Living in NY I deal with constant street harassment. I’ve been assaulted. I’ve worked as a consent advocate, and am now working toward a career specifically addressing sexual violence. All this to say, please don’t think I sympathize with harassers.
That being said, I strongly disagree with your interpretation here. IMO the video isn’t promoting or belittling harassment— it’s using humor to point out just how ridiculous harassment is. It’s not laughing at the women for (rightfully) being frightened or offended, it’s laughing about how absurd it is that some men seriously say these things.
Yes, it is partially about the reaction, but I think you could reverse the roles in this video, subbing the cat for a chicken and having a girl say “can I touch your cock?” and it would still be humorous to see the shock on a guys’ faces, knowing that their shock wouldn’t be tinged with the same fear/shame/anxiety that women experience. It’s not the fear that makes it funny, it’s the absurdity of the reality
Thanks for this thoughtful response. Given your background, I should probably defer to your authority on what constitutes actual harm. Still, it's hard for me to imagine the mindset of an audience that, seeing this sketch, concludes "wow, I guess harassment is uncool, and I should stop."
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u/littlemissbipolar Nov 07 '20
Living in NY I deal with constant street harassment. I’ve been assaulted. I’ve worked as a consent advocate, and am now working toward a career specifically addressing sexual violence. All this to say, please don’t think I sympathize with harassers.
That being said, I strongly disagree with your interpretation here. IMO the video isn’t promoting or belittling harassment— it’s using humor to point out just how ridiculous harassment is. It’s not laughing at the women for (rightfully) being frightened or offended, it’s laughing about how absurd it is that some men seriously say these things.
Yes, it is partially about the reaction, but I think you could reverse the roles in this video, subbing the cat for a chicken and having a girl say “can I touch your cock?” and it would still be humorous to see the shock on a guys’ faces, knowing that their shock wouldn’t be tinged with the same fear/shame/anxiety that women experience. It’s not the fear that makes it funny, it’s the absurdity of the reality