Laura Bates is a best-selling author, keynote speaker and founder of the Everyday Sexism Project. Her books include Everyday Sexism, Girl Up and Fix the System, Not the Women. Laura writes regularly for the New York Times, Guardian and others, and is a frequent media commentator and consultant for TV productions tackling issues around gender inequality.
She works closely with government, schools, businesses, police forces and bodies from the United Nations to the Council of Europe on sexism and inequality.
In recognition of Laura’s work surrounding sexism and gender inequality, she was awarded a British Empire Medal in the 2015 Queen’s Birthday Honours List and has been named Woman of the Year by Cosmopolitan, Red Magazine and The Sunday Times Magazine. She is also an Honorary Fellow of St John’s College, Cambridge, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.
Keynote speech focusing on online elements, including social media, filters and deepfake videos, how sexual harassment and abuse among young people is often tech-facilitated, online pornography and its impact on young people's relationships, radicalisation and grooming of young men into extremist misogyny, and how this connects to misogynistic 'influencers' like Andrew Tate.
The event will start with drinks from 1730 until 1800.

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Launched in 2023, the ‘Let’s Talk About…’ conference series began by tackling the online teen pornography crisis, bringing together over 200 educational leaders from across the country. We’re excited to return to Mansion House this year to explore another critical topic: masculinity and identity in the modern age. We’re thrilled to welcome an exceptional panel of speakers, including Laura Bates, Alex Holmes, Andrew Hampton FRSA, Ben Hurst and Nick Hewlett, with more to be announced soon.

In 2025, the question of what it means to be a man has never felt more urgent. From the pervasive influence of online culture to the rise of polarising figures such as Andrew Tate, young men are navigating an increasingly complex and often dangerous landscape. As reflected in the global response to Netflix’s Adolescence, many educators, parents and professionals are still working to make sense of this shifting reality.

This year’s conference will focus on educating the educators. With insights from leading thinkers and practitioners, we will delve into the challenges young men face today, and how we, as educators and leaders, can better support them. Our goal is to equip you with the knowledge and strategies needed to foster resilience, empathy, and positive identity among the young people in your care.

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AI is transforming the way we live, work and connect—but behind the slick interfaces and rapid innovation lies a disturbing truth: new technologies are accelerating old inequalities.

In this eye-opening talk, feminist activist and bestselling author Laura Bates reveals how misogyny is being hard-coded into our digital future. Drawing from her new book The New Age of Sexism, she explores the gendered implications of emerging technologies—from deepfake pornography and AI ‘girlfriends’ to cyber-brothels, sex robots and the metaverse.

Far from building a more equitable world, today’s tech revolution is amplifying discrimination and putting women’s rights, autonomy and safety at risk.

This is a bold call to action from one of the UK’s leading voices on gender equality.

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What if we could redefine leadership? What if kindness came first?

The Right Honourable Dame Jacinda Ardern was elected the 40th Prime Minister of New Zealand at the age of thirty-seven, becoming the country’s youngest Prime Minister in more than 150 years. Ardern exemplifies a new kind of leadership—proving that leaders can be caring, empathetic, and effective. After becoming a global icon, she’s ready to share the remarkable story of how a Mormon girl plagued by self-doubt made political history and changed our assumptions of what a global leader can be.

Joined by special guests, Ardern will reflect on the struggles, triumphs, and deeply personal experiences that shaped her leadership style and what she’s learned along the way.

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Join us for a very special evening where we’ll be joined by the fabulous Deborah Frances-White for another instalment of the Guilty Feminist X Waterstones Book Club. Deborah will be joined by Laura Bates to discuss her latest publication The New Age of Sexism, alongside their chosen classic Three Guineas by Virginia Woolf.

From deepfakes to cyber brothels, Laura Bates’ The New Age of Sexism is a terrifying and timely exposé from the bestselling author of Everyday Sexism and Men Who Hate Women in which she reveals the real and fast-spreading dangers of new, inherently misogynistic technology and their detrimental effect on gender equality.

