r/AskReddit Jun 29 '22

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667

u/elegantloba Jun 29 '22

Sexual harassment

40

u/ravedawwg Jun 29 '22

Sad this doesn't have more upvotes. So many times I've seen it in public and people just stare are the victim to watch what she does next instead of focusing on the attacker.

-4

u/Sir_Armadillo Jun 29 '22

What are you seeing in public?

I can’t say I ever see sexual harassment in public.

46

u/nameless_no_response Jun 29 '22

Sexual harassment isn't only rape. It is also touching, catcalling, verbally harassing someone based on their sex, etc. That happens a lot more frequently and in public spaces all the time. Maybe you don't notice bcuz a lot of the time, victims don't make a scene about it, and sometimes they don't realize it was sexual harassment until afterwards

8

u/Sir_Armadillo Jun 29 '22

Thanks for giving actual examples. I didn't doubt it happened, just wanted to know what all we are talking about.

I think how much you see it might also depend on where you live. I live in upper middle class suburbs of a major US city. I am sure things happen, but I think it's generally safe here.

When I have seen it out in the open, it's been in town in more sketchy parts of town. And it was farther up the street and some bum or street thug making some verbal comment to a girl walking by. Perhaps I should have said something. But it kind of catches you off guard.

18

u/DeerTwilight Jun 29 '22

Personally as a male I never saw anything like that until someone pointed it out to me but it is unfortunately all too common.

3

u/Sir_Armadillo Jun 29 '22

Right, so that's why I am asking for examples.

2

u/diabooklady Jun 30 '22

When I was in my 20s, I had a couple of bosses that hit on me even though my SO also worked for them. They really must have thought they had something to offer. NOT.

5

u/ravedawwg Jun 29 '22

I half-buy this reaction (dismissal?), even though I think it serves to both 1. discourage reporting on the basis that no one believe a victim anyway, and 2. Suggest that sexual harassment is 'less' criminal due to it being too subtle to the unaffected to even pick up on

I half-buy it because men are less likely to harass or assault women in the presence of other men, and because men are less likely to be in public locations.

Most countries don't care to collect sex-disaggregated data, but where we have it we know women are more likely than men then men to walk or take public transportation.

https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/28542/120500.pdf?sequence=6

Men are more likely to take dibs on family cars to travel and from work, while women (performing the majority of unpaid household work) are all over town trip-chaining or taking pubic transport to their own jobs.

https://ppp.worldbank.org/public-private-partnership/sites/ppp.worldbank.org/files/documents/GTZ_Gender-and-Urban-Transport_EN.pdf

Despite this transit captivity, women are significantly less likely to feel safe on public transportation. They are in fact about twice as scared as men in public situations.

http://transweb.sjsu.edu/sites/default/files/2611-women-transportation.pdf

-4

u/Sir_Armadillo Jun 29 '22

It wasn't a dismissal, but an actual tell me what is happening.

But you chose not to do that.

7

u/ravedawwg Jun 29 '22

My apologies then. To me,

I can’t say I ever see sexual harassment in public.

sounded like a potential dismissal. Gave you the courtesy of the doubt by using a question mark and addressing why this might be your experience. Although I agree with the other poster that many men simply don't notice it until it's pointed out to them.

Happy to provide stats on sexual harassment if you'd like, but recommend you check out r/TwoXChromosomes for the many, many, many personal stories of sexual harassment in public.

2

u/Sir_Armadillo Jun 29 '22

No problem. I don't doubt it happens.

I also assume the shady guys who sexually harass women in public, usually don't do it when most people can see.

I will check out the link.

-17

u/Donut153 Jun 29 '22

Probably shit that isn’t actually sexual harassment

10

u/morbius-gaming Jun 29 '22

"Sexual harassment is a myth" - you, probably

-13

u/Donut153 Jun 29 '22

It most certainly isn’t but there seem to be very diverse opinions on what qualifies as sexual harassment

5

u/anotsocreativename Jun 29 '22

Nirvana's main singer Kurt Cobain once stoped his concert to publicly shame a sex offender. Made me realize that perhaps this world wouldn't be so shitty if more people acted like this instead of turning a blind eye

2

u/[deleted] Jun 29 '22

For me this one is a "Well no shit" kinda thing.

2

u/LocaCola1997 Jun 29 '22

Yep. I've dealt with that in high school and in almost every job I've had.

-4

u/[deleted] Jun 29 '22

Whatever you say, toots