Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

Archives for July 2010

Stop Street Harassment Book Giveaway!

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It’s been one year since I received a book contract and a long seven months since I turned in my manuscript, but now it’s only one month until you can read my book Stop Street Harassment: Making Public Places Safe & Welcoming for Women!!

To celebrate, I’ll give away a signed copy of the book through a random drawing on Thursday night,  July 29.  I’ll announce the winner on the blog. This is open to individuals living anywhere in the world – street harassment is a global problem.

Want to enter the book giveaway?

  • Email your name* to stopstreetharassment AT yahoo Dot com by 7 p.m. EST on 7/29
  • Tweet about the drawing before 7 p.m. EST on 7/29 (e.g.: “RT by 7/29 to win a signed copy of @hkearl‘s groundbreaking book Stop Street Harassment http://tinyurl.com/3xum8sn”). As long as @hkearl is in your tweet, I will find it and include you in the drawing.

How can you read the book if you don’t win?

  • You can pre-order the book on Barnes & Noble or Amazon.com. It will be available Aug. 30.
  • My publisher mainly distributes to libraries, so look for it at a library near you.

Where has the book been mentioned?

Book Events:

I’d love to add to my book events schedule. Want me to come to your school, bookstore, library, or community event? Let me know!

* Note: I will not share your email address with anyone. However, unless you specify you do not want me to, I may include you in future emails about book-related news or street harassment events.

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Call for Artists: Women and Mobility in the City Exhibition

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Artists:

How do women experience cities? How does harassment impact their mobility? JAGORI and Women in Cities International want to see your artistic depiction of these questions for their transportraits exhibition.

They’re calling for photographs (even those taken by cell phone), posters, cartoons, paintings, slogans, collages, and illustrations. Full details for the contest are found on the JAGORI website. Entries are due by October 1, 2010.

Their exhibition will be displayed at the Third International Conference on Women’s Safety: Building Inclusive Cities which is taking place in Delhi, India, Nov. 22-24, 2010. (Incidentally, I just bought my plane ticket today so I’m definitely attending!) Following the conference, the exhibition will travel to different schools and cities around India.

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Confronting harassers (in comic form!)

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I recently discovered the Men’s Anti-Violence Council blog (they’re a group at the University of Iowa) and I signed up to receive their posts via e-mail.  I loved the ones from yesterday and today so I’m sharing them.

As part of their quest to make their community safer for everyone, they created two street harassment-related comics for residence hall bulletin boards this fall. Awesome! Here they are:

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“Getting in women’s faces is aggressive”

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I’ve had a really good day at work and am merrily on my street, almost at my door, weighed down with tins of cat food, when I notice three people coming towards me. I recognise them – they live a few doors down from me – one girl and two guys, all (I think) Turkish students. As I have to walk past them, the taller of the two guys is practically goddamn drooling at my modest shirt dress covered up by a coat and when he gets near me leans over to get right in my face. The other guy (and girl!) don’t even bat an eyelid and I respond by shouting, “Get a grip!” after I’ve rushed past him.

By the time I get home, I’m seething – I’m on my own street and the end of my blissful day has been ruined by this idiot. I’m feeling fragile and end up crying to my boyfriend (whilst Romeo down the road has probably forgotten my existence by now). I don’t usually let this get to me, but it was the blatant aggression of it.

Getting in women’s faces is aggressive and nothing more than a pathetic attempt to shove your masculine ‘power’ in my face. If you try this one again, mate, I think I’ll be doing my best scream queen caterwaul back in your face so you leave with your ears ringing. Leave me the hell alone!

– Anonymous

Location: Waldeck Road, North London, UK

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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I don’t take orders from strangers

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Well, I now have a harassment story from Vancouver. I was walking down Commercial Drive yesterday. I walked past a group of men who looked like bikers. One of them shouted at me to ‘smile!’ I know that isn’t as extreme as many of the other stories on this blog, but it really pissed me off. I mean, what gives this guy the right to order me to change my facial expression for his amusement? Don’t I have the right to walk down the street with a neutral expression on my face without being ordered to appease the menfolk?

I shot him a glare. He responded by telling me my dress was beautiful. I just kept on walking. I wanted to tell him off, but I didn’t want to risk a confrontation with ten big guys. I’m pretty tough, but I just wasn’t interested in putting myself in danger to try and teach this guy how to respect women. Gross.

– Margaret

Location: Vancouver, BC

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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