Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

A Message to Muni Passengers

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Picture from M.J. Scanlon via railpictures.net
Picture from M.J. Scanlon via railpictures.net

Via Silicon Valley’s Mercury News:

“Police in San Francisco on Friday asked for the public’s help locating Muni passengers that may have been victims of sexual harassment or assault while using the city’s transit system.

Police reported that on the morning of May 8, a man was witnessed rubbing his pelvis against a woman on the inbound N-Judah rail line. The same suspect was witnessed committing a similar assault on the outbound N-Judah line later that evening. The victim has not been located.

The witness who reported the incidents to police said the suspect exited the train at the Powell Street station.

Police believe the suspect has been committing similar sexual batteries that have not been reported, and are asking anyone who has been a victim of such a crime to contact the San Francisco Police Department as soon as possible at (415) 553-1651.”

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Street Harassment Round Up – June 7

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Stories:

  • On this blog, a male ally submitted a story about street harassment he observed on a vacation in New Orleans; a female contributor shared a story about being followed by a man in NYC and having him touch her from behind with his penis (!)
  • You can submit your stories via Twitter now on Holla Back NYC. Tweet from the street with #hbnyc! Your tweets will be retweeted through @emilymaynot and posted to HollabackNYC!” Here’s their first entry sent this way, from @ElizabethKoke: a dude turned to look me up and down, called me “bitch” and said that it looked like I had a long day but still looked good.
  • On Holla Back CHICAGO a contributor tells how a man in a truck took photos of her butt as she walked home from running at a park and then he had the nerve to call her a pervert for “wearing see-through pants.”

  • Holla Back DC! has several new contributor posts this week. They also have a post about talking to WMATA about sexual harassment on DC public transportation. Way to put on the pressure, ladies!

Share your street harassment story today and help raise awareness about the problem!

In the News:

Upcoming Events:

Street Harassment Resource of the Week:

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Reminder: Tomorrow is NYers for Safe Transit Meeting

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TakeBackPublicTransitJune8EventNYCNew Yorkers for Safe Transit Presents…

Taking Back Public Transit: Ending Violence On Board
Mon., June 8th, 7 p.m.
Brecht Forum, 451 West St. (btwn. Bank & Bethune), NY
light refreshments will be served

You shouldn’t have to compromise your safety and well-being to simply get across town. Unfortunately, many New Yorkers do. Harassment and even violent attacks are happening on subways and at station platforms across the five boroughs.

That’s why New Yorkers for Safe Transit is bringing people together to put a stop to the violence.  Join Cate Contino, Straphangers Campaign; Emily May, HollaBack NYC; Mya Vasquez, TransJustice; and Veronica Tirado, Safe Outside the System, for a frank discussion about how to address violence and harassment, the issues riders are facing, and how to make effective change. All are welcome to share their own experiences and expertise that we can transform into action.

For more information on this event please visit
http://www.facebook.com/l/;http://rightrides.org/templates/programs.php?page=safety_mtgs

To RSVP for this event please email newyorkersforsafetransit@http://www.facebook.com/l/;gmail.com or call http://www.facebook.com/l/;718.522.0822.

Event is free, but donations of $10 per person are appreciated to help further this movement.

New Yorkers for Safe Transit is a coalition of organizations and advocates dedicated to eliminating harassment and assaults particularly gender- or discrimination-based on public transportation in New York City. The coalition focuses on raising public awareness, community building, and facilitating changes that ensure New Yorkers can get from one location to another safely and securely.

(The above text is reprinted from Friends of RightRides Facebook message)

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So our daughters can be safe

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At my job this week, I got to help with a big college women student leaders conference. One of the speakers today was Naomi Tutu, a leader and activist in her own right, and one of the daughters of Archbishop Desmond Tutu (a Nobel Peace Prize winner etc). During a Q&A after she spoke to the students, one person asked what inspires her when she’s tired and doesn’t have the energy to get out of bed and face another battle that day. Naomi said she thinks of the women who came before her (like her mother and grandmother who had harder lives than she but had the strength to persevere) and the women who will come after her. She said she has two daughters and that the human rights work she does is so that her daughters will be able to walk anywhere they want and still be safe. The audience burst into applause.

On days when I feel discouraged, those are the women who I think of as well — all the women who came before me who fought hard for the rights I enjoy today, and the women who will come after me. If I ever have a daughter and a son, I want to know I’ve done all I can to make sure that the daughter has the same freedom to move about in public spaces as her brother.

If women cannot be safe or free from harassment in public (or private spheres, which is another but related story altogether) there will never be equality. It is the right of each of us to be safe in public.

naomi tutu smaller

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Street Harassment from NY to France to Japan

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Exploring the blogosphere, I came across the following street harassment post on the blog Pomp and Circumstance:

“Heat and mating season make New Yorkers let it all hang out. I am pro sex yet have always had mixed feelings about street harassment. A woman whose weight fluctuates from average to a little extra, a globe trekker approaching 30, I’ve developed an international view on the issue.

Growing up in Philly after I lost my baby fat and had a growth spurt I got a lot of attention on the block. I chuckled, flinched sometimes. After a few years, I took “White is right!” “Can I get a ride? and “Pssst, snowflake” for granted. Yet I was always self-conscious, wearing overalls over my miniskirt to waitress one summer.

In France, I starved myself more to almost French size, sticking out only to my matronly host who said I was a little plump. Still, I was the victim of both friendly Bonjours and a teenage ass grabber.

I moved to Japan and gained 20 pounds. My teenaged students shouted ‘I love you,’ and girls grabbed my breasts in clubs. I was the victim of chikan-subway molestation. A crime so common authorities told me to carry hatpins.

I moved to New York five years ago. In the big city, women and men, cultivate the blank, sidewalk face, which I wear more often than I’d like. Sometimes, a ‘God bless you, beautiful’ is a relief.

-A”

An interesting and global take on street harassment, huh? Do you feel glad to hear from people on the street sometimes?

I’m also interested in how she perceives the role her weight plays in the kinds and volume of street harassment she experiences. Have you ever felt your weight impacts the type or volume of harassment you experience?

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