Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

Expecting to be harassed

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Being harassed just for being alone on the street happens so regularly, in so many different forms that I just expect it now. From a car pulling up next to me when I’m walking home with my shopping, the man inside telling me to ‘get in the car with me beautiful’ and when I loudly refuse calling me a ‘fucking bitch slapper whore’, to the pathetic and desperate attempt to single a lone women out by muttering ‘hi’ as I walk past. I don’t know you you freak!

Whatever I wear, what I am doing, walking to work past a building site or out for a run, men single you out. If you react aggressively then you risk their anger at your ingratitude to being made an object of, in the street, uninvited. I’m sick of it. I just want to go about my day uninhibited in this so-called free country.

– AMC

Location:  London, UK

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“None of his business”

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I had been jogging with my sister in the daytime (5pm) not far from my immediate neighborhood (it was a retired people nice-houses neighborhood, pretty quiet), and I was wearing long sweatpants and a gym danskin sports bra.

We were now walking back towards my apartment when we see a black truck approaching towards us, driving on the empty street left of the sidewalk were we were. Thinking nothing of it, we continued walking forward, when suddenly the driver stuck half his body out the window with one hand still on the wheel, and yelled loudly, “PUT A FUCKING SHIRT OOON!!!” Like a coward, he then sat back in his seat and started to drive away, but I turned back, while he was still in earshot and loudly shouted “BITCH!”, while sticking my finger out towards the truck.

…to my unbelievable surprise, a block or two forward, the same truck appeared in front of us way ahead and then turned to its left to follow the *same* trajectory. I could not believe that it could possibly be the same truck, but surely, the black suv drove past us once more, and the bastard stuck his body out the window AGAIN and yelled “YOU SHOULD REALLY PUT A FUCKING SHIRT OOONNN!!!”

I instinctively yelled “BITCH!” once more, this time with more vigor and fury, (my voice echoed), as I flicked the driver off.

I don’t understand…[it was] none of his business…what should I have done?!?!? I was just working out! WTF!

– FI0008

Location: Champaign, IL

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“I don’t know how to handle this.”

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I live in an underdeveloped country working at a local NGO. I’ve had to deal with men staring and saying things for a long while but now I work between two construction sites and things have become really difficult. The men put their English to good use by shouting things like, “What a beautiful body!” or “Good pussy!” at me.

I complained to my boss, who is a local with a masters in gender studies, and she was very nice and supportive and tried to call the construction supervisor about it, but the harassment still continues and it makes me nervous about walking home every day. I can come home and commiserate with my room mate but it’s very difficult, especially given the poverty and the political/cultural situation here.

I know it’s never right to take abuse, but I struggle with the part of me that knows this is partially a product of the society I live in that’s been so oppressed for so long – that I could leave the country at any time but they cannot.

It’s not just me.. we hear them from the office catcalling women all day. As an international, however, I am singled out for abuse because they “know” I don’t have brothers or husbands handy. If I’m walking down the street with a man, this never happens. I don’t know how to handle this.

– Anonymous

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“I felt confident…until those clowns in the car catcalled”

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I got honked at today as i walked up the road on my way to lunch. i was wearing a summer dress and felt confident in myself until those clowns in the car catcalled out of the window and stared at me. i made me feel embarrassed and intimidated.

– Clarice

Location: Porthcawl, South Wales, UK

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Two jerkoffs in Lebanon

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Two cases of exhibitionism in one weekend:

Went to Tyr in the South for the weekend with friends. Went to look at some of the greco-roman ruins. As we are walking around the pillars and down to the beach, we hear a strange hissing noise behind us: “ksss…ksss”, as if someone were calling to a cat or a dog. Having lived in NYC for over a decade I’m familiar with all manner of cat-calling and attention-getting-noises, and having noticed a teenager out of the corner of my eye earlier (who I thought belonged to a Lebanese family walking around the ruins, but who was apparently by himself), I did not turn around, but said to my (female and blonde, like me) friend: “Hey, don’t look now, but some little shit is making weird noises behind us.”

He passed us, and walked down towards the beach. I started walking back up in the opposite direction. He kept hissing and my friend turned around and started screaming, “Ewwwww, he’s jerking off! Oh my god, how disgusting!” Apparenty the little shit had not only pulled down his pants to show off his business but started masturbating right then and there. Idiot.

Then, a few hours later, in the early afternoon (read: broad daylight), back in Beirut from our weekend trip in our rental cars, I get dropped off by our friends at the corner and walk up the 100 metres to our front door. Tabaris in Achrafieh is a pretty “posh” neighborhood in a rather nice part of town, mind you. Before I get to the front door, I take my keys out of my bag. The street is deserted; it is Sunday, and this is the Christian part of town, and the shops are closed.

There is a guy sitting on a scooter right in front of the entrance, with his helmet on and everything. I don’t think he can see me as I am coming up the street behind him, but I do think it’s odd that he’s just sitting there on his bike. As I get closer and am about to unlock the front door, I hear that he is muttering to himself and see that he is… jerking off. Another one? Seriously? What is with these people???

Can’t believe this and am shocked (and scared) so I take out my phone and try to call a friend whilst walking away from the door. Not sure where to go at this point, as all the public places — shops, hair salons etc — are closed, so I head back towards the door, and just then I see him speed away. Phew. My hands are shaking and sweaty and I have a hard time opening the front door and I am wondering if he’s just going around the block to come back and harass me, or gone for good. I am utterly disgusted and disturbed.

– i.d.

Location: Beirut, Lebanon

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