Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

“Daaaaamn. Is that your lady?”

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I no longer live in Tallahassee, FL, but the street harassment I experienced there has stuck in my memory. I lived along a main street, where I would walk to go to the grocery store or pharmacy, and every time without fail, some entitled douche would feel the need to honk or yell at me, even from across six lanes of traffic.

One particularly offensive incident involved me walking along that street late at night with my then-boyfriend. I was wearing a tank top and pajama pants, no makeup–not exactly dressed to please. Two guys in a car slowed down to look at my ass. They then proceeded to address my ex, and ignore me.

“Daaaaamn. Is that your lady?”

His lady. Because I’m only important in reference to him, right? Because I’m not actually present right now, right?

Right.

Before my ex could reply, I stuck my middle finger up. The sped off with a “Fine! Fuck you, bitch!”

The nerve of me.

– Melissa D.

Location: W. Tennessee Street, Tallahassee, FL

Share your street harassment story today and help raise awareness about the problem. Include your location and it will be added to the Street Harassment Map.

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“Dude, the world is full of grenades.”

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I witnessed two guys who were walking behind a youngish women in leggings and high heeled boots and checking her out, then walking quickly to the side of her, presumably to check out her face. After seeing her face, the two of them walked more slowly to end up behind her again, as one said to the other, “Dude, the world is full of grenades.”

– anonymous

Location: Washington D.C. by Dupont Circle

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“What’s a pretty little girl like you doing in a wheelchair?”

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I was recently in a burn accident and my leg is in bandages.

My parents were helping me into our van outside the hospital when this older man walked by and said, “What’s a pretty little girl like you doing in a wheelchair?” and he winked at me before he went inside the hospital.

It was just really creepy.

Like my leg is any of his business.

Or just that he called me a “pretty little girl”… yeah, I really like to be referred to as a child and demoted to someone who’s incapable, yknow?

– BMH

Location: 801 Broadway N, Fargo, ND 58122

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Weekly Round Up: November 14, 2010

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Story Submissions Recap:

I accept street harassment submissions from anywhere in the world. Share your story!

In the News, On the Blogs:

Announcements:

Upcoming Events:

Ten Tweets from the Week:

  • HollabackPGH don’t whistle @ me while i’m riding my bike dwn yr street. i’m just tryng 2 enjoy the sun & buy olive oil #streetharassment
  • sospokesaroj: #amanshouldnot catcall a girl. Who in their right mind thinks girls actually respond favorably to that?
  • annikaleigh Most confusing catcall ever: “hey! Youre kinda…not ugly cute.” At least be clever when youre objectifying me, idiot.
  • mz_laf: I almost had to karate chop this dude in the Train station. He tried to grab me. I am not the one | Damn shame #StreetHarassment
  • RevoltRealWomen Just b/c a woman has chosen 2 exercise her freedom 2 walk down the same st as you, does NOT give u the right 2 assault & harass her
  • SamKusek Guys who harass women on the street make ladies feel like they’re unsafe anywhere but their own homes. It takes us back two steps.
  • TheSceneSerene #angryblackwomantweet death to dudes that want to publically harass and embarrass u on the street.
  • kaalakawaa Even if a person walked down the street in a micro-mini, the harassment is the fault of the harasser not the harassed
  • JessiDG: “Paranoia is a female rite of passage.” #streetharassment and @FourSquare http://shar.es/0BMdQ
  • buttersburke There is an app that counters street harassment from guys??? Does it shoot & kill them instantly??
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A mother with a long way to go

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I feel as if I rarely get harassed now (knock on wood), but when it happens, it’s annoying. And once again, as mentioned in the story back when I was called N-word in August, it hurts when loved ones don’t back me up.

This past Friday, my mother treated me to see Tyler Perry’s “For Colored Girls…” and the first theater we went to was mobbed. (I’m not a Tyler Perry fan but am a fan of Ntozake Shange, and I can’t figure out what about Tyler Perry movies brings people out in droves, but I digress.)

The deal was that I was going to use my mother’s card to buy the tickets while she parked the car, while I kept in contact on my phone to let her know the status of tickets. I get to the kiosk and the show we wanted to see was sold out with the next one being two hours away. As I informed her of this and was proceeding to leave the theater, some dummy pushed me and told me “Move!” I wasn’t in his way!

I forgot to hang up my phone as I went to confront this guy, telling him I wasn’t in his way and he had no right to push me, and once again, like in the last story, my mother hears me and she’s yelling “What are you doing? Stop! Just leave!” The satisfaction of this guy standing there looking humiliated (while some other guy laughed at him being told off by me) disappeared because of my mother thinking I’m a child incapable of defending myself and thinking for myself and her constantly blaming me for things that go wrong.

My mother has been exposed to your site and is interested in your book and has become more educated about street harassment, so to speak, but I still feel she has a long way to go before she 1) realizes I’m an adult and if I feel like defending myself, I will (I haven’t lived under her roof in years, so I don’t get why she can’t see me as an autonomous woman) and 2) I’m not to blame for what happens to me. I didn’t ask for that guy to push and snip at me to “Move!”

I get into the car and tell her what happened to cause me to go off, and she gives a perfunctory “Well, that theater gets crowded and attracts rowdy people…we should’ve went somewhere else.”

I just want to feel as if she’ll have my back 100%, for once. I don’t know why she can’t.

– Tired of Being Harassed

Location: AMC Hoffman 22 (Alexandria, VA)

Share your street harassment story today and help raise awareness about the problem. Include your location and it will be added to the Street Harassment Map.

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