I’ve had very unreliable internet access the last several days while traveling through Egypt. I finally have a great connection but only have it for 30 more minutes until I fly from Luxor to Cairo. There are so many anti-street harassment articles and initiatives I’ve missed blogging about!!

Here are a few:

* This evening in Carbondale, Illinois, at 5 p.m. the Women’s Center will show The War Zone documentary about street harassment.

* Via Collective Action for Safe Spaces (I’m a board member): “Last Wednesday, July 11^th, DC resident Liz Gorman was sexually assaulted in DC’s Dupont Circle. On Thursday, Liz, who immediately reported the incident to the Metropolitan Police Department, wrote about her experience on our blog. By Friday, the post had set off a viral reaction, both locally and nationally. So far, it has been republished by The Washington Post, Jezebel and Fem2.0. It has been reported on by The Washington Post Local (front page Metro section!), WJLA, WTTG FOX, DCist, DCblogs and the Washington City Paper – with more interviews with CASS in the works. (Stay tuned!)”

* Sign a petition addressed to the Commissioner of Police in Delhi, India, asking that police do more to prevent and stop street harassment and rape.

* “”S.H.O.W You Care” (S.H.O.W. = Stop Harassment of Women) is a project that spearheads a campaign for respectful treatment of women. Sexual Harassment is a big issue not only in Sri Lanka, but around the world and it’s time we show that we care and we will stand up for the rights of women, men and humanity. This campaign is initiated by a group called Sri Lanka Unites which is a grassroots youth movement aimed at empowering the youth of Sri Lanka to be the driving force of social change in the country….

To show our support for this campaign and campaigns around the world, this video montage was created for anyone who is spreading awareness about women’s rights. The world does care, and we support you!”

* Monday, youth gathered outside a mall in India to protest against the lack of women’s rights. Via Times of India: “Wake Up India Foundation, an NGO run by college students, organized a street protest on Monday to highlight issues of eve teasing…The activists danced to the tunes of ‘Hai junoon’ and ‘Rang De Basanti’ holding placards with messages like ‘Respect my body, respect my mind and respect me, stop street harassment.’ Large number of people witnessed the performances making the event a success.”

* An article about public masturbation in Lebanon.

* Via The Indian Express (Trigger Warning): “A young girl, who was celebrating a friend’s birthday at a local bar, protested lewd remarks made by a man. As she stepped out of the premises, he and a group of men encircled and sexually assaulted her, in full public view. More men passing by joined the attack. For an awful half hour, nobody intervened — save a TV news reporter, who recorded the event. The video was broadcast on Guwahati’s News Live, and went viral. Amid the outpouring of disgust and anger, many brought up that unresolved quandary — should the cameraperson have recorded the crime, or tried to save her?” VIDEO

Libyan Nafissa Assed wrote a powerful article about street harassment for the Libya Herald. Here is an excerpt:

“…Libyan verbal harassment is not just offensive or annoying, it is sexually explicit, undignified and potentially scarring. No woman, adolescent, rich, poor, fat, attractive, veiled or ugly, is spared. Libyan men continually harass women because they simply can do so, without suffering any consequences. In fact, if a Libyan woman were to report an incident to a policeman, it is very likely he would harass her as well. The Libyan authorities have largely turned a blind eye to this, backed in part by a bedouin mentality that still views women outside the home as sluts. The situation is so bad that leaving the home can turn into a risky experience….

Every time I bring up the subject, people say: “Just pretend they don’t exist and keep doing whatever you’re doing. We’re used to this”.

I totally disagree! Opting as many women do, to just ignore a man’s sexual harassments over and over again by pretending they do not exist is not the solution. Men often persist no matter how long I ignore them until the situation becomes so annoying that I finally will have to acknowledge it by giving them some words of my own.

At this point, the man will not hesitate to attempt to hit me.  And he knows in advance that if he does he will not face any consequences.

This scenario is repeated on a daily basis and many women in Libya do not feel safe walking alone in public places, driving their own cars, or using public transport….

It is terrifying that nothing is done about it. I wonder if the acts of sexual assault will ever become legally punishable in our new brand Libya….

Libyans are working together to build a whole new system, and people are changing their attitudes dramatically every day, but when it comes to attitudes of sexual harassment of women, nothing will change unless the government imposes tough rules against such behaviour.

If Libyans are seriously trying to strengthen the country’s economy and reverse its former pariah image, it should first improve conditions for the Libyan woman in a practical manner and place rules that protect her rights within the Libyan society. They have to be rules that are not enforced by social pressure, but by law.  Doing so would also put foreign investors—some of them women — at ease.

Besides, talented Libyan women would feel happier about contributing to their society. It would increase the willingness of those living and working oversees to fulfill their long held dream to come back and serve their country.

Societies do not change overnight. But they can progress when governments enforce the laws they has put in print…”