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“Unleash your Inner Death Metal Singer! Holla Back!”

May 28, 2010 By Contributor

One day, several years ago, I thought my boyfriend was whistling at me outside of our apartment, I turned around and made eye contact with the actual man who whistled at me, a stranger. I noticed he seemed shocked and uncomfortable that I acknowledged him. I realized no one really says anything back to these men and I really wanted to start letting them know that not all women will pretend it didn’t happen. I wanted to humiliate them by acknowledging his ridiculous behavior.

A few years later I was walking in Eugene, OR on 5th and Blair with a female friend of mine when a man stopped at a light whistled at us. Fed up with men treating my friends and me like shit, I turned around, and in my best death metal voice yelled “FUCK OFF!!” The light turned green and the man followed us slowly down the street. I kept my phone in my hand in case we needed to call for help. We approached a one way street and walked the wrong way so he couldn’t follow us anymore.

I felt scared that this man might retaliate against me for standing up for myself. But mostly I felt proud of myself and hoped that I could make a dent in the frequency in which men treat women like this. I am so fucking sick of feeling confined to my home in hopes of avoiding this kind of intimidation! Unleash your inner “death metal singer” and Holla Back!

– anonymous

Location: Eugene, OR

Share your street harassment story today and help raise awareness about the problem. Include your location and it will be added to the Street Harassment Map.

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Filed Under: Stories, street harassment Tagged With: sexual harassment, street harassment, wolf whistling

Comments

  1. Pedestrienne says

    May 28, 2010 at 11:44 am

    Actually, not getting to respond is one of the things that drives me the most mad about the men who shout things as they go past in cars. It’s perfect – they’re always in a group, they zoom past, give you a fright (I hate being shocked out of a reverie by some shouty bonehead) and never, ever have to deal with any consequences except some knobby high-fives from their friends. Face me and my tongue-lashing, cowards!

  2. Golden Silence says

    May 28, 2010 at 1:58 pm

    I love that idea of unleashing your inner death metal singer. It conveys strength. I will have to think about that the next time I confront an obnoxious harasser. You’re brave for confronting that loser!

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