You wouldn’t go to a supermarket to pick up a pornographic DVD. So why are magazines containing bare breasted women, misogynistic writing and adverts for escort agencies readily available alongside your eggs, bread and milk? This is the question currently being posed by feminist groups UK Feminista and Object, who have focused on Tesco as the UK’s biggest retailer, in the hope that other chains and newsagents will follow suit.

On the 24th August they are encouraging the public to stage family-friendly protests outside their local store, “talking to customers about why Tesco shouldn’t be stocking sexist, harmful lads’ mags, and collecting petition signatures.” Kat Banyard, director of UK Feminista, says, “Stocking sexist publications which fuel sexist attitudes that underpin violence against women is in complete contradiction to any claim of corporate social responsibility.”

Within days of the campaign’s launch back in May, with supporters contacting the supermarket via social media and emails, the company agreed to a meeting. “The supermarket already has a policy of not stocking adult or pornographic magazines, so,” says Banyard, “one of the key things we asked was why do they have sexist, pornographic magazines like Nuts and Zoo on their shelves?” A Tesco spokesperson responded that, “We are looking into the issues that these groups have raised and were happy to meet with them for a constructive discussion. We are also talking to our customers, to find out what they think, before we make any decisions about next steps.”

Join the debate and sign the petition at losetheladsmags.org.uk

Text by Beccy Hill