Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

We All Want to Make It Home Safely

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This week, 33-year-old marketing executive Sarah Everard’s remains were found in the UK after she went missing last week. She was attacked and murdered while traveling home from a friend’s house. A police officer was arrested on suspicion of her murder.

Her story is tragic — and it’s the worst-case scenario that makes so much street harassment unnerving. We wonder: which harassers might escalate their behavior and strike us, follow us, grab us, assault us and even kill us?

Her story also confirms that police officers may NOT be people we can turn to for help and protection… instead they may ignore, blame, harass, assault or even kill us.

Since Sarah went missing, thousands of women have shared their own stories of assault and street harassment by men. A new representative study in the UK released this week backs up their stories – 97% of young women have faced sexual harassment and 80% of all women have experienced street harassment.

Of course, street harassment is a global problem, a global crisis, and these figures and stories in the UK are just the latest documentation of it.

During our collective year of global health pandemic, the issue of street harassment has often become a lower priority, a lesser problem to address, but Sarah’s story shows that street harassment is also deadly. The study shows that street harassment is also a far-reaching crisis.

Share Your COVID Street Harassment Stories
Ahead of International Anti-Street Harassment Week (April 11-17), we invite you to share your experiences and stories with street harassment across the pandemic – and/or submit artwork to stopstreetharassment@gmail.com.
We’ll share them across the week to help raise awareness that this is STILL a critical issue that we must address, we must work to stop.

And we must hold men — yes, all men — accountable for the culture they directly or indirectly contribute to and benefit from that turns women into prey who cannot safely walk home.

Anti-Street Harassment Week Partners & Activities
Thank you to Safecity/Red Dot Foundation, Catcalls of NYC, Hollaback! and L’Oreal Paris as well as other partners for their help this year’s Week of Action!!

As a reminder, we imagine much of the world will still be practicing social distancing next month, and so we encourage you to engage in online action (and use the hashtag #StopStreetHarassment) or, if it’s safe to do so, take small offline actions, like go with a friend or two to chalk on sidewalks or post flyers in your community. 

If you have ideas already, you can let us know what you’ll do by filling out this form, and you can let us know if you’d like to be listed on the website as a participating co-sponsor, stopstreetharassment@gmail.com.


March 27 Event
Catcalls of NYC turns 5 years old this month and we’ll be hosting their anniversary event on our Facebook Page on March 27. More details to come!

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Join our 11th Annual Anti-Street Harassment Week

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Dear Friends, 

Happy New Year! We hope you are all staying safe and healthy and thriving as best you can at this challenging time. 

Our partner Safecity/Red Dot Foundation is helping us keep International Anti-Street Harassment Week going this April, and we are grateful for their support and leadership this year. Groups like Catcalls of NYC, Hollaback! and L’Oreal Paris are also playing a big contributing role. 

http://www.meetusonthestreet.org

So, we invite you to join us in speaking out against street harassment during our 11th year of action, April 11-17, 2021. 

Safely Take Action 

We imagine much of the world will still be practicing social distancing and even quarantining in April, and so we encourage you to engage in online action (and use the hashtag #StopStreetHarassment) or, if it’s safe to do so, take small offline actions, like go with a friend or two to chalk on sidewalks or post flyers in your community. 

Here are two other examples of how to be involved, and we’ll share more in the coming weeks: 


1. Online Training 

L’Oréal Paris has partnered with the expert NGO Hollaback! to launch STAND UP AGAINST STREET HARASSMENT: a training program to help people safely intervene if they witness or experience street harassment. As part of the International Anti-Street Harassment Week, help combat street harassment by taking the training program on standup-international.com, and then, share the word about the training in April.

2. COVID-19 Stories

We know that street harassment continues to be an issue, but it’s a problem that is getting a lot of attention right now. You could collect and share online COVID-19-related stories from your community to document the problem and raise awareness that it’s still a serious issue that many people are facing. 

Share Your Ideas & Plans

If you have ideas already, you can let us know what you’ll do by filling out this form, and you can let us know if you’d like to be listed on the website as a participating co-sponsor, stopstreetharassment@gmail.com.

Thank you!  -Holly

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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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“I’m so tired of being afraid every time I go out”

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Street harassment has certainly not stopped during the COVID-19 pandemic. Here are some stories shared online in the last day:

Via @cutecatcalls:

 “I live in Strasbourg, France, and ever since I turned 15 years old I can’t remember going out in the street without being whistled, cat-called or even assaulted. Obviously it didn’t stopped during the lockdown.

Last Friday as I went out to buy some groceries I was insulted by a man calling me a slut (connasse in French). A few minutes later two men cat-called me and wouldn’t stop looking at me as I was trying to go back home.

It may not seem so bad but honesty I’m so tired of being afraid every time I go out. I’m so tired of not saying anything because I don’t know how they would react.”

Via Huffington Post UK:

“Journalist Micha Frazer-Carroll, 25, based in Hackney, London, has endured this and says it’s “especially jarring” in the current climate, considering going outside can already feel intimidating.

“I spend a lot of my day alone, and when I do go outside, I’m already on red alert about the danger of germs,” she tells HuffPost UK. “Throw being heckled, catcalled or followed by men into the mix, and it makes me feel that bit more scared about going outside at all.”

On our Facebook Page, two women shared this:

Zara in London, “I’ve been out just three times in the past three weeks, all during the day just to my local supermarket and I’ve been harassed every single time.“

Erin in San Francisco, USA, “Honestly it’s been much worse than before, because of much less foot traffic I get harassed constantly on my way to the store and back home. They have been more persistent as well since there aren’t a lot of women walking out anymore.“

This is not okay! No one should ever have to deal with street harassment, but add it on top of a very stressful, scary pandemic, and it’s just TOO MUCH. Street harassment needs to end!!!

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.

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