The Metropolis

Today, We Are All Hollaback Girls

Chuck Ansbacher | Tuesday 8 March, 2011 10:42

Not being a woman (or a jerk) I’ve always thought of cat-calling as a bit of a myth — something that only happens in movies, or in overly macho, sexual harass-y societies like Italy, or in movies set in… Italy. I’ve rarely witnessed any incident of it on the streets, I haven’t heard many of my friends complain about it, I’ve never taken part in it myself, and for a multitude of blindingly obvious reasons, I’ve never been a victim of it either.

My opinion, it turns out, is fairly representative of society’s as a whole. Through the years, cat-calling is something we’ve swept under the rug, brushed off as playful, innocent, or even flattering. Men find you attractive! They’re expressing it through jeers, whistles and offensive bodily gestures! What are you complaining about??

It turns out, lots. Studies show that up to 80-90% of women have been harassed in public. And guess what — 100% of them hate it. It’s a gateway towards other forms of gender based discrimination, and it has to stop.

How do I know all this stuff? Because of a new global, anti-cat-call movement that recently landed in London called Hollaback! Conceived in New York, and now firmly established in six countries (including India and Argentina) Hollaback! has one simple mission: to end street harassment.

How do they plan on achieving this goal? The first step is to build awareness, spread the word that this is a real, serious problem, and that it isn’t just confined to Italy.

At HollabackLDN’s website, they’re providing facts to combat misconceptions, a forum for stories to be shared (thousands have already shared theirs), and meet-ups for the activism inclined. They’ve even started a print publication called Langdon Olgar to focus on themes of sexism, gender equality and street harassment.

(via the guardian)

---