Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming
“A two minute glimpse of something that happens literally every day. I hope this inspires open dialogue about the culturally accepted ways women are treated and the real consequences of those actions. Please share this video to spread the conversation. It’s time for men and women to stand up against the gender-based violence.” – Video by Amy West.
H/T Hollaback!
Cross-posted with permission from Hollaback! Ottawa
July 22, 2013 (Ottawa, ON). A new survey released today finds 97% of respondents experienced street harassment in the past year and only 10% reported it to the authorities. The survey findings are outlined in a new report compiled by Hollaback! Ottawa, the local chapter of an international movement dedicated to ending all forms of street harassment.
Download the full report here.
“The results are in line what we already know about sexual violence: It’s ubiquitous and yet, we rarely talk about it. It’s difficult to talk about with our friends, let alone reporting it to the police”, says Hollaback! Ottawa site director Julie Lalonde.
Our city, our space, our voice: A report on street harassment in Ottawa is the result of an open forum held in May by Hollaback! Ottawa and WISE: Women’s Initiatives for Safer Environments and a subsequent online survey. The forum focused on safety on transit with the survey addressing street harassment more broadly.
“What we’ve seen in the media over the past few months and what we saw quite clearly during our forum is that harassment on transit is a critical issue for residents” says Lisane Thirsk, policy and research officer for Hollaback! Ottawa. “With 44% of survey respondents indicating that they had been harassed on public transit at least once in the last year, it’s clear that we’re not talking about a few isolated incidents.”
Although there has been immense support for bystander intervention strategies, the survey found only 6% of respondents had a bystander intervene on their behalf.
Street harassment predominantly affects women and LGBT2QQI* folks and the impact on their daily lives is tremendous. 38% of respondents indicated that street harassment made them fearful to go out alone and 32% would routinely change their route or final destination.
“It was important for us to quantify the impacts of street harassment because we hear so often from people about how their experiences are trivialized. And yet, what we’re talking about are experiences of being yelled at, stalked, groped and flashed. There is nothing trivial about street harassment”, says Julie Lalonde.
The report calls for the creation of public awareness campaigns, tools for bystander intervention and mechanisms for anonymous reporting. It also announces the creation of a new safe(r) spaces campaign, initiated by Hollaback! Ottawa with the focus of engaging the broader community.
It is evident that there is a great deal of interest in creating change. One survey respondent summarized it perfectly: “If we all come together and fight this, not just a few individuals, but everyone who has been, will be or knows someone who has been harassed, we can make waves.”
For more information:
Julie S. Lalonde, Director, Hollaback! Ottawa
ottawa@ihollaback.org
Via the DC Trans Coalition:
DC Trans Needs Assessment Preliminary Findings–
–Only 59% are employed;
–54% earn less than $15,000/year;
–80% had experienced verbal, physical, or sexual assault as a consequence of being perceived as trans;
–59% reported housing discrimination;
–89% of those currently experiencing homelessness are people of color;
–81% reported being refused medical care as a result of being identified as trans;
–60% had seriously considered suicide over their lifetime; and
–53% had been discriminated against when interacting with police.
If you’re in the DC-area, learn more on Saturday at noon. Barring a possible family obligation, I will be there.
Anonymity. Fear. Indifference. “Us” versus “Them.”
These emotions foster all kinds of harassment and disrespect towards others, be it street harassment, racial profiling/harassment, homophobia, or able-ism.
Some ways to counter this are to get to know your neighbors, smile and nod at people on the street, and make friends with people who don’t look like you, who are a different sex, gender, race, class, etc. Learn about other cultures and people and ways of living. Be respectful.
To this end, I love the annual spring “Neighbor Day” when you can meet or reconnect with neighbors to build a strong community bond and increase the chances that they won’t harass you and that they’ll have your back if you are being harassed.
And today I learned about the “Night Out for Safety & Democracy” on August 6, a chance for “residents to rise up and voice their ideas and opinions on public safety.”
While Justice for Families in Oakland, CA, is organizing it, it looks like you can hold your own forum anywhere. Info.
Artist Micah Bazant designed the poster for the event and wrote, “In the course of designing them, George Zimmerman was found innocent for the murder of Trayvon Martin, and the poster’s message took on a new level of meaning and urgency.”
Download an 11×17″ PDF of the poster in English, or in Spanish and share it.
H/T to Girls for Gender Equity
Our friend Kara Lieff, Temple University student, made another video about street harassment, “Meet Us on the Subway.”
She writes, “On April 13, 2013 Philadelphia organizations and community members participated in International Anti-Street Harassment Week. The day consisted of sidewalk chalking, discussing HollabackPhilly’s new SEPTA ads, and a debrief in LOVE Park. Three months after the event, we should still be talking about these issues. What do you think?”
Meet Us on the Subway – Part I from Kara Lieff on Vimeo.
Meet Us on the Subway – Part II from Kara Lieff on Vimeo.