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Passenger stops air marshall from taking upskirt photos

October 21, 2013 By HKearl

Federal air marshal Adam J. Bartsch is accused of using his cell phone to take pictures underneath women’s dresses as they boarded a flight Thursday morning at Nashville International Airport. He was on official duty and he was thwarted by a fellow passenger!

Via WSMV:

Passenger Rey Collazo “was sitting next to Bartsch when he noticed the alleged actions of the federal air marshal.

“He did it at least three or four times,” Collazo said. “After that, that’s when I looked at him. I says, ‘Man, you ought to be ashamed of yourself.'”

Collazo alerted the flight crew, and in the midst of the confrontation, grabbed Bartsch’s cell phone to keep him from deleting the pictures.

“He was trying to combat me, but I grabbed the phone and crimped on it. Twisted his wrists,” Collazo said.

Bartsch escaped and soon ran from the plane, right into police.

The flight was delayed by about an hour as officers investigated, and Bartsch was then booked into the Metro Jail downtown on a charge of disorderly conduct.

The man who confronted him seems to just wonder how long it had been happening.

“I have a wife. I have a daughter, and I have a granddaughter. And I have zero tolerance for disrespect to any lady,” Collazo said.

“Taking pictures of ladies without them even knowing that you’re doing that? That’s bad,” Collazo said. “I mean, he’s a law enforcement officer. C’mon!”

Bartsch posted bond Thursday evening and remains out of jail. He lives in Maryland but will return to Nashville to face his disorderly conduct charge next month.”

Way to go, Rey! Thanks for speaking out and stopping harassment.

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Filed Under: News stories, Stories, street harassment

India: Take Delhi Back Cycle Event

October 16, 2013 By HKearl

Cycling Protest – Via SpinLife India’s FB Page

After popular comedian and cyclist Vasu Primlani was assaulted by an autorickshaw driver in East Delhi, India, six cycling groups held a protest cycle ride last weekend called Take Delhi Back. At least 300 people cycled from India Gate to the Biodiversity Park to protest street harassment.

Via Deccan Herald:

“Ela Ghosh of Spinlife – a cyclists’ group in Gurgaon – says, ‘Women face such problems daily – on buses, in the Metro, on the roads, in colleges. Often people just see it happening, some even enjoy it, but hardly anyone comes forward to help. We need to create awareness on this issue so that no woman has to fight a lonely battle against hooligans.’

Anand Sinha of another such group Pedal Yatri says, ‘We totally understand what Vasu went through because our women members are often teased even on cycling tours. They are stared at, commented upon and even stoned. Therefore, we thought of extending our support to Vasu and the cause of protecting women in public places.'”

Via SpinLife India’s FB Page

At the end of the ride, the Gurgaon Drum Circle performed and Vasu gave a speech.

She said, “When men and women work together, even cycle together on the roads, it gives out the message that we are equal. It is important to convey this because often men who molest and rape have seen women in inferior roles only. Other than that, we want men to understand that masculinity lies not in dominating women, but in protecting them. We are hopeful that our small initiative will help in riding home the point.”

Read about a similar event that happened in Egypt last weekend and if you’re in Washington, D.C. RSVP for Collective Action for Safe Spaces‘ cycling event on Sat., Oct. 19!

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Filed Under: News stories, street harassment

Egypt: “I Saw Harassment” and Interior Ministry Tackle Street Harassment

October 15, 2013 By HKearl

“I Saw Harassment” Team. Oct. 15, 2013, via their FB page

Holidays and festivals are often rife with sexual harassment/street harassment and there are regularly targeted anti-harassment campaigns during them in places like Egypt and India.

This year, for the holiday Eid al-Adha in Egypt (Oct. 14-15), the government also got involved!

Via The Cairo Post:

“The Interior Ministry is planning to deploy criminal investigations personnel in all major public streets, squares, and parks in Egypt during Eid al-Adha to arrest any sexual harassers, a security source in the ministry told Youm7 on Monday.

Many Egyptians go out for picnics and other leisure activities during Eid al-Adha. Sexual harassment has become a rising phenomenon in Egypt’s streets in the past few years, especially the holidays.

