Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

16 Days: Day 5, Sri Lanka

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During the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence (Nov. 25 – Dec. 10), Stop Street Harassment is featuring activists who took action against street harassment this year, one new country per day.

Via Sri Lanka UnitesDay #5: Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Unites launched a S.H.O.W You Care (S.H.O.W. = Stop Harassment of Women) campaign to address sexual harassment on public transportation.

After receiving training, hundreds of young men boarded more than 1000 buses across a week and, according to a previously formulated strategic plan, apologized to women in the buses for any harassment they encountered in the past and provided them with information on legal recourse available to them. They also told men to take responsibility and not harass.

The organizer told me:

“The response from the commuters on buses was astounding. Passengers on the buses, both male and female, were very responsive to the campaign. Many encouraged the efforts of the young men, asked for more information about the campaign and Sri Lanka Unites. The passengers were eager to engage in conversations regarding the issue of harassment on public transportation and were heartened by the efforts of the young men to attempt to resolve this problem in the city of Colombo.”

Total Number of Buses: 1225
Routes Covered: 49
Estimated Number of Commuters Reached: 36,750″

 

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“This unknown passenger…chose to protect me”

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I was traveling on a Liverpool Train heading back to university after a weekend back home, so I was a little nervous traveling on my own as I had my laptop bag and fear theft.

At one stop a group of men in their mid-20s (who’d obviously been drinking and had a night of festivities) got on and decided to sit in my seat section and talk to me. I feared that they would harass me but after some stern words from me they apologised and we actually had a nice conversation.

At the next stop, instead of leaving the station one of the workers stepped into my carriage and asked if I wanted them to leave. It turned out another passenger had seen the interaction and had reported them.

This gives me hope as often people ignore harassment happening around them, but this unknown passenger – instead of just leaving and forgetting about me – chose to protect me. So even though I had distilled the situation it still meant a lot that people were willing to step in.

And by seeing that people around judged their behaviour as inappropriate and possibly dangerous, the men apoligised again, and hopefully learnt a lesson about approaching young women on their own.

– Gina-ofthenorth

Location: Liverpool, UK

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16 Days: Day 4, Israel

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During the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence (Nov. 25 – Dec. 10), Stop Street Harassment is featuring activists who took action against street harassment this year, one new country per day.

Image via the Jerusalem Post

Day #4: Israel

At the end of 2011, it surfaced that ultra-Orthodox Jewish men were continually calling an 8-year-old a whore as she walked to school in Israel.

To protest and challenge this outrageous behavior, in January, a group of 250 women from Bet Shemesh held a Flashmob in the city square. This was revolutionary because women are not supposed to dance in public.

“[They] decided to raise their voices against the exclusion of women from the public domain by holding a mass public dance in the city square. The women, residents of the city from all ages and sectors, religious, traditional and secular, gathered together in a flashmob dance, in the city square and started dancing towards a change.” – via YouTube

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Now Available: HoodRules thebook

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HoodRules BookAre you looking for a practical book about how to deal with crimes on the street, including street harassment? Then consider purchasing Aqueelah Grant’s new book HoodRules.

From Amazon.com:

“HoodRules thebook, emphasizes that every place is a neighborhood or a “Hood” and crime can happen anywhere so preparation is key. Sometimes shocking and often funny, HoodRules thebook is a quick read, that is designed not to scare you, but to empower you! Crime will always be a problem, but you can decrease your chances of becoming a victim with sufficient awareness. Ms. Grant was not cowed by her experiences-she examined her habits, took self defense classes and came out fighting. She shares her journey with the hopes of helping others to avoid victimization and perhaps create their own set of “Hood Rules”

When I asked Ms. Grant what inspired her to write the book, she said:

“I constantly read articles about crime that hit home:  An assault, a gun point robbery, a car- jacking, a murder, a missing person, a snatched phone. I then read the comments on the articles and they often read: “Oh that’s terrible”, “The world isn’t safe anymore”. When reading these comments as someone who has been victimized, I realize that comments like these aren’t enough and they certainly don’t mean much after the fact.

So two years ago I started writing HoodRules thebook. I wanted to speak to people like a parent, a best friend, and older sister by combining laughter and seriousness. I wanted to give people options on different Street Safety techniques that most people never think of or may have simply forgotten. Also letting people know it is their job to design a personal safety plan because there will be times when the cavalry might not ever come. I’ve had those times where I hoped for a cavalry that never showed up and realized that was because I was meant to be my own Calvary. In the same breathe I also wanted to let the people who have been victims of crime know they are not alone and that some of our most scariest and embarrassing moments are our greatest life lessons.

One quote I created to help myself cope was “If we all had the same story to SHARE there would be no story to TELL”. Which means no one’s journey will be the same because some will be pretty rough. However, when you can tell a story to lift someone else up that’s the moment you realize your journey was worth it.”

Her book is available in print and for digital devices.

Learn more about the topic and the book here: Book Website | Tech Blog | Facebook | Twitter

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16 Days: Day 3, Myanmar

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During the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence (Nov. 25 – Dec. 10), Stop Street Harassment is featuring activists who took action against street harassment this year, one new country per day.

Image via the Myanmar Times

Day 3: Myanmar

In February, a new anti-harassment campaign launched in Myanmar called “whistle for help.” As part of the campaign 150 volunteers distributed whistles and pamphlets to women at eight busy bus stops in Yangon each Tuesday morning that month and they’ve continued to do so for nine months. The pamphlets tell women to blow the whistle when they experience sexual harassment on the bus and advises them to help other women when they blow the whistle.

The whistle campaign is so popular, riders regularly ask for extra whistles to pass out to their friends and family and some have requested the organizers expand their campaign to other regions.

The bus drivers have been supportive too: “U Tun Aung, a driver one the No 51 line, said sexual harassment had been tolerated on buses for too long and he praised the “whistle for help” organisers for devising an effective, non-violent campaign to stop it.”

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