Jordyn Haime, a University of New Hampshire (UNH) undergraduate student, conducted a local street harassment survey among her peers and shared quotes and stats from it in a display on campus (with support from the campus sexual assault dept.) and it was going to be up for International Anti-Street Harassment Week. But campus administrators had it taken down within hours because the language was “offensive” (e.g. what street harassers said). You can read more here and read Jordyn’s great op-ed.
When I reached out to offer help, one thing suggested was for SSH to write a statement in support of Jordyn. Last night, the SSH board of directors drafted this statement.
STATEMENT OF SUPPORT FOR JORDYN HAIME
Stop Street Harassment (SSH) applauds Jordyn Haime, a University of New Hampshire (UNH) undergraduate student, for her recent campaign about gender-based street harassment.
Her campaign began with documenting the street harassment experiences of her classmates and peers through conducting a survey. The results of this survey were powerful in revealing that the rate of street harassment locally was similar to that nationally.
Ms. Haime’s next step, taken with support from the campus Sexual Harassment and Rape Prevention Program, was to share quotes from the survey — quotes detailing the real life experiences UNH students endured — in a display on campus alongside statistics, facts and resources. This is commendable. Sharing stories, engaging in public education and raising awareness efforts are crucial steps to take toward creating community-driven and localized solutions for safe public spaces.
If people were offended by reading the street harassment stories, imagine what the person who was targeted felt when she or he experienced it first-hand. How can we work to stop these comments from being spoken if we try to hide that they are said at all? Instead of censoring campaigns to raise awareness about street harassment — an issue that, as Ms. Haime says, she and others normally regard as something that “just happened to them” — the administration should celebrate one of its student’s efforts to bring attention to such an important issue.
Street harassment is offensive. It is deplorable. It is uncomfortable. It can cause real emotional harm and even pose health risks when it’s extreme and/or repeated. It is a human rights violation and a form of gender-based violence. But this does not mean we should ignore it or that it is too controversial to discuss.
SSH supports Ms. Haime and anyone else who works to bring attention to the issue of street harassment, especially when those efforts are done in such a thoughtful, measured, and well-researched manner.
Signed,
SSH Board of Directors
March 30, 2017
