Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

“Mmmm you like dressin like a slut baby?”

By

I was on my way to work as a cocktail waitress. I have to walk through Chinatown to get there. It was a nice night so I was walking in my uniform…. it is a small skirt leggings and a low cut top.

First I got a cat call from 2 guys in a truck then I notice this guy is following me. I look back and he is pointing his cell phone right at me. I turned around and started walking faster. Then I hear him saying stuff. “Mmmmm I like that ass baby, you got a nice set of tits.”

This on a relatively dark and quite block so I am getting scared. Then he says, “Mmmm you like dressin like a slut baby? You want to get f**** tonight huh?”

I was so scared. I turned into the next bodega and my heart was racing. The weird this is I didn’t see him go by so he must have turned around right when I got into the store.

It is a shame that I can’t feel safe and dress anyway I want. Sometimes I hate New York for this reason. I felt horrible at work that night. I almost always change at work now so this harasser has impacted my life!

– Julie

Location: Chinatown, New York City

Share

Togo’s Restaurant Trivializes Street Harassment

By

Togo’s fast food chain has launched a new television ad, a cartoon animation featuring a sandwich that flashes two women. The women look horrified initially, and then start laughing, purportedly at the small size of the sandwich’s contents. The voice over says, “Don’t settle for puny…” and then goes on to tout their new sandwich.

“The commercial takes an edgy approach to comparing the short comings of a Breadwich to Togo’s big and meaty sandwiches,” said Renae Scott, Togo’s VP of marketing.

However, this so-called “edgy” approach is not innocuous – it trivializes the fear women feel from street harassment, including flashers (exhibitionists). Thirty percent of exhibitionists also commit acts of direct sexual violence against women. While the clay women in the commercial laughed it off, making this a humorous subject wears down many real women’s ability to object, resist, and to stand up to this form of sexual harassment.

Let Togo’s know that you object to this ad!

Visit  Togo’s website to write and send an email through their online form. You can also call: (866) 708-6467. If more contact information becomes available, this will be updated.

This guest blog post is by Wendy Stock, Ph.D., a feminist psychologist in independent practice in Berkeley, CA.  She specializes in treating sexual problems, Internet and pornography addiction, relationship issues, and PTSD resulting from physical and sexual trauma.

[Editor’s Note: This ad also hurts men because of the way it suggests that some men, or sandwiches in this case, are too puny to be desirable. That’s not ok.]

Share

Reporting a flasher felt empowering!

By

I was walking home from a friend’s house and a guy began yelling abuse at me. I just tried to ignore it and carried on, he then followed me and yelled, “Excuse me!?”

Stupidly I turned around and the guy flashed me. I was so scared at this point, so I just carried on walking quite quickly to get to my house.

Later on in the day I met a friend of mine and we went to the police station to report it. I thought my area of town was pretty safe but it can happen anywhere I guess. Felt empowering to report it!

– JL

Location: Basildon, Essex, UK

Share your street harassment story today and help raise awareness about the problem.
Find suggestions for what YOU can do about this human rights issue.

Share

“They were trying to pull her into the van”

By

Trigger Warning

A white van pulled up on a zebra crossing as I was walking along the pavement. Two men got out of the van and started to walk towards me. I said, “What do you want?” because I had suffered street harassment all evening, and one of the men said, “You.”

I swore at them and ran away. I composed myself for a moment and continued on my journey. As I turned the corner, the same two men were trying to pull another woman into the van. They had actually taken hold of her arms and were trying to pull her into the van. When they saw me, they got into the van and sped off. I asked the woman if she was okay but she was in shock.

– Anonymous

Location: Playa de Las Americas, Tenerife, Canary Islands

Share your street harassment story today and help raise awareness about the problem.
Find suggestions for what YOU can do about this human rights issue.

Share

Harassment in an Italian Doctor’s Office

By

I was standing in a doctors office with my three month old baby, waiting for my husband. An older Italian man was staring at me nonstop for at least ten minutes. It made me feel uncomfortable so I looked up and blinked and looked away again. I had my daughter in a papoose. The man walked towards me, and grabbed my arm very tightly which angered me. I broke away and began yelling at him in English. People stood around and just watched as if it was nothing.

I felt like a piece of dirt and knew that had I not been a woman of color, people would have rendered assistance. I am an American woman married to an Italian. I am not in the country to freeload off of the Italians. I am a business owner, and a degreed professional in my former life. Yet, I get the impression that women of color, as well as very blond white women are associated with sexual trafficking based on color and not respected.

-Anonymous

Location: Livorno, Italy

Share your street harassment story today and help raise awareness about the problem.
Find suggestions for what YOU can do about this human rights issue.

Share