Today I was on a 15 minute break from work and decided to grab some coffee. A food kiosk worker was giving out food samples and handed me some kettle chips… I was munching on them when some man who had to be at least 65 told me that I should throw them away, because he doesn’t like it when women with bodies like mine ruin it by eating junk food and getting fat. I went around the building so I could take a different elevator; 4 guys followed me across the parking lot, through the building and down the back corridor singing Baby Got Back. Thankfully, we have security guards and doors and they couldn’t follow me in.

– Anonymous

Location: In the parking lot of the building where I work.

I’m 14 years old. My story has two parts.

Recently, I had been at the mall with one of my friends, picking out a gift. We had finished choosing gifts, and were waiting for my parents to pick us up. It was a nice, warm day, and we decided to wait outside the food court. Out comes this MAYBE college age boy, an he begins to rap along with his iPod. I don’t think much of it until I hear someone of the things he had just said. “I wanna see your booty bumping ‘gainst my dick while I’m buzzing.”

What?

We head inside and wait, because that’s really weird. Pretty creepy.  He follows us inside, and we stand behind a large sign so he doesn’t see us. We see him again 30 minutes later, this time with my friend’s sister outside with us. When my parents arrive, he stops rapping.

After that, my friend had left with her sister, and my parents and I had sat down in the food court to eat. My dad joins us, and he sits next to me, oddly. My mom gives him an odd look and says, “What, you don’t want to sit by me?” He replies, “Not that, I want to keep an eye on this guy trying to look up my daughter’s skirt.”

A middle aged man had been trying to look up my skirt.

I am 14, and this man had a wife and little girl. He looked over at me several times during the period we had been eating.

I was scared to walk by him, which I had to do to get to the door.

– T

Location: Nebraska

Posted on Reddit:

“Today, my mother and I went to the beach. I’m a 20-some woman and she’s a fairly hot lady herself, no lie. Obviously this means we were around other girls in bikinis, par for the course. I was lying face down on a blanket and my mother was lying face up, just enjoying the weather.

We heard this whirring noise above us and I looked up and saw a remote-controlled plane–one of the square ones that can move really articulately in all directions. No big deal. I turned back down and napped more.

Then I noticed: a. It was getting really close to women. Like, straight up in their asses close, flying really low, staying there for probably three minutes at a time, and b. it had a camera on it.

It then decided to target my mother and I and hovered over us. I got mad and decided that, fuck this, I was going to throw a water bottle at it and take it down (not the best choice, sure, yeah, I know) and it immediately backed up when I advanced on it. So I knew the operator was nearby. Sure enough, there were two men up on the dunes nearby holding the remote, so I put on all my clothes first and then ran up to them. The person holding the remote was probably sixteen; the other was what I can only assume was his father. He was around forty-some. He was also giving the younger kid directions.

So I walked up to the older man and said “That is seriously creepy.”

“What?”

“You flying around your creep drone is really fucking creepy.”

“It isn’t going to hurt you.” He sort of laughed at me now, and I saw red here.

“I’m not worried about my PERSONAL SAFETY, though I am now worried a bit for YOURS. Your drone is creepy and violating. You need to take it out of the air, or I will.”

“Fine, it won’t go near you”

“No, I need it out of the sky. Now. You are violating every woman on this beach. Get it out of the sky.”

He actually got the kid to call it back and packed it up. Even so, I left. I am so mad that I was violated in that way–and the potentials for anyone else being violated that way.”

I was walking to class one morning and an attractive young woman walked past myself and another man. Immediately, he started to shout suggestive lines at her (she ignored him and kept walking) and then he began to shout very offensive things toward her and I had heard enough of it! I turned to him and asked, “What in the world is wrong with you?! That could be my sister!”

He saw I was angry and apologized. I ran and caught up to the young lady and told her that I was sorry she went through that on behalf of my gender. She said, “Its okay” as if it was something she endures everyday. I said, “No it’s not okay” I wanted to keep chatting with her, but I had to get to class. I hope wherever she is she doesn’t have to get used to that kinda thing.

What can we do create more street respect?

I think you have to reach out to men more. The only people that can make the creeps stop is the good men out there. The only problem is a good man doesn’t himself know for certain what is and is not appropriate. He feels it in his gut, but no one ever says anything so rarely do they intervene and are more likely to keep quite when those males around them act creepy.

Honestly, I would suggest holding workshops on appropriate ways of addressing women (Something never taught in schools).

– Richard S.

Location: Outside of the Brooklyn College Campus, NY