Stop Street Harassment

Making Public Spaces Safe and Welcoming

Bookstore stalker

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I was at a large bookstore, and a man placed himself directly in my path to hit on me. I politely expressed my lack of interest, but he wouldn’t take no for an answer and followed me around the store. Eventually I thought I had lost him, but when I was ready to leave he was waiting for me the front door. He eventually gave up, but it was very scary.

– anonymous

Location: Norristown, PA

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I am harassed every day

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I am harassed every day, no matter what route I take to walk to work. I have been followed to my home by a crawling car, jeered at, spit at, and pretty much made to feel uncomfortable in the public realm. Its been this way for a few years and now I am just as confrontational back. I have learned that telling them to eat shit usually shuts them up.

– MK

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Jamaican Harrasser in White Jeep

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There is an Uno’s Restuarant in Brockton, MA, next to the West Gate Mall. This is where I had the displeasure of meeting “the black man”.

I had gotten out of work and wanted to get something to eat at the Uno’s. They weren’t open yet, so I sat down on a bench, took out my notebook and started to draw. A moment later, a black man with long dreads and a very Jamaican accent pulled in a big white Jeep and called to me through the passenger window,

“Hey! Wanna buy a black man dinner?!”

I made the mistake of looking up and answering,

“No.”

“Aw, come on baby, why not?”

“Becuase I don’t have the money.”

“It’s because I’m black, isn’t it? Come on, baby, don’t you love black men?”

I am a lesbian, but I didn’t want to tell him that. So I answered,

“My boyfriend is meeting me here.”

“And he a white boy?”

“He’s Indian. Leave me alone.”

To my relief, he drove away, but as I watched, I learned that he had not given up. Instead, he turned around and pulled up so he could talk to me through the driver’s window. I was getting scared, and the restaurant was still closed, so I had no place to go and no one to help me.

“Baby, you beautiful,” he went on to say, “I love white women. I would worship you like the goddess you are, baby. I would buy you things, I would love you better than your boyfriend. Come on, baby, let me worship you!”

I told him again, NO firmly, and he seemed to accept it. He drove off, and as soon as he did, I heard the resturant door’s unlock. I ran in and told the hostess there that there was a black man in a white jeep harrassing me, and to be careful. She offered to call for the police, but I decided I needed to leave the area. Thanking her, I left quickly and ran to my car and drove home, all the time looking around me to make sure I wasn’t being followed.

This was almost too terrifying to believe, because he was in a big car, and I was out of mine in front of a restaurant with no one around. Anything could have happened.

– anonymous

Location: Brockton, MA

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North London

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The road close to my street in London is a constant location for harassment. Men hang out in the cafes on the road and leer at passing women in a sometimes threatening, always horrible way. My housemate understandably refuses to walk down the road, I refuse not to.

On Friday night I was walking home at 1 a.m and I was pursued by a man who kept calling out to me. He then started shouting abusively when I became nervous and sped off home, somehow he was offended that a woman walking home late alone would become nervous when pursued by a random stranger. On Sunday, returning from the shops a couple of guys harassed me and turned verbally abusive when I told them where to get off. Action really needs to be taken about this, I’ve considered complaining to my local council. Otherwise I might end up flykicking a stranger in the street!

-anonymous

Location: North London, England

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Are You Conceited or Ugly?

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I was walking down the street in the Bronx to go catch the 6 train. As I’m walking, a man begins to follow me. He began talking to me and started saying things like “what are you? conceited or ugly?” after I had kept walking and not paying attention to him. Since he evidently was becoming annoyed when calling me ugly did not work. I guess he was expecting me to stop and turn around to prove that I’m not ugly nor conceited. He continued on to follow me and explain to me that it is his day off and he can follow me all day. I guess he thought that threatening to stalk a woman is a good way to get her to stop and give him attention. After trying to ignore, I could no longer handle it and was beginning to become frightened, feeling like he really was going to follow me and not leave me alone. Out of nerves, I dialed my friend on my cell phone and asked if she wanted her sweater, since it was left in my house, after she said yes, I did a U-turn and walked across the street back to my house. Thankfully he did not follow.

– Lisa

Location: Bronx, New York

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