Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

This Friday: Subway Harassment Discussion on the Radio

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“Sick of being on the alert or being harassed on the subway where crimes that are often discrimination-based that disproportionately affect women, minorities and LGBT folk happen? Find out how the MTA hides these crime stats and what to do about it from Emily May co-founder of HollabackNYC.com and New Yorkers for Safe Transit, and co-chair of Girls for Gender Equity”

On Friday, June 19, 2009, HollabackNYC co-founder Emily May will be on the NYC radio station WBAI from 1 – 1:40 p.m. EST talking about harassment on the NY public transportation system. The show will be accepting calls – so call in to give her your questions and feedback!

You also can listen to the show live over the Internet.

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Where's the Safety Transparency?

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Emily May, one of the co-founders of HollaBack NYC and one of the recent co-founders of New Yorkers for Safe Transit has a great op-ed piece in the NY’s Metro paper about the lack of safety transparency in the crime statistics for NY’s public transportation system.

MTA says there’s been a drop in crime on the subways, however, Emily doesn’t believe they’re accurately tracking persistant harassment crimes that disproportionately impact people of color, LGBTQ folk, and women who fall both within and without the first two groups of people.

“While the experience of harassment and assault is widespread, our access to information on these crimes is severely limited. In 2007, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer’s office released the only report to date on the issue. According to the report, 63 percent of riders are harassed on the subway, and 10 percent are assaulted. With 5 million people riding the subway every weekday, it is fair to say that these crimes are at epidemic proportions.

The MTA’s recent anti-harassment PSAs suggest victims contact an ‘MTA worker or police officer.’ This is an empty gesture; personnel cuts have made station attendants scarce. Riders lucky enough to find help are ‘ignored’ or told ‘there isn’t much they can do,’ according to posts on HollabackNYC.com.

The subways have come a long way since the ’70s, but cleaner trains are not necessarily safer. If we are going to herald our improvements in transit safety, ‘strikes, shoves and kicks,’  ‘following a person in a public place,’ harassment and other misdemeanors must be included in the MTA’s crime count. Until we have safety transparency in our subway, these crimes will continue to stand clear of the closing doors.”

I whole-heartedly agree. I’m very glad she and the other individuals working on New Yorkers for Safe Transit are engaged in activism around this problem.

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Where’s the Safety Transparency?

By

Emily May, one of the co-founders of HollaBack NYC and one of the recent co-founders of New Yorkers for Safe Transit has a great op-ed piece in the NY’s Metro paper about the lack of safety transparency in the crime statistics for NY’s public transportation system.

MTA says there’s been a drop in crime on the subways, however, Emily doesn’t believe they’re accurately tracking persistant harassment crimes that disproportionately impact people of color, LGBTQ folk, and women who fall both within and without the first two groups of people.

“While the experience of harassment and assault is widespread, our access to information on these crimes is severely limited. In 2007, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer’s office released the only report to date on the issue. According to the report, 63 percent of riders are harassed on the subway, and 10 percent are assaulted. With 5 million people riding the subway every weekday, it is fair to say that these crimes are at epidemic proportions.

The MTA’s recent anti-harassment PSAs suggest victims contact an ‘MTA worker or police officer.’ This is an empty gesture; personnel cuts have made station attendants scarce. Riders lucky enough to find help are ‘ignored’ or told ‘there isn’t much they can do,’ according to posts on HollabackNYC.com.

The subways have come a long way since the ’70s, but cleaner trains are not necessarily safer. If we are going to herald our improvements in transit safety, ‘strikes, shoves and kicks,’  ‘following a person in a public place,’ harassment and other misdemeanors must be included in the MTA’s crime count. Until we have safety transparency in our subway, these crimes will continue to stand clear of the closing doors.”

I whole-heartedly agree. I’m very glad she and the other individuals working on New Yorkers for Safe Transit are engaged in activism around this problem.

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Street Harassment Round Up – June 7

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Stories:

  • On this blog, a male ally submitted a story about street harassment he observed on a vacation in New Orleans; a female contributor shared a story about being followed by a man in NYC and having him touch her from behind with his penis (!)
  • You can submit your stories via Twitter now on Holla Back NYC. Tweet from the street with #hbnyc! Your tweets will be retweeted through @emilymaynot and posted to HollabackNYC!” Here’s their first entry sent this way, from @ElizabethKoke: a dude turned to look me up and down, called me “bitch” and said that it looked like I had a long day but still looked good.
  • On Holla Back CHICAGO a contributor tells how a man in a truck took photos of her butt as she walked home from running at a park and then he had the nerve to call her a pervert for “wearing see-through pants.”

  • Holla Back DC! has several new contributor posts this week. They also have a post about talking to WMATA about sexual harassment on DC public transportation. Way to put on the pressure, ladies!

Share your street harassment story today and help raise awareness about the problem!

In the News:

Upcoming Events:

Street Harassment Resource of the Week:

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Reminder: Tomorrow is NYers for Safe Transit Meeting

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TakeBackPublicTransitJune8EventNYCNew Yorkers for Safe Transit Presents…

Taking Back Public Transit: Ending Violence On Board
Mon., June 8th, 7 p.m.
Brecht Forum, 451 West St. (btwn. Bank & Bethune), NY
light refreshments will be served

You shouldn’t have to compromise your safety and well-being to simply get across town. Unfortunately, many New Yorkers do. Harassment and even violent attacks are happening on subways and at station platforms across the five boroughs.

That’s why New Yorkers for Safe Transit is bringing people together to put a stop to the violence.  Join Cate Contino, Straphangers Campaign; Emily May, HollaBack NYC; Mya Vasquez, TransJustice; and Veronica Tirado, Safe Outside the System, for a frank discussion about how to address violence and harassment, the issues riders are facing, and how to make effective change. All are welcome to share their own experiences and expertise that we can transform into action.

For more information on this event please visit
http://www.facebook.com/l/;http://rightrides.org/templates/programs.php?page=safety_mtgs

To RSVP for this event please email newyorkersforsafetransit@http://www.facebook.com/l/;gmail.com or call http://www.facebook.com/l/;718.522.0822.

Event is free, but donations of $10 per person are appreciated to help further this movement.

New Yorkers for Safe Transit is a coalition of organizations and advocates dedicated to eliminating harassment and assaults particularly gender- or discrimination-based on public transportation in New York City. The coalition focuses on raising public awareness, community building, and facilitating changes that ensure New Yorkers can get from one location to another safely and securely.

(The above text is reprinted from Friends of RightRides Facebook message)

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