Sandria Washington, Chicago, IL, SSH Blog Correspondent
One week before Christmas, a 15-year-old Chicago girl was beaten and sexually assaulted while walking to school. Her body was found in the backyard of a northwest side resident, where she lay bleeding in the snow for nearly two hours.
The attack happened in the early morning around 6 a.m. when it was still dark as night and before any Safe Passage guards were on duty.
With the story making national headlines and sparking more fear in parents locally, the city’s Safe Passage program came under scrutiny. Could having more eyes and ears on the streets truly protect our children from violence?
I wonder.
The program was created in response to the horrific 2009 beating (and subsequent death) of 16-year-old Fenger High School student Derrion Albert. Trained Safe Passage workers stand guard along designated routes throughout the city during peak hours before and after school in an effort to provide additional safety to students commuting in high-risk areas.
Beatings, drive-by shootings, gang violence and sexual assault are just a few of the possible gauntlets children are required to maneuver through on their way to schools that are meant to be safe havens. Yet, I wonder if street harassment is equally seen as a threat along Safe Passage routes.
Although the full circumstances surrounding the assault of the 15-year-old student still remain unknown, it’s possible the attack could have started as harassment. The stories of street harassment escalating into assault and sometimes death don’t always go viral, but they are no less real. In a September 2013 Huffington Post article, writer Soraya Chemaly recounts the story of a 14-year-old Florida girl who was attacked and run over after refusing sex from a stranger driving by.
As a young girl, even before entering high school, I regularly walked alone and took public transportation to get to school. My mother, like many parents, was unable to escort me and I’m sure her heart was up in the air each day until I returned home.
I have countless stories of being harassed by male peers and male adults while walking or waiting at bus stops. Crossing guards were sometimes nearby, but their focus was of course monitoring traffic and getting children safely across the street. A car circling the block or someone getting too verbally aggressive simply blended into the background noise.
Even with adults standing watch in the full hustle and bustle of the school day, street harassment can be another obstacle in the fight to get to and from school. In general, street harassment is likely to go unchecked by bystanders, as in the case of the Florida girl, because they may not know how or if to intervene.
Unfortunately, more eyes and ears on the street may not do much when it comes to street harassment. It’s a form of violence that’s hiding in plain sight.
Sandria Washington is a writer, health/wellness ambassador and community activist. Read her ChicagoNow blog and follow her on Twitter @SandriaWrites.