Virginia Woolf’s Three Guineas was written in response to three letters – an educated gentleman’s letter asking for her help in his efforts to prevent war, a letter asking for funds to rebuild a women’s college and a letter asking for support for a charity aiding women in finding work. Woolf’s Three Guineas on war, education and work are a level-headed and compassionate voice of reason in a storm of anger and repression.

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The activist and bestselling feminist writer introduces the second instalment in her epic Arthurian fantasy series. Sisters of Fire and Fury is a reimagining of the tales of the Arthurian Round Table through a feminist lens. Discover the Sisters of Sword and Shadow who live in a world of ancient feuds and glorious battles and who are determined to protect their community and right the wrongs of men.

Laura will share her original inspiration, her action-packed research at Knight school and why she hopes this novel will bring joy to feminists young and old. The founder of the Everyday Sexism Project has made waves in YA fiction with her Sisters of Sword and Shadow series, combining mythic elements with contemporary feminist themes.

12+ years

Please bring your own notebook and pen to this event.

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Step into a world where little girls dressed up as women dance for an audience of adult men, where a pornographic deep fake video of you exists on the internet and you just don’t know it yet, and where men create ‘perfect’ AI girlfriends who live in their pocket.

This isn’t an image of the future. Sex robots, chatbots and the metaverse are here and spreading fast. A new wave of AI-powered technologies, with misogyny baked into their design, is putting women everywhere in danger.

Laura Bates, founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, takes us deep into the heart of this strange new world, from cyber brothels to schools gripped by an epidemic of online sexual abuse, showing how our lives are being infiltrated by ever-evolving technologies that are changing the way we live and love. Interviewed by Samira Ahmed

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Join us for an enlightening evening of discussion with two incredible feminist authors.

Delving into the thought-provoking themes explored in their books, we will be navigating topics of motherhood, societal pressure on women and men, new-age technology and its impacts on the lives of women, and the complex reality of womanhood in an ever-changing world.

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Join us in conversation with Laura Bates, Sunday Times bestselling author and campaigner, to discuss her latest book, The New Age of Sexism: How the AI Revolution is Reinventing Misogyny.

In conversation with Alexi Mostrous, Tortoise's Head of Investigations and host of award-winning Sweet Bobby and Who Trolled Amber, Laura will take us deep into this strange but very real new world - one in which she's travelled to cyber brothels and visited schools gripped by an epidemic of online sexual abuse. She'll expose how every aspect of our lives - from education to work, sex and entertainment - is being infiltrated by ever-evolving technologies that are changing the way we live and love forever.

Followed by a book signing

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Champions of Artificial Intelligence focus on its potential to increase productivity and foster innovation, but its social and cultural implications remain unchecked.

Nowhere is this more alarming than in the world of sex and relationships, where a new wave of AI-powered technologies is changing the way we live and love forever.

In ‘The New Age of Sexism’, Sunday Times bestselling author Laura Bates reveals how an online world of deepfakes and unregulated tech is reframing misogyny for the digital age.

She will be joined by Channel 4 presenter Cathy Newman, herself a victim of online deepfakes, and Labour Women’s Network chair, Thangam Debbonaire, to discuss how women’s rights and safety are being sacrificed at the altar of profitability.

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In The New Age of Sexism, activist Laura Bates takes her reader deep into the heart of a strange new world. A world in which little girls dress up as women and dance for adult men; where a pornographic deepfake image of you exists on the internet – you just don’t know it yet, and where men create AI girlfriends who live in their pocket. In this compelling exploration of the rise of AI-powered technologies, Bates reveals how profit motives often overshadow the well-being of women. She exposes the darker side of this new frontier, urging society to confront the dangerous implications of these emerging tools.  

