Annie Lennox and Helena Bonham Carter to lead online feminist campaign event

Stop Telling Half The Story will be launched on Sunday.

Helena Bonham Carter (Care International/PA)

By Alex Green, PA Entertainment Reporter

March 05 2021 01:09 PM

Famous faces including Annie Lennox, Stephen Fry and Helena Bonham Carter will call for more female leadership during times of crisis ahead of International Women’s Day on Monday.

The March4Women event, which usually takes the form of a rally or march through central London, is moving online this year due to coronavirus restrictions.

As part of the Stop Telling Half The Story campaign, organisers are calling on supporters to share slogan graphics and images on their social media accounts on Sunday.

Sandi Toksvig

March4Women is also calling for the UK to be a champion for diverse women’s voices in 2021, and to campaign for gender justice and women’s leadership at international events including the G7 and Cop26.

Helen Pankhurst, Shola Mos-Shogbamimu, Michael Sheen, Sandi Toksvig and Nikita Gill have signed up to the campaign, being organised by Care International.

Ms Pankhurst, suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst’s great-granddaughter and Care’s gender equality adviser, said: “For too long, the world has been run by only half of humanity, with women kept at the margins.

“Covid-19 has highlighted the dangers of policies developed only with a male lens. Yet globally, we are also facing humanitarian and climate crises, with problems compounded each time it’s only men making the decisions.

“This March4Women campaign we are demanding diversity of leadership, now.”

Michael Sheen

Long-standing supporter Sheen said: “In times of crisis, the most brutal and unjust facets of gender inequality surface, and we must work together to stamp them out. For that to happen, women must have a central role in how we respond.”

Lennox said: “Global problems need global feminists. That’s what #March4Women is all about, and why I’m happy to show my support.

“It’s about people who care about equality all year round coming together in one moment to make their voices heard. I’m proud to add mine to this year’s call for more women in power.”

Instagram will feature a special AR filter during the campaign. March4Women is also hosting a free event with Stylist at midday on March 7.

Online Editors