Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

Archives for April 2014

“I just didn’t feel safe walking alone”

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I was living and working in Oak Cliff, a rough area of Dallas, Texas, for about a year. It wasn’t uncommon to have cat-calls or people whistle as you walked down the street. But one time it went too far.

One day I was walking home from work and a truck passed by, rolled down the window, and cat-called. I ignored it and kept walking. The truck decided to take a spin around the block, pull up in a parking lot directly in my path, and the man rolled down his window and beckoned me over. He called, “You need a ride?”

I said no thanks and tried to walk around his truck which was blocking the sidewalk in the parking lot. It was a manual transmission so he could roll backwards and keep me where I was. He then said, “How about I take you out? Why are you by yourself, you’re too pretty to be out on your own. Hop in.”

I looked through the window and said in the best bold faced lie I could come up with, “My fiance wouldn’t exactly take it lightly if I jumped in a car with a random stranger. Excuse Me.”

The man called out again as I walked away. I hurriedly went behind his truck and ducked down the next block and through a few alleys to try and stay off the street in fear that the man was going to follow and continue his approaches. I wouldn’t walk around the neighborhood anymore by myself which now, looking back, was such a shame.

I allowed someone to take control over my life, a person I never saw again, but he had put so much doubt and fear in my mind that I just didn’t feel safe walking alone.

Do you have any suggestions for dealing with harassers and/or ending street harassment in general?

I’ve finally found a voice and now speak up, calling the perpetrators out on their actions.

– Anonymous

Location: Dallas, Texas

Share your street harassment story for the blog.

 

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“My health has suffered SEVERLY”

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I am 56 years old and I am harassed by thugs in the street EVERY DAY. Some of these men are young enough to be my son. As soon as I have the unmitigated gall to step out of my house, it begins. Men calling me Beyoncé, for some odd reason. Men following me. Men hooting and hollering after me. I go to the grocery store, and I am followed and stalked at the grocery store. There is no escape.

I go to work and am followed and terrorized by a custodian. My health has suffered SEVERLY because of this. A person should not have to go to work every day and put up with sexual harassment on the job after being sexually harassed in the street. I AM 56 YEARS OLD. WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE THEY LOOKING AT. To all of these men, ESPECIALLY the one at work, I say to you: YOU ARE NOT IN CONTROL OF MY LIFE. NO WEAPON FORMED AGAINST ME SHALL PROSPER. YOU THINK I DON’T HAVE A SUPPORT SYSTEM? THINK AGAIN.

– Iris D. Rice

Location: Everywhere I go

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Anti Street Harassment Week 2014

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Cross-posted with permission from Teeny Titch

Hello Beautiful People,
This week is Anti Street Harassment week.  I didn’t even know this was a thing, until I saw Leena from justkissmyfrog’s video about it earlier this week. That this is a thing makes me incredibly hopeful, because it is something that has bothered me since before I even understood what street harassment was. The fact that there is a week designated to raise awareness of it, makes me really hopeful that a change can be made.
Personally, I don’t think I know one female friend who has not been subject to street harassment, whether it be, catcalling, sexist remarks, or assault. I can’t remember a week when I haven’t been subject to some form of street harassment on my walk to or from uni. And it is harassment. One of the most worrying things about street harassment is the number of people who don’t realise that it is a form of harassment. It’s such a common occurrence, that it becomes trivialised and we view it as the norm.
I have become much more aware of it as a form of harassment in recent years, as I’ve become more aware of feminism in general, discovered the Everyday Sexism Project, and started to think about how street harassment has effect my attitude to being out and about.
In this post, I want to explain the purpose of Anti Street Harassment Week, what constitutes as street harassment, and generally try to start a discussion, so we can raise awareness of this form of harassment. Because it is harassment.
I’ll put a load of links at the end of this post so you can see where I got all my information from, find out some more for yourself, and have a look at Leena’s videos, because she is much more articulate on this subject than I am.
What is Anti Street Harassment Week?
It’s this week, March 30th – April 5th.
The purpose of the week is to raise awareness of street harassment and that it’s not acceptable. It’s an opportunity for activists to amplify their voices and draw the attention of mainstream media.
It’s held in April because it’s Sexual Assault Awareness Month in the USA and spring in the Northern Hemisphere, when there is an increase in harassment, because of the longer days and warmer weather. Harassment is often seen as inevitable part of a change in seasons and that shouldn’t be the case.
What is Street Harassment?
Sexual Harassment is defined as engaging in unwanted behaviour of a sexual nature with the purpose or effect of:
  • Violating a person’s dignity
  • Creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment
‘Of a sexual nature’ can refer verbal, non-verbal or physical conduct including:
  • Comments about the way you look which you find demeaning
  • Indecent remarks
  • Questions about your sex life
  • Sexual jokes
  • Unwelcome sexual advance
  • Inappropriate touching
  • Forms of sexual assault
  • Sexual demands by a member of your own or the opposite sex
Stop Street Harassment and Meet Us On The Streets list the following as acts of street harassment:
  • Catcalls
  • Sexually explicit comments
  • Sexist remarks
  • Groping
  • Leering
  • Stalking
  • Public Masturbation
  • Assault

 

