Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

“Guys, catcalls are never cool”

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Micah Toub wrote a thoughtful, great article on street harassment for Toronto’s The Globe and Mail called “Guys, catcalls are never cool.” He discusses how women feel about street harassment and some of the reasons why men do it. His conclusion for how men can flirt without being a harasser:

“The thing I was thinking after these conversations, is that a smile – even if underneath it lies a more carnivorous urge – can at least be interpreted by its receiver any way she wants. Or ignored. So in the same way that women have attempted to take back the street, I’d suggest that the good men out there take back the street flirt, by starting again from square one.

When it comes to expressing springtime desires, less is definitely more.”

Image from Globe & Mail

I chatted with Micah last week and was very pleased by the quotes he included from me. A few times in the past I’ve been misquoted in articles and was not in this one. I also love the quotes from Dr. Michael Kimmel. I find that he always has interesting information on masculinity issues.

What are your thoughts? What constitutes acceptable flirting and unacceptable harassment?

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Metal Pole Attack

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Disgusting. Via Metro Weekly:

“The Metropolitan Police Department arrested a man suspected of assaulting two transgender individuals, also described as members of the Latino LGBT community, shortly after the incident on Saturday, March 13…

“The investigation further revealed that the suspect attacked the complainants because of their gender identity,” Mejia says in the report, adding that the suspect was charged with bias-related assault with a dangerous weapon…

Joe Montoni, co-chair of Gays and Lesbians Opposing Violence (GLOV), said the incident confirms what GLOV has been hearing from activists within the Latino community.

“[V]iolence against transgender people in that area is on the rise,” Montoni said in an e-mail to Metro Weekly responding to reports of the Petworth neighborhood attack.

“I urge all members of the trans community to report any incidence of harassment or assault and to be vigilant in their personal safety.”

Kelly Pickard, GLOV’s other co-chair, says this recent incident “underscores the concerns we have expressed from the outset about the reorganization of the GLLU regarding the need for open communication with community groups like GLOV.”

GLOV is hosting a meet and greet with MPD officers trained in services provided by the city’s Gay and Lesbian Liaison Unit (GLLU) on Thursday, March 25.”

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Harassed in Nepal

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My Republica has an interesting/infuriating article about how common an experience street harassment is for teenagers and young women in Nepal. An excerpt:

“Twenty-year-old Dolma Choden remembers how one day she came across this one guy who, at first, seemed pretty decent.

“He was a normal-looking guy -the kind you meet every day on the road. He sat beside me on the microbus and the fifteen minutes next to him were the scariest moments of my whole life,” says Dolma.

Choden remembers how at first he talked to her and slowly put his hands across her shoulder and then began to caress her back.

“I asked him to move away but the microbus was too crowded. He even took out a ring he was wearing and forced me to wear it,” Dolma recalls.

Dolma then asked the microbus to stop and walked down. She says she walked for the next forty minutes but did not have the guts to get on another vehicle. She did not even have courage to lodge a complaint to the police.”

My Republica published an article about the high rates of harassment on public transportation last year. It’s very frustrating to hear about the commonality of street harassment throughout the world. When will girls and women be safe and have equal access to public spaces?

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Weekly Round Up March 14, 2010

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Stories:

I accept street harassment submissions from anywhere in the world. Share your story!

In the News:

Announcements:

Resource of the Week:

  • One Angry Girl has many shirts and bumper stickers with anti-street harassment slogans

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