Street Harassment by Jaclyn Anglis
Jessica Lief, a trauma therapist in NYC, reflects on her experiences with street harassment. Studies show internationally that anywhere from 70 to 99 percent of women will face street harassment. Now, NYC women are speaking out against it.
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Transcript :
Jessica Lief, trauma therapist
They’ve meowed like a cat. They’ve said like yum. One person asked me once where was my security guard and could he be my security guard.
And I don’t really think it has a lot to do with the way I dress. You know I wear a lot of skirts and dresses.
So this dress specifically, I have no idea why, it’s not very short, it’s just a black dress with sleeves, I get called out a lot when I wear this.
I really think no matter what you’re wearing, somebody will call at you if they want to.
I’m a trauma therapist. I work with women who are survivors of interpersonal violence as a social worker and I think even more so with that, I’ve been doing things that I wouldn’t normally do.
I’ll be hyper vigilant, I’ll be kind of scanning the area and looking who’s around me. I will definitely walk faster. I feel very uncomfortable when there’s a man walking behind me.
Debjani Roy, Hollaback Deputy Director
Street harassment happens in areas where there are more people, obviously, in a world that kind of accepts day-to-day forms of discrimination against women and LGBTQ folks. It’s likely that wherever there are more people, there’s more of a chance for harassment to happen.
Letitia James, NYC Public Advocate
We are more than our bodies. More than our body parts. We will not allow anyone to objectify us and to reduce us to a body part. We will not be defined by anyone else but defined by who we are inside. And we will not allow anyone to defile us or reduce us, because we are women, right? And we roar.
La Roka, rapper and dancer
So when you’re getting just from point A to point B on the street, you should be free to wear what you want and enjoy the day without someone coming in and trying to attack your peace of mind and so that’s what this rally’s really about.
Jessica Lief, trauma therapist
You know, people arent inherently sexist. I think they learn it and they learn it from their older brothers or whoever or their fathers so I think just investing in educational campaigns to tell people this isn’t okay, this is never excusable, and what does it mean to respect women, and what does equality mean to you.
Jessica Lief, trauma therapist
They’ve meowed like a cat. They’ve said like yum. One person asked me once where was my security guard and could he be my security guard.
And I don’t really think it has a lot to do with the way I dress. You know I wear a lot of skirts and dresses.
So this dress specifically, I have no idea why, it’s not very short, it’s just a black dress with sleeves, I get called out a lot when I wear this.
I really think no matter what you’re wearing, somebody will call at you if they want to.
I’m a trauma therapist. I work with women who are survivors of interpersonal violence as a social worker and I think even more so with that, I’ve been doing things that I wouldn’t normally do.
I’ll be hyper vigilant, I’ll be kind of scanning the area and looking who’s around me. I will definitely walk faster. I feel very uncomfortable when there’s a man walking behind me.
Debjani Roy, Hollaback Deputy Director
Street harassment happens in areas where there are more people, obviously, in a world that kind of accepts day-to-day forms of discrimination against women and LGBTQ folks. It’s likely that wherever there are more people, there’s more of a chance for harassment to happen.
Letitia James, NYC Public Advocate
We are more than our bodies. More than our body parts. We will not allow anyone to objectify us and to reduce us to a body part. We will not be defined by anyone else but defined by who we are inside. And we will not allow anyone to defile us or reduce us, because we are women, right? And we roar.
La Roka, rapper and dancer
So when you’re getting just from point A to point B on the street, you should be free to wear what you want and enjoy the day without someone coming in and trying to attack your peace of mind and so that’s what this rally’s really about.
Jessica Lief, trauma therapist
You know, people arent inherently sexist. I think they learn it and they learn it from their older brothers or whoever or their fathers so I think just investing in educational campaigns to tell people this isn’t okay, this is never excusable, and what does it mean to respect women, and what does equality mean to you.
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No matter what a woman is wearing, someone will harass her on the street if they want to.
That’s according to Jessica Lief, a trauma therapist who has lived in New York City for a couple years. Though she hasn’t lived here long, she’s become very acquainted with sexual harassment in public spaces, or street harassment. The harassment hits quite literally close to home, as she’s often catcalled or leered at by men nearby where she lives at 125th street and Broadway in Manhattan. And it’s had an effect on how she goes about her everyday routine.
“I’ll be hyper vigilant, I’ll be kind of scanning the area and looking who’s around me. I will definitely walk faster,” Lief says. “I feel very uncomfortable when there’s a man walking behind me.”
Lief is not alone.
Though street harassment is an under-researched topic, international studies have shown that anywhere from 70 to 99 percent of women as a whole have experienced street harassment, according to Hollaback, a New York-based anti-street harassment organization. And it’s no coincidence that street harassment is a prevalent problem for women in New York, one of the largest cities in the world.
“Street harassment happens in areas where there are more people, obviously, in a world that kind of accepts day-to-day forms of discrimination against women and LGBTQ folks,” says Debjani Roy, the deputy director at Hollaback.
But some women are no longer accepting the harassment. Whether it’s through a rally, joining an advocacy group or simply sharing a personal story, women are speaking out.
No matter what a woman is wearing, someone will harass her on the street if they want to.
That’s according to Jessica Lief, a trauma therapist who has lived in New York City for a couple years. Though she hasn’t lived here long, she’s become very acquainted with sexual harassment in public spaces, or street harassment. The harassment hits quite literally close to home, as she’s often catcalled or leered at by men nearby where she lives at 125th street and Broadway in Manhattan. And it’s had an effect on how she goes about her everyday routine.
“I’ll be hyper vigilant, I’ll be kind of scanning the area and looking who’s around me. I will definitely walk faster,” Lief says. “I feel very uncomfortable when there’s a man walking behind me.”
Lief is not alone.
Though street harassment is an under-researched topic, international studies have shown that anywhere from 70 to 99 percent of women as a whole have experienced street harassment, according to Hollaback, a New York-based anti-street harassment organization. And it’s no coincidence that street harassment is a prevalent problem for women in New York, one of the largest cities in the world.
“Street harassment happens in areas where there are more people, obviously, in a world that kind of accepts day-to-day forms of discrimination against women and LGBTQ folks,” says Debjani Roy, the deputy director at Hollaback.
But some women are no longer accepting the harassment. Whether it’s through a rally, joining an advocacy group or simply sharing a personal story, women are speaking out.
