Should catcalling and whistling at women be considered harassment?

[lemoncello]

 

That said, it's not a criminal sort of thing. More what I'd consider on the level of civil harassment. If a person made sexualised comments to/whistled at colleagues who complained, if they kept doing it they'd be fired...and if they weren't their colleagues would have a valid case against the company (assuming they could prove it). So I fail to see why people working for a construction company should be allowed to harass members of the public. To me, their employer should be dealing with it - and actually, if I recall they did in the story mentioned at the start of this thread.

 

I think it's definitely a criminal act because it can escalate to violence and murder in some cases. I'm sorry that you were catcalled during your student placement. That was pretty twisted for the guards to do that to you.

 

Case in point. A woman in Detroit was shot and killed because she refused to give a guy her phone number. Another woman in New York got her throat slashed because she refused to go out on a date with a guy.

 

When street harassment escalates to murder, it's more than just men being annoying. So I think it is important to view catcalling and the like in the larger context.

 

In case no one wants to click on the link to read the article, I'll post it here:

 

One woman in Detroit was shot and killed after refusing to give a stranger her phone number. Another woman in New York got her throat slashed for refusing to go on a date with a stranger.

 

Those are just two examples of violence perpetrated against women over the past week. And while those cases grabbed news headlines, other acts of aggression on the street may have very well gone unreported. Advocates working to stop street harassment say the two incidents are a clear illustration of why catcalls and come-ons aren’t harmless for the people on the receiving end.

 

“You never know when street harassment is going to escalate into violence — and too often it does,” Emily May, the co-founder and current executive director of Hollaback!, an international nonprofit working to combat street harassment, said in a statement. “These recent cases are chilling.”

 

In Detroit, witnesses say that a 27-year-old mother of three named Mary Spears was harassed by a man after leaving the funeral of a family friend. He was asking for her number, which she refused to give to him because she was in a relationship. But the man wouldn’t leave her alone. Once her fiancee tried to intervene, the man opened fire, killing Spears and wounding five other people.

 

“What was on your mind that you could be so evil,” Spears’ aunt told a local Fox affiliate. “Because she said no to you?”

 

A similar situation recently unfolded in New York City, according to the New York Post. Police say that a man in Queens started pestering a 26-year-old to go on a date with him, but she turned him down. He reportedly became enraged, grabbed her, and slashed her neck with a blade. She was rushed to the hospital in critical condition but is expected to survive.

 

It’s not uncommon for women to become the subject of violence if they turn down men’s romantic advances, a phenomenon that was put on full display in May after Elliott Rodger went on a shooting rampage against “every single blonde slut” who rejected him. That tragedy, which resulted in the deaths of seven people in the Santa Barbara area, sparked a national conversation about gender-based violence. It also gave rise to a Tumblr called “When Women Refuse” to compile incidences like the ones that just occurred this week. Sometimes, the people who try to intervene on women’s behalf also end up on the receiving end of this violence.

 

Groups like Hollaback! say that it’s important to think about catcalling in this larger context. While some people may think of it as harmless, or expect women to interpret it as a compliment, it’s actually part of damaging culture that disempowers women and treats them like objects at the disposal of men.

 

“Street harassment is on a spectrum of gender-based violence,” May pointed out. “When street harassment is okay, it makes groping okay. And when groping is okay, it makes assault okay. And when assault is okay, it makes murder okay. We need to stop this cycle where it starts.”

 

Nonetheless, harassment in public spaces is routine for many women. According to a recent report from the advocacy group Stop Street Harassment, an estimated 65 percent of women have experienced unwanted attention from strangers on the street. Most women report feeling angry, annoyed, disgusted, nervous, and scared when they’re catcalled, and — for good reason — they’re often concerned it will escalate into something more threatening.

 

“I think people are starting to understand that these cases aren’t just assault. They are hate crimes, borne out of the idea that if you’re a woman walking through public space then you must be public property,” May told ThinkProgress via email. May pointed out that, while resistance to this idea isn’t new, modern technology has given activists an “unprecedented opportunity” to push back, both by easily documenting incidences of street harassment in real time and by disseminating stories of everyday violence through blogs and social media.

[jen1447]

BOZG and Jen - AWW why are you two so sweet?!

Because you're adorable!

 

Just to keep it on-topic, I'd protect you from all those nasty catcallers too. Just stay close to me girl, I gotcha.

[pteromom]

It depends on how it is done and what is yelled.

 

If a guy says "Hey pretty lady" with a nice smile, that is a HUGE difference than making crude comments about her body parts and what he'd like to do to her. One is a sweet compliment - the other is aggressive.

 

Even a whistle can be done in a nice, non-threatening way, or in a way that comes across threatening or creepy.

