Advanced Essay #4 [Addison Zheng]

In today’s society women are victims of  street harassment. Statistics shows that in 1998 about 17.7 million women who are rape or even sexually assaulted, last year about 85% of women experienced stress harassment before turning 17. It also shows female who are the age of 16-19 are mostly likely to get harassed. "He was sitting next to me to my right and as I got up to de-board the bus I had to take a wide stance to get around him and when I did he reached up and grabbed my crotch," said Brittney Gilbert a victim of sexual harassment. “I was on the metro on my way home this evening and a man sat next to me and began to loudly talk about how nice my legs looked. I told him to stop and he wouldn't and I couldn't get out of the seat. He continued to encroach on myspace so I turned my head, and could feel everyone looking at me but not doing anything.” Said another victim that was victimized in harassment.

I personally find this act disgusting and wrong. No woman should ever experience such a horrific act. So the question is “Why don't women stand up for their rights, but what can men also do to stand up for this act?” Jared Marcelle was one of those guy who would catcall other women, but later on in life he realized that it was wrong. He found out that his sister Aleah was being catcalled by construction workers and he didn’t like that at all. He realized that he was being a hypocrite for saying something to those men when he does the same exact things. When someone is sexally assulted or harassed the moment is forever in their minds and their are physically and mentally traumatized. It plays over and over again in your mind and you think back and wonder, maybe I could have done something. If you think about it in today’s society we wish we could do something but honestly we all just sit there as bystanders and do nothing. Did you know that there was a law saying if you see something happening that you know is wrong and or could endanger another you could be arrested. That is called the good samaritan law which holds you accountable for not helping someone in need.

If we can do something to help women as a whole stop being the victims of rape and sexual harassment we should step up. Not all men are bad so we shouldn’t categorize them and put them in one box. The men who are not in the box with rapist and harassers could be the ones who make a difference by joining the marches and the always helping if they see someone in need. They can also shoot for justice and never make the victim feel like it’s their fault. Also, they could make sure that they are aware of how they could make someone feel when they say things that could make them feel uncomfortable.

This is simply why many women shield themselves when walking down a city street in broad daylight, or even when boarding crowded public transportation. Why? Because many women, regardless of age, weight, or appearance, say they've heard something along the lines of "Hey baby, you want some of this?" or "I like what I see" or "nice ass." It’s not okay to make women feel unsafe in their own environment. We should make everyone feel safe like they can walk down the street without being harassed.

I recently looked at an article about the sexual abuse and assault against women. It talked about what sexual assault can be and what it is. Sexual assault/abuse could be verbal, visual, or anything that forces someone to join in on unwanted sexual contact or attention. It can occur during anytime even in broad daylight which would be thought to be the most inconvenient but it happens and a lot of the time there are bystanders who don’t do anything. I believe that a lot of the time the person watching thinks that they are glad that it’s not them in that situation. This makes us weaker as a human race because we could change so many things that we know are wrong. So, if we band together as people who know right from wrong put the bad people away, fight for justice, and stop standing by and do something about it.

Citations:

"From online to the streets,." Hollaback You have the power to end harassment Home Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.

"Victims of Sexual Violence: Statistics | RAINN." Victims of Sexual Violence: Statistics | RAINN. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.

"Radio Rookies: Reformed Catcaller Explores Roots Of Street Harassment." NPR. NPR, 23 Aug. 2016. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.

"Sexual Abuse and Assault Against Women." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2017.