It was about 6pm on a Sunday, and I was walking with two friends in the East Village. We were talking and laughing, enjoying our last week in the city. All of a sudden, a large man walking by reached out and grabbed my butt.
By the time I had realized what happened, he was walking away, smirking. I didn’t know what to do. There were people all around me, but no one was looking. I whispered to my friends what had happened, and we walked home.
Thanks to a fabulous DukeEngage program, I spent the summer working at a shelter for domestic violence and sex trafficking victims in New York City. Some of my friends in the program were actually working at Hollaback!, an organization that has been in the news a lot lately thanks to its work fighting street harassment.
I was supposed to feel empowered, powerful, tough. And yet, I don’t know if I’ve ever felt as disempowered as I did in that moment. I felt like it was my duty—as an “empowered woman”—to say or do something, but I didn’t want to put my safety in jeopardy. Then again, my shock and inability to say anything was embarrassing too, especially in front of my feminist friends. The whole situation made me angry.
I wish I could say that this experience was an anomaly. But the longer I spent in New York, the more I began to expect predatory leers on the subway and unwanted comments about my body when I left my apartment. And while I may have learned to expect it, it never failed to make me uncomfortable.
Street harassment refers to harassment in public spaces, including catcalling, prejudiced remarks, unwanted sexual touching and even public masturbation. Studies show that 70-99 percent of women around the world have experienced some form of street harassment. Ten percent of victims report their first experience of street harassment before age 12, and the majority report it happening before age 18.
And public harassment doesn’t just happen in big cities or in certain neighborhoods. A recent survey of college students showed that 67 percent had experienced some form of harassment. Public harassment encompasses such behaviors as groping someone at Shooters or rating someone’s body as they walk past your fraternity bench.
Public harassment isn’t even just limited to the physical world—gender-based harassment on the Internet is a growing concern among activists. Social media is too often a forum for misogynists to publicize their prejudice, as demonstrated yesterday by Artie Lange’s Twitter rampage, where he said he fantasized about TV host Cari Champion as his sex slave. So-called “men’s rights” groups flourish on the internet, where anonymity too often becomes a breeding ground for hatred. Many friends of mine have deactivated their online dating accounts quickly after making them due to the barrage of aggressive and sexually explicit messages they received.
Street harassment and related forms of public harassment are not compliments. They have very real consequences. Victims report a decreased sense of safety as well as mental health effects including depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.
On a societal level, street harassment creates and reinforces a culture of gender violence. Gender violence exists on a spectrum, and all harassing or violent behaviors are interrelated. While behaviors like catcalling or threatening comments may not seem as serious when compared with rape, they contribute to an atmosphere where more violent or extreme forms of gender violence are far too acceptable.
And, yet, somehow public harassment remains invisible to many. Founder of Hollaback! Emily Mae says she started the organization when, after sharing her experiences with a male friend, he commented that she lived in a completely different New York City than he did.
Thankfully, efforts to make street harassment visible seem to be gaining traction. It is emerging as an important topic online and in the news. It has been featured on CNN, Buzzfeed and even “The Daily Show.” Hollaback! recently released an iconic video showing a women walking through New York, experiencing over 100 forms of harassment in 10 hours. And yet awareness efforts have been met with serious pushback, demonstrated by the now-infamous CNN guest who tried to explain to two women why they should appreciate catcalling, even as they repeatedly told him that it upset them.
So what can we do? Well, victims can speak about their experiences. Just because public harassment is common doesn’t make it acceptable of “just part of being a woman.” Organizations like Hollaback! provide forums for people to share their experiences with street harassment, raising awareness and finding support.
Allies, too, have a role to play. Instead of immediately jumping to the defense of harassers, listen to victims when they share their experiences and feelings. When people tells you that something upsets them, your first response should never be to tell them why it shouldn’t. Rather, validate their experiences, listen and do your part in building a culture where all forms of violence are indisputably unacceptable.
Katie Becker is a Trinity sophomore. Her column runs every other Thursday.
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