 

It also depends on the woman - a strong street-wise woman may think nothing of it and shrug it off, while a woman who isn't used to walking on her own in the city may be already anxious before the catcalling even happens, and it sends her over the edge and makes her terrified.

 

The best option for a guy is to choose not to do it. If you see a woman you find attractive, go try to talk to her, rather than yelling at her.

[Taramere]

I think it's definitely a criminal act because it can escalate to violence and murder in some cases. I'm sorry that you were catcalled during your student placement. That was pretty twisted for the guards to do that to you.

 

Thanks. It was a long time ago now. I was not happy about it at all though. I had to walk from one end of that room to another, and I just had to blank the noise out. When we left the room, the guards sort of smirked and I thought "these guys are way worse than some of the prisoners are". Throughout the day I was accompanied by a group some of the more minor offenders. They were showing me photos of their wives, girlfriends, kids etc and generally being very nice. And they fairly obviously thought it was crap that I'd been subjected to the workroom thing.

 

Where I live, potentially that kind of catcalling and obscene yelling could be classed as a breach of the peace - which carries a small fine, but that applies to pretty much any noisy or antisocial behaviour which is liable to cause alarm to people. Beyond that, it's not considered a crime here. Maybe it is in parts of the US? It's a crime in Peru, apparently.

 

Case in point. A woman in Detroit was shot and killed because she refused to give a guy her phone number. Another woman in New York got her throat slashed because she refused to go out on a date with a guy.

 

When street harassment escalates to murder, it's more than just men being annoying. So I think it is important to view catcalling and the like in the larger context.

 

Well...yeah, that's absolutely terrifying. I think most catcalling is intended to be embarrassing for the woman rather than scary...but when it escalates to shouting, and if it's very sexualised then I agree with you that that's something which should certainly be treated as a more serious than mere breach of the peace. Stuff like that can have a very threatening tone to it.

Edited May 7, 2015 by Taramere

[thefooloftheyear]

It depends on how it is done and what is yelled.

 

If a guy says "Hey pretty lady" with a nice smile, that is a HUGE difference than making crude comments about her body parts and what he'd like to do to her. One is a sweet compliment - the other is aggressive.

Even a whistle can be done in a nice, non-threatening way, or in a way that comes across threatening or creepy.

 

It also depends on the woman - a strong street-wise woman may think nothing of it and shrug it off, while a woman who isn't used to walking on her own in the city may be already anxious before the catcalling even happens, and it sends her over the edge and makes her terrified.

 

The best option for a guy is to choose not to do it. If you see a woman you find attractive, go try to talk to her, rather than yelling at her.

 

It also is dependent on the attractiveness of the guy...I can tell you that a good looking guy can get away with a lot more than a gross and ugly one..

 

TFY

[loveweary11]

I think it's definitely a criminal act because it can escalate to violence and murder in some cases. I'm sorry that you were catcalled during your student placement. That was pretty twisted for the guards to do that to you.

 

Case in point. A woman in Detroit was shot and killed because she refused to give a guy her phone number. Another woman in New York got her throat slashed because she refused to go out on a date with a guy.

 

When street harassment escalates to murder, it's more than just men being annoying. So I think it is important to view catcalling and the like in the larger context.

 

In case no one wants to click on the link to read the article, I'll post it here:

 

Not quite.

 

It's only a criminal act IF it escalates. Not before.

 

It's simply a nuisance before.

 

Plenty of people get shot and throats slashed without the crazy person cat calling them first.

 

There is no causation or link between the two.

[Phoe]

There is no causation or link between the two.

 

I agree. No link, and the shouting itself isn't criminal.

 

But there's no pretending that, as a woman who has been raped, it's not frightening to have 3 large and dangerous looking men shouting at me about my ass and calling me derogatory names. I can't pretend that I didn't worry that if I didn't make it to my truck in time, that I'd get assaulted again.

 

Perhaps they were harmless men. I don't know that though... they sure didn't come off as harmless.

[Got it]

Cat calling is harassment. It is not respectful, polite, or a compliment and it is a very sexist way to view the party.

 

If one is seriously interested in said party there are 100 different ways to approach them in a manner that they will be more responsive and receptive to. Catcalling is all about the caller and the cat callee is just an object.

[loveweary11]

I agree. No link, and the shouting itself isn't criminal.

 

But there's no pretending that, as a woman who has been raped, it's not frightening to have 3 large and dangerous looking men shouting at me about my ass and calling me derogatory names. I can't pretend that I didn't worry that if I didn't make it to my truck in time, that I'd get assaulted again.

 

Perhaps they were harmless men. I don't know that though... they sure didn't come off as harmless.

 

No doubt.

 

I think setting has something to do with it too.

 

As i imagine your area to be, in those desert areas outside the coastal parts of CA I've seen, there aren't a huge number of people around.

