Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

Social media helps raise awareness of harassment in Saudi Arabia

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Over the years, SSH has covered various aspects about harassment in Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s most conservative countries with the fewest rights for women. From the cleric who thought women were too seductive in veils that showed two eyes and said they should only be able to show one eye, to the group of men caught on tape harassing fully covered women outside a mall, to the on-going effort to pass an anti-harassment law.

Al-Monitor has a new article about how women are using social media to fight back. Excerpt:

“A study conducted by a female Saudi researcher about “sexual harassment of women” on a sample of women aged between 18 and 48 has shown that 78% of respondents claimed to have experienced sexual harassment directly, while 92% said that sexual harassment is on the rise. The study found that 27% of them have been subjected to verbal harassment; 26% were subject to “tarqim” attempts, which is the attempt to pass on a phone number; 24% were subject to harassment by looks; and 15% were physically touched…

Harassment in Saudi Arabia has become a serious phenomenon. The tip of the iceberg has now been revealed because of a general desire by the victims to reveal the criminals. Posting photos and videos documenting certain events has shed light on sensitive topics that the kingdom wishes to avoid dealing with….

A video shot at a building’s entrance in Dammam shows a young man harassing a young girl waiting for the elevator. He lifts her school dress and touches her private parts, then enters the elevator with her. The disturbing video ends at this point, but without putting an end to the incident.

The girl didn’t scream or resist. It was a brutal, smooth and scary scene. The video went viral, Saudi Twitter users applied their usual pressure and the criminal was caught. He could be punished by several lashings and a short prison stay. The absence of a law that deters the crime has worsened the harassment phenomenon targeting women and girls….

The collective harassment incident that took place in a shopping mall in the eastern region was the cornerstone for a law intended to fight the growing phenomenon. In the incident, a group of Saudi women were collectively harassed by a group of young men. One of the women shot the scene and put it up on social media to expose the perpetrators.

Before the video’s publication, there had been efforts to put in place penalties to reduce harassment. The Shura Council is studying an integrated penalties schedule for verbal and physical harassment. The bill, which aims to combat harassment and stop its growth, sets penalties that depend on the offense, starting with a warning and censure, followed by fines that reach up to half a million riyals (more than $120,000), flogging and imprisonment for up to five years.”

I hope the videos and other activism on social media can bring more attention to this widespread problem and show that the harassment is not women’s fault! They are harassed no matter what they’re wearing because the problem is the patriarchal, disrespectful attitudes of the men harassing them.

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India: Blank Noise is making a difference

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By Pallavi Kamat, Mumbai, India, SSH Correspondent

All of us at some point in time have faced street harassment in one form or the other. But most of us choose to remain silent and bear it. At times, we may discuss it amongst our group of friends and curse the eve-teasing that we are subject to.

But not Jasmeen Patheja. She initiated a community/public art project called Blank Noise in August 2003 in Bangalore which seeks to confront street harassment.

Blank Noise asks women to be active ‘Action Heroes’ and reclaim the streets which they seek to make safe. At the same time, it also asks men to get involved in their events and activities. Jasmeen believes that making cities safer for women is not a woman’s responsibility alone.

The project is run almost entirely by volunteers who are keen to make a difference. It works on the premise that while individually we may face harassment, collectively, as a group, we can stand up to it; we can share our experiences and resolve it.

Some of Blank Noise’s campaigns include ‘I Never Ask For It’ [the typical response when a woman is assaulted on the street is that she probably asked for it – by staying out late, by dressing in a particular way, by taking an unsafe street, etc.], ‘Safe City Pledge’ and ‘Talk To Me’.

One of their experiments involved women standing on the zebra crossing at a traffic signal in a bid to assert themselves and reclaim the streets from lecherous glances and other unpleasant experiences. Each of the volunteers had a letter pasted on the front of their clothes – collecting the letters read ‘Y R U LOOKING AT ME?’ Some passers-by even questioned the volunteers about the same.

Another experiment (‘Talk To Me’) involved putting up a couple of tables in Bangalore’s infamous Rapist Lane where volunteers invited complete strangers to stop and talk with them. At the end of the conversation, the volunteer offered a rose to the stranger.

The ‘Safe City Pledge’ initiative, which was launched following the gruesome rape in Delhi in December-2012 focuses on building safe cities and identifying an individual’s role in making his or her city safe.

Blank Noise can be contacted at http://blog.blanknoise.org/ or on Twitter at @BLANK_NOISE.

Pallavi is a qualified Chartered Accountant and a Commerce Graduate from the University of Mumbai, India, with around 12 years of experience working in the corporate sector. Follow her on Twitter, @pallavisms.

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One Billion Rising

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By Kendra Corbin, SSH Intern

One Billion Rising at Shenandoah University, Via SU’s Facebook page

Traditionally, Valentine’s Day is a holiday dedicated to love and romance. Restaurants become crowded with happy couples while social media sites are littered with photos of flowers and candy. But Valentine’s Day is more than just a chance to show off your wonderful significant other to the world. It’s an opportunity to take a stand for every woman that may not have the ability to stand up for herself.

