Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

San Francisco Man Stabbed after Intervening

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Via SF Gate:

“A San Francisco man who tried to intervene when his friend was being harassed was stabbed with a kitchen knife Wednesday outside a grocery store in the Mission District.

The victim, age 30, had just exited the store about 4:30 p.m. when he saw an apparently intoxicated man harassing his female friend, a store employee. The suspect, a 57-year-old man also of San Francisco, was being “vulgar and rude,” said Officer Carlos Manfredi, a police spokesman.

The 30-year-old told the man to knock it off, Manfredi said, and the two got into an argument, which soon turned physical.

The suspect pushed the younger man and stabbed him several times in the leg and upper torso, then ran away, police said.

Paramedics arrived at the scene of the stabbing near 14th and Folsom streets and transported the victim to a nearby hospital. His injuries did not appear to be life-threatening.”

I’m grateful he took a stand and I wish him a speedy recovery.

It’s so hard to know what is the “best” way to respond to harassment one experiences or witnesses, we have a split second to decide. You never know when it may escalate.

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Street Harassment Film Nominated for Best Documentary

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I just got word from Tiye Rose Hood that her documentary Objectified received a nomination for best documentary in Academy of Art’s 2011 Epidemic Film Festival in San Francisco. Congratulations, Tiye!

For those of you who’ve seen the documentary before via this site or another, this is an updated version of the film and the version entered in the Film Festival.

Objectified. from Tiye Rose Hood on Vimeo.

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Constant harassment in San Francisco

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I’ve been living in San Francisco, CA, for a couple of years. I’ve been harassed a few times and I have heard a lot of stories from female friends who have been harassed on the streets of SF.

The first two times, I was visiting SF. I was harassed twice a few days apart. The creeps must have seen that I was a tourist, and figured that I was easy prey. The first guy was standing next to me at a stop light and said he liked my outfit. I said “thank you” and then I ignored him. Next he said that my outfit was “sexy” and when I got peeved he said that I “must want to be looked or I wouldn’t dress like that” and that “I should go hang out with the rest of the whores”.

Afterwards, I felt both shocked and vulnerable and I never wore the same outfit again, even though it wasn’t revealing at all.

The next time, some creep asked me if I needed directions and when I replied, “No, thanks. I’m fine,” he got really irritated and began mocking me.

The third time, a guy saw me reading a map and he was very adamant about giving me a ride in his car to where he was going. He seemed very friendly, but thankfully, I had the common sense of saying no.

The train can be scary, because you can’t easily get away from a guy who, for e.g., says you look good in your leggings or whatever and then gets peeved when you give him the cold shoulder.

Once, on the train, a guy was standing right next to me, it was very crowded, and I had to pretend the whole time that I couldn’t hear him talking to his friend about what my “p***y” must look like.

Another time the train was extremely crowded, and the guy behind me was “bouncing” more than the train was, and I felt something hard on my thigh.

Countless times, I have been hollared at on the street and stared at very inappropriately.

I wish there was something to do, besides ignore these guys, but I feel like there is a long way to go before women can feel safe and respected on the streets here, regardless of their age, looks, outfit etc.

– K.

Location: San Francisco, CA

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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17-year sentence

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A man in San Francisco sexually assaulted a woman and – thankfully – now will be serving a 17-year, 8-month sentence (the maximum) for the crime. DNA evidence has linked him to the rape and strangulation of another woman in 2007 though no charges have been filed. Both women are transgender prostitutes, and, sadly, it seems we can add them to a long list of women targeted for assault and murder because (at least in part) of their occupation and to a long list of people targeted for assault and murder for being transgender.

The fact that the assailant is being charged is evidence of some social change though because I’m not sure he would have been in years past – or maybe he wouldn’t have been today in a less human-rights oriented city.

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Street Harassment Round Up – June 14

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New Feature:

  • Visit the Stop Street Harassment Website’s “Map It” page to see where various street harassment incidents have occurred – click on the pushpins to read their stories. (Note: if the pushpins don’t show up at first, try refreshing your browser once or twice. Not sure why this is happening but refreshing eventually makes them show up). Submit your story.

Stories:

  • On this blog, a young woman in London, Ontario, Canada, tells how a boy slapped her on the backside from his bike while she was running. Her anger at the harassment led her to write an article about street harassment for her college.
  • On Holla Back NYC, a contributor tells how a man groped her under her dress while she was buying a Metrocard at the subway!
  • Holla Back DC! has a contributor post from a woman who used to be catcalled every day in her neighborhood and one day a man followed her and threatened her by saying her address and saying he’d come find her, so she better not go to sleep!

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

In the News:

  • Emily May of Hollaback NYC wrote an op-ed for New York’s Metro newspaper about how harassment and other misdemeanors must be included in the MTA’s crime count because without subway transparency, the crimes will continue unabated.
  • In Salt Lake City, UT, a man was arrested for groping two women (two different incidents) in public. The police fear there may be other victims and encourage any to come forward.
  • In San Francisco, CA, a man was reported to police for sexually assaulting women on the Muni transit system. Anyone with tips about the man can call (415) 553-1651.

Upcoming Events:

Street Harassment Resource of the Week:

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