Minister of Interior Mohamed Ibrahim assigned the criminal investigations department to deploy forces in public areas to firmly confront any sexual harassment in an unprecedented official plan.

Many anti-sexual harassment groups have reported intolerance from the Ministry of Interior towards sexual harassment and even accused the ministry’s personnel of harassing women themselves.

‘I Saw Harassment’ is an initiative against harassment whose founders present a pressure group that works on monitoring and documenting sexual harassment crimes against women. The group said in a statement on Monday that the initiative’s volunteers will be focusing on Downtown Cairo, including Tahrir Square and the Nile Corniche, where most reports of sexual harassment are made.

The initiative’s volunteers are trained to peacefully intervene in cases of mob sexual harassment and sexual violence to rescue any victim.”

Hopefully this means the Egyptian government is changing and will begin to take this issue more seriously (and not harass people…).

Read more about the efforts of the “I Saw Harassment” Team (Arabic).

H/T Chai Shenoy, Co-Founder of Collective Action for Safe Spaces

Update:

Harass the Harasser Campaign in Alexandria, Egypt, Oct. 15, 2013

In Alexandria, Egypt, there was also a campaign over the holiday called “Harass the Harasser.”

Via Ahram Online:

“The campaigners were active within the busiest districts of the Mediterranean city, where chances of sexual harassment are high, such as San Stefano, the vicinity of the Biblotheque, Mahat El-Raml, in addition to several public parks. “The aim of the campaign is to stand against sexual harassment, which is prevalent in holidays,” Mansour Hamdy, one of the campaigners told Al-Ahram’s Arabic news website, pointing out that the campaign was active in Cairo last year.”

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Filed Under: News stories, street harassment

Cairo: We Will Ride Bicycles!

October 12, 2013 By HKearl

We Will Ride Bicycles, Oct. 12, 2013 Event

In Egypt, there is a new campaign called, “We Will Ride Bicycles,” intended to confront street harassment. Today was their first event and women and their male allies rode bicycles around Cairo!

Via allAfrica.com:

“Riding a bicycle and feeling the breeze of the air is one of our simplest dreams,” said the campaign’s event page, adding that all women should be allowed to freely ride bicycles without being harassed or judged.

The activists behind the campaign said they chose the theme of riding bicycles to promote women and girl’s rights to run errands through cycling without being afraid of attracting negative reaction in the streets.

Scheduled for Saturday, the event’s assembly point will be outside October War Panorama on Saleh Salem Street and its end point will be at Azhar Park.

“The campaign’s main objective is confronting the unjustified rejection of the community concerning females riding bicycles,” said Michael Nazeh, one of the founders of the campaign.”

What a great idea! If you’re in Washington, D.C., there will be a similar event next Saturday, Oct. 19, benefiting our friends Collective Action for Safe Spaces! Info/RSVP.

Oct. 12, 2013, Cairo, Egypt
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Filed Under: Events, News stories, street harassment Tagged With: bicycles, Egypt, we will ride

Street Harassment in Giza

October 9, 2013 By HKearl

Thanks to a viral video showing street harassment in Giza, a conversation about street harassment – and sexual harassment more generally – is happening.

Via Al-Monitor:

“There are many untold stories about sexual harassment in Gaza, home to 1.7 million Palestinians. In a conservative society such as Gaza’s, female victims of sexual harassment seldom speak out, and when she does, society usually places the blame on her. Although Hamas-affiliated media hid Abu Salama’s face due to such concerns, she bravely disclosed her identity on her Facebook page, acknowledging that she was the person videotaped. “I’m not the one who should feel ashamed, only him and everyone like him,” read Abu Salama’s post….

“A 24-year-old teacher who spoke on condition of anonymity said that no matter how much people in Gaza try to deny the existence of sexual harassment in their community, every single girl in Gaza has experienced some type of harassment.

“I get verbally harassed many times every single day. I even was physically harassed many times by passengers while using public taxis,” she said. The teacher admitted that she never acted against those who abused her in taxis, fearing how the other passengers might react.

“I don’t expect anyone to stand by me. All they will do is to look at me as a bad girl and start gossiping. I don’t want this.””

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Filed Under: News stories, street harassment

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