I’m 17 years old, and I’ve received ‘unwanted attention’ from men almost everyday since I was about 13, which is the same for an unfortunate number of girls I know. Up until now, it’s never really affected me. I’ve brushed it off, or shouted something offensive back if possible.
A couple of months ago, I was walking home from sixth form with a friend, around 4 p.m., and as we approached her street, a man in a white van drove past screaming, “GET YOUR ASS OUT.”
There was something so aggressive about it that made me feel both terrified and physically ill. After seeing my friend to her house, I had a good ten minute walk to mine, the entirety of which I spent on the phone to my boyfriend trying not to cry. I’m sick of feeling vulnerable and scared every time I leave the house and being treated like a slab of meat with tits. I want to be able to live the rest of my life without worrying about being grabbed at by a sorry excuse for a human being. It’s not okay.
– DWM
Location: Calcott Road, Bristol, UK
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