When women's freedom is as important as safety: How does Newcastle Upon Tyne afford the feminist right to the city?

With the fear of gender-based violence in urban space continuing to penetrate the experience of city life and remaining a dominant feature of conversation regarding the city experience for many women, the proposed project explores the perspectives on genderbased violence in Newcastle Upon Tyne. As a city rich history of civic pride, dating back to the planning initiatives of the 1960's, it is worth exploring how well Newcastle affords a 'right to the city', as outlined by spatial sociologist Henri Lefebvre, for all its citizens. As such, the proposed project takes an intersectional feminist perspective on achieving liberation from fear of gender-based urban violence. In opposition to the reformist models of planning, in search of a 'just city', the proposed project takes an alternative approach, by examining the experiences of urban life for women in Newcastle from grassroots feminist activist groups to put forward the perspective of urban justice and gender-based violence from those who are currently oppressed, as articulated by them. To do so, the proposed project employs qualitative research methods, to afford the portrayal of womens rich experience of urban justice in Newcastle. These include auto-photography, focus groups and walking-interviews to maintain a participant-centric methodology and contribute to debates on gender-based urban violence in sociology by exploring what is happening on the ground in a UK city rich in community, pride, and togetherness.