Street Harassers

For some reason recently I am being targeted for street harassment more than any other time in my life. Maybe it's because I'm spending so much more time walking down main street but honestly I didn't think it was this bad. I'd like to share todays incident.

So I'm walking in the light rain north on south main in a hot pink sweatshirt with my hood up and comfortable jeans. A man in a white car, driving in the same direction I'm walking, honks at me. When he passed he looked back at me just to make sure I knew he meant me. Well with no other pedestrians around I was pretty sure..... Anyway here's what is wrong with this particular situation. He didn't see my face. Like I said, he came up from behind me and my hood was up. The only reason he suspected I was female is I was wearing pink. So for anyone who feels complimented by street harassment, know it's not about how you look. This man had no idea what I looked like. He wanted to make sure I knew he was looking anyway. I told him to jog on.

Another incident I'd like to share does have more to do with looks. Last Monday was beautiful. I was walking down south main to an event in just a white tank top and jeans. I felt so good to bare skin after keeping it hidden under coats! But my pleasure wasn't just for me. Several men felt entitled to hijack my good mood, thinking it was for them. I got honks as well as blatant stares from people who should be watching the road.

What makes me so mad about this shit is all these men felt entitled to express their unsolicited opinion about me. It's not like some stranger comes up to you and says "I like your shoes." These men were expressing their satisfaction in my appearance in a way that says to me, "I'd really like to fuck you. And if you don't want to, I can make you." It's about power, control, and intimidation.

We were talking in my sociology class about how we describe attractive women. "Stunning" and "knock out" are two relevant examples. My perceived appearance to men is an attack. I've stunned them, I've knocked them out. So to them, I have some power. Power they don't want to be subject to. So they take it back. They take it back with violence against women, which starts with street harassment.

A lecture I went to a few weeks ago mentioned how quickly "hey beautiful" can turn into "hey bitch!" Usually followed with "I was only trying to compliment you!" If it doesn't feel like a compliment, then it isn't. If it feels creepy and wrong, then it is.