 

It seems this is far more dangerous and frightening than walking down the sidewalk in Manhattan with 50 people all around you and having construction workers yelling out stupid stuff at every 3rd chick going by.

 

I actually don't have an answer for less populated areas and catcalling because typically you are in a vehicle and not getting cat called.

 

So this was in a store parking lot type of thing?

[Phoe]

No doubt.

 

I think setting has something to do with it too.

 

As i imagine your area to be, in those desert areas outside the coastal parts of CA I've seen, there aren't a huge number of people around.

 

It seems this is far more dangerous and frightening than walking down the sidewalk in Manhattan with 50 people all around you and having construction workers yelling out stupid stuff.

 

O actually don't have an answer for less populated areas and catcalling because typically you are in a vehicle and not getting cat called.

 

So this was in a store parking lot type of thing?

 

The desert definitely has it's creepy and dangerous sides. Certain neighborhoods that you would NOT want to be walking in at any time of day. It's the kind of place where you can easily disappear and no one will have seen a thing until a body is found in the desert weeks later. Lots of strange criminal activity, drug use, incest and inbreeding that can lead to this weird sort of mental instability that you can definitely notice in many people.... a geographic isolation that does not do anyone favors.

 

Yes it was a store parking lot. It was an area that I know is no good, but it was just a little mini mart and I wanted to grab a quick drink and snack as it was on the way to where I was going. Didn't expect a 2 minute stop to turn into that, but I never stopped at that store again since.

[lemoncello]

Cat calling is harassment. It is not respectful, polite, or a compliment and it is a very sexist way to view the party.

 

If one is seriously interested in said party there are 100 different ways to approach them in a manner that they will be more responsive and receptive to. Catcalling is all about the caller and the cat callee is just an object.

 

Agree with you 100% Got it! Anyone who downplays catcalling hasn't really viewed it in the larger context that they need to. I think for some people, they downplay it as nothing serious, because that's easier to accept than the harsh reality, which is that it more often than not, compromises a woman's freedom and safety in a public setting. To deny that is to deny a woman her right to walk safely down a street.

 

Some statistics on street harassment are here.

 

Here's a screenshot of the 2nd survey mentioned in the above link.

 

For the second online survey, conducted across a month in fall 2008, there were 811 female respondents (916 total).

 

Over 99 percent of the female respondents said they had experienced some form of street harassment (only three women said they had not). In one question they could indicate the types of interactions they have had with strangers in public, here is a sampling of their responses.

 

Leering

Ninety-five percent of female respondents were the target of leering or excessive staring at least once, and more than 68 percent reported being a target 26 times or more in their life.

 

Honking and whistling

Nearly 95 percent of female respondents were honked at one or more times and 40 percent said they are honked at as frequently as monthly. Nearly 94 percent of female respondents were the target of whistling at least once and nearly 38 percent said it occurred at least monthly.

 

Sexist comment

Over 87 percent of women said they were the target of a sexist comment, and about 45 percent said they’ve been a target of a sexist comment in public at least 25 times in their life.

 

Making vulgar gestures

Nearly 82 percent of female respondents were the target of a vulgar gesture at least once. About twenty percent said they had been a target at least 51 times.

 

Saying sexually explicit comments

Nearly 81 percent of female respondents were the target of sexually explicit comments from an unknown man at least once. More than 41 percent have been the target at least 26 times in their lives.

 

Kissing noises

Just over 77 percent of women said they were the target of kissing noises from men and 48 percent said they’ve been the target at least 25 times in their life.

 

Following

Seventy-five percent of female respondents have been followed by an unknown stranger in public. More than 27 percent have been followed at least six times.

 

Blocking path

About 62 percent of women say a man has purposely blocked their path at least once and 23 percent said this has happened at least six times.

 

Sexual touching or grabbing

Nearly 57 percent of women reported being touched or grabbed in a sexual way by a stranger in public. About 18 percent said they have been touched sexually at least six times.

 

Masturbating

More than 37 percent of female respondents have had a stranger masturbate at or in front of them at least once in public.

 

Assaulting

About 27 percent of women report being assaulted at least once in public by a stranger.

 

Here's another link. 11 People Who Catcall. Not sure how accurate it is because it was posted on Reddit.

 

1. He knows a guy who does this

 

I know a guy who does this. He’s black, I’m white. I asked if he ever gets results from doing it and he says black women respond all the time.

 

I read somewhere that in Latin culture, the things a man said to a passing woman were referred to as “little gems” (whatever that is in Spanish) and once upon a time were much more complimentary and poetic. Instead of today’s “nice ass” it was more like “the sun embraces your beauty like a flower,” or whatever. And in Latin culture, at the time it was welcomed by women.

 

So I have evidence, albeit not amazingly well researched that this phenomenon is well received by both black and Latino cultures.

