I went river rafting with a youth group and I was having fun, feeling good. I waved and smiled at people on the shore as I passed them. I waved at a couple guys along with everyone else. Then I realized they were drinking. They responded with hooting & hollering and an immediate invitation to me to come ashore and join them drinking. I was sure I would be raped if I got near them, so it was terrifying to hear one of them call out that he’d “come and get me.”
I know now he was just a drunk asshole harassing a young girl, but I had already been sexually assaulted by that age & I took it seriously. I instantly stopped waving and became silent the rest of the trip, paddling to keep myself in the middle of the river so no one could possibly reach me. I never waved and was friendly like that to strangers again.
– Anonymous
This post is part of a back-to-school series to highlight the young age that street harassment begins. The stories in this series were shared as part of our recent survey on street harassment and age and they entail people’s first experience of street harassment. The full list of stories is available here.
As you read the stories, note that among respondents, 70% said they were 13 years old or younger at the time of their first experience. 24% said they were 14 to 16 years old. The remaining 6% were older than 16.
Need support?
Call the toll-free National Street Harassment hotline: 855-897-5910