Gender-based street harassment effects 80% of women worldwide as well as many men, especially in the LGBQT community, making them feel less safe and limiting people’s mobility and access to public spaces.
Calling people out on Street Harassment
Whilst I can’t help but feel that anybody who is compelled to shout catcalls and make sexist remarks is probably a complete arsehole, that sort of behaviour is part of the wider social issue of everyday sexism, which make that behaviour seem excusable or to have been meant as a compliment.
However, that behaviour is not excusable or complimentary; it’s degrading and perpetuates insecurity. However innocent or humorous somebody claims their remarks or actions were, if the person they were directed act is made to feel uncomfortable and demeaned, then it’s not a compliment is harassment. Those comment don’t make you King of Hilarious Banter, they make you a shitty person. Yes I’m looking at you creepy van man, stopping me in the street to make sexual comments.
I strongly feel that people should be called out on harassing behaviour and that it should be more acceptable to do so, without being accused of moaning about nothing, or not be able to take a joke.
BUT

Only call people out on their behaviour if you feel safe in doing so. Don’t ever endanger your safety just to get the moral high ground on somebody. If you feel safe in the situation and want call someone out, by all means go for it, it’s a good thing to do, but never put yourself in danger.
I also find it helps to talk to someone about street harassment whenever you experience it. It alleviates that feeling of suffering in silence, whilst also raising awareness of the commonality of these incidences.
Reporting Harassment
It’s also extremely important to important to report serious harassment. You can report harassment to:
The police: If harasser is threatening, touching or following you, flashing or masturbating at you, or persisting in more benign forms of harassment, you should report them to the police.
Transport Authority: If the harasser is at bus stop, train station etc. or on any form of public transport, report them to the appropriate transport authority. The British Transport Police recently launched Project Guardian which specifically focuses on reducing sexual assault and unwanted sexual behaviour on public transport.
Employers: If the harasser works for an identifiable company, contact the company and report the incident(s) to them.
What can you do now?
Increase your own awareness by making sure you understand want constitutes as harassment and being aware if when it’s happening to you or people around you.
Call people out on harassment, but ONLY if you feel safe it doing so *do not put yourself in danger*.
Report incidences of harassment to the relevant authorities.
TALK ABOUT IT! The main purpose of this week is to raise awareness. So talk about it people! Don’t allow it to be trivialised and brushed under the carpet.
I hope you’ve found this interesting and informative, and have been able to take something from it.
Normal service of me rambling about life will resume next week.
Love
S

xxx

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I Wore Shorts On International Anti-Street Harassment Week

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Cross-posted with permission from Zine Nineteen

This Sunday my friends and I went to see Lady Gaga at the Roseland Ballroom. There was talk of whether or not we’d dress up in Gaga-esque outfits, but since we knew we’d be standing in line for hours and the weather was pretty rainy and cold, we went for being ourselves.

I decided to wear a v-neck tee, a sweater, cut off Levi jean shorts with stockings, thigh high socks, and boots because despite not dressing this way anymore, the community at a concert (especially a Gaga concert) is a safe space to dress however you’d like. Two years ago, this was my staple outfit, but I’m at a weird fashion period in my life right now. Dressing as “edgy” as I used to feels slightly sophomoric to me–it makes me feel like people take me less seriously. Or maybe it just makes me feel uncomfortable because I feel exposed when men stare and make comments when I dress like that. I used to accept it as fact and simply ask, “Have you never seen legs before?” but now I’d rather not be put in the position of having to ask.

Sunday was a mild day in street harassment. A few men broke their necks to turn around, a few others stared, and on the way to the subway platform, two men turned around and made an “mmm” comment (one that makes me the most uncomfortable of all). *By the way, none of these comments happened AT the concert.* Even before the comment and the looks, with just four inches of my stocking-clad thigh sticking out, I wished I had covered up more.  I wished I had looked less “sexy.” It wasn’t that I felt more insecure than I would have two years ago, it was that I felt unsafe in my clothes.

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The more engrossed in feminism I become, the more aware I am of my own safety and place in the world. Men are taught that they “deserve” women and the less a woman wears, the more she is asking for him. It’s brushed off as something that women have to deal with. It’s just a fact of life that we should be afraid to walk home at night and we especially have to fear it if we are wearing something that brings attention to us. Women are taught that if the harassment continues into our thirties and forties that we should feel flattered, like we’ve “still got it.”

I’m not flattered, I’m furious. It is a legitimate safety concern and it does not start with me changing my clothing, it starts with men changing their thinking. Why do men assume that a woman wearing clothes that show her shape want their stares, their comments, their sex? Not one woman is actually flattered when you break your neck to check out her butt. Not one woman is going to sleep with you when you tell her you want to have sex with her as she walks by you. Not one woman is going to give you her number because you saw her texting and said “Text me instead, girl.” Not one woman needs to smile because you think she should. We are not here for you to observe, to touch, or to speak to unsolicited and I’m not sure who gave you the idea that we are, but it needs to change.

Luckily(?), all of these feelings happened to me on International Anti-Street Harassment Week, so I have an outlet. If you’re interested in getting involved, check out events in your area this week here: http://www.meetusonthestreet.org/action/ and join the conversation on Twitter with the hashtag #EndSH.

Leash is the Co-Founder of Zine Nineteen. She is a New York based feminist who spends her free time arguing her point, devouring cheese plates, and talking about her cat.

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