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New AI-driven technologies, with misogyny baked into their design, are putting women in danger. In The New Age of Sexism, author and campaigner Laura Bates takes us deep into the heart of this rapidly evolving world. She confronts deepfake pornography, travels to cyber brothers, and hears from schools in the grip of online sexual abuse, showing how our lives are being infiltrated by easily accessible technologies that are changing the way we live and love. Chaired by Helen Mort.

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Accessibility information for the Pennine Lecture Theatre can be found here. If you have any questions regarding accessibility for this event, please feel free to contact us at access@weareopus.org.

An Evening with Laura Bates

Join us as we welcome Laura Bates to Waterstones Nottingham to celebrate the release of The New Age of Sexism.

Laura will discuss her new book before and audience Q&A and book signing.

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The New Age of Sexism

- Little girls dressed up as women dance for an audience of adult men.
- A pornographic deepfake image or video of you exists on the internet and you just don’t know it yet.
- Men create ‘perfect’ AI girlfriends who live in their pocket – customised to every last detail, from breast size to eye colour and personality, only lacking the ability to say no.

This isn’t an image of the future. Sex robots, chatbots and the metaverse are here and spreading fast. A new wave of AI-powered technologies, with misogyny baked into their design, is putting women everywhere in danger.

In The New Age of Sexism, Sunday Times bestselling author and campaigner Laura Bates takes the reader deep into the heart of this strange new world. She travels to cyber brothels and visits schools gripped by an epidemic of online sexual abuse, showing how every aspect of our lives – from education to work, sex to entertainment – is being infiltrated by ever-evolving technologies that are changing the way we live and love forever. This rising tide, despite all its potential for good, is a wild west where women’s rights and safety are being sacrificed at the altar of profitability.

Gripping and eye-opening, The New Age of Sexism exposes a phenomenon we can’t afford to ignore any longer. Our future is on the line. We need to act now, before it is too late.

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AI-powered technologies are revolutionising our lives and putting women and girls in danger. In her urgent and gripping new book The New Age of Sexism, Laura Bates delves into our future and finds it wanting. From chatbots to sex robots, from deep fakes to the metaverse, Laura examines how existing forms of discrimination, inequality and harassment are being coded into the very foundations of our future world while a small group of obscenely rich white men prioritise their profits over our lives.

Hosted by Helen Mort, award-winning poet, novelist and creative writing lecturer.

Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with the Centre for New Writing and Creative Manchester.

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Wheelchair Users and those with other access needs requiring a free Essential Carer ticket should contact the Quaytickets Box Office on 0161 876 2015 to purchase tickets.

The Scottish launch of the New Age of Sexism

AI and the new horizon of evolving technologies may come to affect every aspect of our lives. When it comes to the rights and safeties of women, it’s already clear that sexism is a feature, not a glitch, of so many online spaces.

In her new book the clear-sighted and visionary author of Men Who Hate Women, Laura Bates, takes us on an exploration of what this new world - which is already here - means for the struggle against misogyny, and its related fights for liberation.

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A conversation with Harriet Wistrich. Two incredible women discuss every-day sexism in an ever-increasing world of gender inequality and a justice system that often fails women. Harriet Wistrich and Laura Bates are brilliant, inspirational thinkers and campaigners, this crucial event will promote an important debate and discussion that every woman should be a part of.

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Share in our literary day " Inspiring Women with Words" It's not just for women! Hear from authors who have inspired women and society.

Laura Bates, activist , writer and journalist will share the  experiences  that have influenced her work on Everyday Sexism and discuss her recent venture into the fantasy genre. These books offer alternative pathways for todays young women. 

Presentation to be followed by an in-conversation discussion with author Louise Morrish , followed by audience Q&A and book signing.

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The author and founder of the Everyday Sexism Project shatters the illusion of progress with her book about the future of sexism in a new age of technology.

We like to think that we’re gradually making progress towards equality. With the advent of ever-more high-tech equipment at our fingertips, we tend to assume that progress will be hastened, as new technology is used in positive and democratising ways.

