Consensus hands: the process of decision making in safer spaces. Credit: Demotix/HeardinLondon.
The greatest activist discovery when I first moved to London was the concept of 'safer spaces'. Initially, this seemed great: quiet rooms at parties for people who struggle with lengthy socialising but still want to be included - for instance, those who are neuro-atypical or suffer from anxiety, or silent applause to make meetings safer and more secure.
Measures like this benefit those who would find the loudness of public meetings too distressing for them to participate fully. All of this, at first, seemed fantastic.