Annually on February 14, or V-Day, women across the world participate in One Billion Rising. This international event is a reminder that 1 in 3 women will be abused or raped during her lifetime. The campaign’s mission is to end violence against women and girls. Last V-Day, 207 countries took part in One Billion Rising. The campaign states:

ONE BILLION RISING FOR JUSTICE is a global call to women survivors of violence and those who love them to gather safely in community outside places where they are entitled to justice – courthouses, police stations, government offices, school administration buildings, work places, sites of environmental injustice, military courts, embassies, places of worship, homes, or simply public gathering places where women deserve to feel safe but too often do not.  It is a call to survivors to break the silence and release their stories – politically, spiritually, outrageously – through art, dance, marches, ritual, song, spoken word, testimonies and whatever way feels right.

One of the greatest attributes of One Billion Rising is that it encourages women to channel the pain of sexual assault into creativity. Whether through dance, music, art, performance, etc., women and their male allies can include a serious message in an event that is both empowering and entertaining.

Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of attending the One Billion Rising event on my college campus. Students, faculty, and community members gathered to perform a flash mob to the song “Break the Chain” at Shenandoah University. Before the event started, I bumped into one of my female professors. She asked if I was planning to dance. I awkwardly giggled and replied, no, that I would not be participating because I’m not a very coordinated dancer. She laughed and said that if I was looking for fantastic dancers then I came to the wrong place, but that I would see many happy women out on the floor dancing with each other.

When the flash mob started, the words that my professor said made perfect sense. There were some fantastic dancers on the floor while others looked more clumsy and nervous, but every woman (and a few men, too!) smiled and laughed as they shook their bodies. As the music faded out, the group screamed with excitement while they embraced in a group-hug. Seeing that much female power in one room was inspiring.

It doesn’t matter if a person is the greatest dancer on the floor or if they dance like Elaine from Seinfeld. As long as someone chooses to participate in a movement that cares about ending violence against women, then that is a beautiful thing. One Billion Rising has proven that the pain and heartache of sexual assault can be channeled into empowerment. Valentine’s Day flowers and candy are fantastic, but compassion for our sisters is an even better gift to the world.

Kendra Corbin is senior at Shenandoah University. She is majoring in Mass Communications and minoring in Women’s Studies.

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“I started a “Cat Call Count” on my computer, but lost count after I lost my spirit”

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I’m an exchange student from the USA currently in Ecuador, a beautiful country for its nature and culture. However, like many countries, there is also a strong “rape culture.” Spanish speakers would call the country “Machista”. Here, it is disgustingly common (and socially acceptable) for men to cat call the women and treat them like they are less than human beings.

To be honest, when I experienced a cat call for the first time here, I admit, I thought it was funny and kind of flattering. I thought, ‘Hey, they actually think I’m pretty.’ That was the last time I thought that. Every time I walk to the bus stop, I am honked at by men behind steering wheels and cars full of boys who whistle and shout things at me. The scariest is when I am just walking home at dusk with thoughts occupying my mind and all of a sudden, a deafening honk from a truck makes me jump out of my reverie and into a world where it’s funny to scare teenage girls walking by themselves. I’ve seen the faces of fully grown men, laughing to each other when they see I glance at the oncoming vehicle that beeped at me. I have learned to not look up.

I have never given the middle finger to anyone in my life, but one day, I thought it would be an interesting experiment to see someone’s reaction. As I was walking to the bus as usual, a truck with two men passed by, with the head of the passenger sticking out as he called to me. He said words like cute and pretty and I flipped him off. My heart was racing but I kept eye contact with him as his face fell into a kind of dumb stupor. The look of an excited boy who doesn’t understand why he’s gotten socks for Christmas. Later, I felt a panic. ‘What if they turn around? What if they kidnap me?’ It may have been an overreaction, but the fact that those possibilities enter my mind when I’m just walking on the sidewalk shows that this beautiful country isn’t as beautiful as it seems.

I shouldn’t have to carry a whistle in my bag. (Even though my best Ecuadorian friend tells me, even if you blew that whistle, no one would do anything. That is my culture.) I shouldn’t have to think about all the possible ways to defend myself with the rocks and shards of glass on the sidewalk.

I started a “Cat Call Count” on my computer, but lost count after I lost my spirit. I didn’t want to tally the honks and the “complements” anymore.

I know blonde people are a little scarce in this country, but it is no excuse to treat me like some zoo animal. The stares and shouts are unwanted and they don’t even notice.

– AKB

Location: Quito, Ecuador

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Check out the new book 50 Stories about Stopping Street Harassers!

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“I really hope that all street harassment comes to an end”

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Hello, I just wanted to share a couple of my experiences of street harassment:

When I was younger (about 13 yrs) I was walking with my mom to a gas station nearby, while we were crossing a parking lot, a pick up truck came from behind us and drove in a circle around us a few times.They never tried to talk to us, they just circled slowly and then drove away.

Another time (I was about 16 at this point) I was walking home with a friend and my brother, we crossed the same parking lot and these guys pulled up in a car and one of them shouted “show us your tits!”

I was just shocked and ignored them, my friend yelled “f*** you!” , the guy said, “Show us your tits” again and yelled a couple of other things. (I don’t remember what), they eventually gave up and drove off.
These experiences made me feel uncomfortable and like I’m only seen as only an object instead of a human being. I really hope that all street harassment comes to an end.

Love and best wishes to all the women and men out there who know what it feels like to experience any type of harassment.

– Anonymous

Location: Parking lot

Share your street harassment story for the blog.
Check out the new book 50 Stories about Stopping Street Harassers!

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