But a new wave of technologies threatens this notion. Deepfakes. The metaverse. Cyber brothels. With misogyny being baked into their design, these technologies are dragging women back to the dark ages.

The New Age of Sexism takes the listener deep into the heart of this strange new world, diving into where and what the dangers are, because we cannot ignore them.

This is not a book about the future. This is happening right now, and it could become part of our daily lives far sooner than we realise.

Followed by a book signing

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“Challenging the Manosphere” (free event with livestream)

Laura Bates, author and founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, is in conversation with Gemma Cairney, renowned broadcaster and women's rights advocate.

Drawing on Wollstonecraft’s trailblazing work, they explore ways forward and sources of courage, showing how even the darkest news headlines have a counter-narrative, and that progressive work is still around us.

This enlightening and dynamic conversation will inspire anyone interested in human rights, feminism, and the intersection of technology and social movements.

Followed by a book signing.

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Join us for this online event Responding to sexism in our town with author of Everyday Sexism, Laura Bates.

There will be a presentation followed by a Q&A with Laura.

Free, please book and we will send you a link to join ticketsource.co.uk/womens-voice.

Feminist author, speaker and activist Laura Bates will be joining award-winning author Patrice Lawrence at a special event to discuss the importance of representation in young adult literature.

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Take a fresh look at chivalry with activist and bestselling feminist writer Laura Bates. She introduces her new YA fantasy Sisters of Sword and Shadow, a reimagining of the tales of the Arthurian Round Table through a feminist lens. Discover the Sisterhood of Silk Knights who live in a world of ancient feuds and glorious battles and who are determined to protect their community and right the wrongs of men. Laura shares her original inspiration, her action-packed research at Knight school and why she hopes this novel will energise and bring joy to feminists young and old. Followed by a book signing.

Tickets available here

Sunday Times bestselling author and founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, Laura Bates confronts audiences with her first-hand accounts and shocking evidence in a blazing examination of the societal systems that fail to protect women, and is a rallying cry for reform. In conversation with Nell Frizzell, author of The Panic Years. In the beautiful surroundings of the beautifully renovated Victorian theatre at Alexandra Palace.

Tickets: https://www.alexandrapalace.com/whats-on/laura-bates/ (Use code NLBFCLOFF50 for 50% off ticket prices!)

‘Too often, we blame women’ contends Laura Bates in this blistering call to arms. ‘For walking home alone at night. ‘For not demanding a seat at the table’. ‘For not overcoming the odds that are stacked against them’. ‘This distracts us from the real problem’, she says:- ‘the failings and biases of a society that was not built for women’.

In this talk, she delivers an uncompromising attack on the systemic prejudice at the heart of five of our key institutions: education, politics, media, policing and criminal justice.

Talk followed by a Q&A

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Join us for an evening on women in Arthurian Legend with Laura Bates and Sophie Keetch. The conversation will be followed by a Q&A and a signing of their books, Sisters of Sword and Shadow and Morgan Is My Name.

Tickets are £5 and will be deducted off one of the books on the night. 

If you can't make the event but would like a signed copy, please contact the shop to make arrangements.

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HAY FESTIVAL THINKERS IN RESIDENCE – A FUTURE NOT YET IMAGINED

Laura Bates, Will Gompertz and David Olusoga talk to Afua Hirsch

Sunday 26 November 2023, 10am Venue: Llwyfan Cymru – Wales Stage (Hay Castle)

A trio of this year’s Hay Festival Thinkers in Residence – Laura Bates, Will Gompertz and David Olusoga – take stock of the biggest issues facing society today, following on from the expert insights shared at this summer’s Hay Festival.

The three discuss everything from what a new system for an integrated and respectful society would look like to how we go about rewriting history, and how we access, look at and assess modern art.

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We are honoured and excited to host a conversation with leading best-selling author Laura Bates, as she discusses her fantasy debut novel "Sisters of Sword and Shadow", an epic Arthurian fantasy reimagining.

Free event. No ticket required but more details here