Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

Happy New Year 2021!

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Dear SSH Community,

I am so grateful to everyone who stayed with us during this difficult year of 2020 when so much of our lives changed and when many of us had to prioritize our families/caretaking (me included…even now I can’t write this whole post without being interrupted).

Stop Street Harassment is still here you though, and we will continue to advocate for safe public spaces in 2021!! One big event will be our 11th annual International Anti-Street Harassment Week, in collaboration with Safecity, held virtually from 11 to 17 April. Save the date!

And in the U.S., we have this good news, a women’s history museum was approved and street harassment is a topic they’d consider.

And in the planning process, the key will be an “expansive view” of women’s history, Gross said, including women of different abilities, trans and queer communities, and the experiences of women from all walks of life: “women who were performers, women who were writers, women who were seamstresses, women who were farmers, women who were domestics,” she explained. “I want it all.”

Such an expansive view could also extend to more experiential ways of teaching history, Gross said, including the history of street harassment in the US. “From the first women starting to work and having to navigate public streets, there were all kinds of perils,” she explained, especially for Black women. “They carried hatpins; they learned how to use their purses and bags defensively to protect themselves.”

It will be interesting to see if the museum could find a way to recreate or use “that embodied experience” to teach about the misogyny that has been a major part of American history, Gross said.”

It’s hard for me to imagine that our country now takes this issue so seriously it’d be part of our national museum, but street harassment is a huge issue in women’s lives, dictating many aspects of our life, so it should be! I can’t wait to see what happens.

Happy New Year to you and your loved ones. May 2021 be a year of peace, productivity and joy.

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“Unprintable comments from the young men”

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Do you have a story about street harassment during the global COVID-19 pandemic? Share it here and we’ll post it for International Anti-Street Harassment Week, April 19-25.

One day while going to the shops to buy some basic needs for breakfast, i passed a narrow corridor. At first i was scared because of the number of young men lined up. The street was narrow and it was the only route i could use to access the shop. i gathered courage and walked by. What followed was unprintable comments from the young men. One tried to touch my bum but i ran off hastily until i reached the shop. The comments were demeaning and it made me feel low and dirty i almost cried.

Amidst tears i told the shopkeeper what i needed, purchased them and got ready to go back home using the same route. as i walked back i could only ask myself questions, why do young men feel great when they harass young women? what can i do to stop this happening to me and other girls? How many girls are affected psychologically because of the unprintable comments? This needs to stop.

As i approached the corridor, i was lucky enough to see the young men disappear far off into an adjacent road. i passed by quickly, not knowing whether i should tell my mother or not.

– Elizabeth Apondi

Location: Kenya

Need support? Call the toll-free National Street Harassment hotline: 855-897-5910

Share your street harassment story for the blog.
See the book 50 Stories about Stopping Street Harassers for ideas.

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“The male police officer said that I shouldn’t be outside walking”

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Do you have a story about street harassment during the global COVID-19 pandemic? Share it here and we’ll post it for International Anti-Street Harassment Week, April 19-25.

During this pandemic, I was walking out in public and a police van slowed down, the male police officer said that I shouldn’t be outside walking the lonely quiet street. I felt angry. Thinking in my mind that this police officer is thinking in a traditional way that women should not walk the streets alone.

– Anonymous

Location: Trinidad and Tobago

Need support? Call the toll-free National Street Harassment hotline: 855-897-5910

Share your street harassment story for the blog.
See the book 50 Stories about Stopping Street Harassers for ideas.

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2020 Anti-Street Harassment Week – Day 5

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Today was Day  5 of our virtual International Anti-Street Harassment Week!

  • Chats – There was one tweet chat today – @PintheCreep hosted one on street harassment and safe mobility.
  • Trivia Night – Hollaback! Detroit hosted a trivia night this evening at 7 p.m. EST

There was continued online activism…visit the photo album and/or use #StopStreetHarassment on social media (especially Instagram) to see more.

Looking ahead:

 

 

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Join Afropunk’s IG Live Event Clappin’ Back at Street Harassment!

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Join AfroPunk’s live Instagram event on Saturday, to close out International Anti-Street Harassment Week!

Info:

This Sat. 4/25 at 4pm PST
Join musicians and activists @IndigoMateo and @RichieReseda on @Afropunk for an IG Live Event Clappin’ Back At Street Harassment

Indigo and Richie shared,

“This event comes at a time when human connection on the streets is more sparse than we’ve seen in…ever? But street harassment has never been about human connection– it’s always been (and still is) about power, a lack of equity and the absence of consent. It’s international street harassment awareness week and since most of us are in the house, it’s a great time for voices to be heard on this topic, and for street harassers to get some home training on how to approach and not approach people in the streets. We have the chance to make sure things never go back to “normal” regarding street harassment. We have the power to clap back at harassment and build a culture of consent….<3″

Indigo shared that personally,

“Even in these tough, socially distant times, we still out here getting street harassed. This event is so important to me because I’m a survivor of sexual violence as well as a lover of life and people– I love to be out in my community. Often I’ve felt like my experiences with sexual violence and harassment were invisible and I’ve been told that I’m probably just overreacting. I’ve been told that this is just the way things are. That I should be glad to get so much “compliments and attention.” Nah. No. Negative. I’m tired of people coming to rape culture’s defense.

We’re calling it all out on 4/25 by talking about harassment and sexual violence and challenging others to do better for the sake of our lives in these streets.”

YESS!! Mark your calendars and tune in!

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