 

I don’t know what to do with that knowledge, but there it is.

 

Also, my wife has a relevant explanation. She says that every woman has somewhere in their head the assumption that (if they haven’t already) they will be raped someday. Any moment of any day may be the day. And when they hear a man catcall them on the street, they have the instinctual thought: “This is it. This guy is my rapist.” So if you’re a guy, and you do this, there’s a chance that the woman will receive it well, but there’s a much higher chance that whatever you said, the message you sent to her is: I am your rapist.

 

2. Because it worked once

 

I did this to a girl once. I was in the passenger sest and this girl was walking in the opposite direction, wearing really short jean cutoffs and bikini top. My 17 year old self was completely helpless against the torrent of hormones that forced me to yell out the window as we passed her the only word I could form with my foaming mouth…

 

“Hollaaa!”

 

I honestly don’t know what I was expecting, it’s not like we were going to slow down and talk to the girl or anything, but I’ll be damned if she didn’t turn around, smile broadly, and lift up her bikini top, she had some proper swingers. I couldn’t believe it had worked.

 

I’ve never done anything like that since, maybe because I have a 100% success rate, but I guess the moral of the story is that there are some girls who respond very positively to this sort of behavior, and I guess its worth it for the guys who get flipped off or yelled at 99 times to find the 1 girl who will show her tits.

 

3. Independent man

 

Funny story. I’m a guy, if I would rate myself I would say I’m average looking. So I was coming back from the gym one day and it’s nice so I’m feeling good, sleeveless and all that jazz. Car full of hot chicks starts rolling past me. The two on the side closest to me start chirping and whistling. “Eyyy bay-bay!” “Looking good!” “How u doin!?” This caught me way off guard, what did I do? I just yelled back, “I ain’t no object, I’m an independent man!”

 

They drove off, and I never saw them again. So I just walked back to my apartment laughing my ass off at what just happened. To this day I wonder if they were serious and if they thought what happened was as funny as I thought it was. So moral of my story is it doesn’t just happen to chicks… I guess.. I don’t know what the moral was really. I have a weird life. That’s good.

 

4. “Builds character”

 

Cause we’re all dudes. It’s fun. It’s provocative. It gets people going. It just gets everyone all hype. Also it does work occasionally, especially if you’re in the hood or ghetto. And like another guy said, we need to be rejected as men and get used to it. It builds character.

 

5. For power

 

I catcall women to feel a brief moment of power and to try to get noticed. I’m a terribly ugly man, and have been looked down on and openly mocked by attractive women my whole life. A catcall or a car horn beep gives me a momentary feeling of power over them because I can see their discomfort.

 

6. Because some women actually like it

 

You can think of this as a practice in conditioning (positive reinforcement) using a variable interval schedule. It works much the same way that a slot machine works.

 

There is a percentage of women, however small that percentage may be, that will respond positively to the cat-calling. This positively reinforces the behavior. Via mechanisms like mini extinction bursts, variable reinforcement (as opposed to constant reinforcement, which would mean that the behavior would be reinforced every time) actually reinforces the behavior to a stronger degree. Think about gambling addiction. The slot machine only reinforces sometimes, but the urge to continue trying gets stronger and stronger.

 

So, as long as there are women that reinforce this behavior by feeding into it through attention, or giving into them fully, no matter how small that percentage, the behavior will continue.

 

This however does not defend the practice at all. Just the reason that is continues despite the majority of women looking the other way.

 

7. A mating call

 

Luckily or unluckily i am in an infantry division and a lot of my colleagues seem to find this normal behavior. Although i do not understand their point of view i have noticed it seems to work on a certain group of females.

 

It seems to be a way of flirting, a way of letting the other sex now they are physically attractive. Although i can not for the life of me understand how such demeaning behavior could ingratiate a man with a woman it somehow does work in certain circumstances.

 

In short, apparently it works as a mating call to similarly interested females.

 

8. It’s almost like Bernie Madoff’s returns

 

Low risk, high reward.

 

9. Because men don’t care

 

In U.S. culture (I can’t speak for others.) it’s actually seen as sort of positive to actually degrade women and, quite frankly, be a dick to all women that you don’t know on a very deep level. Abusing women in this verbal way seems to work however speaking from the people who do this however, so it’s their call. You see the “cool bros” looking like they obviously “don’t care” and just give women stares as if they’re disgusting or that they’re taking some sort of notes, and sometimes even downright disrespectful comments towards strangers.

 

It’s really a shame to me, as I hardly want to include myself as part of my very own culture anymore. So much disrespect and pointless tropes going on and off, from this sort of thing which in an unbiased perspective is clearly considered rude, to their over-usage of spray cologne, and typical behaviors. It seems the goal of this culture sometimes is to force all human beings to be the exact same and come in tropes that make absolutely no sense but remain in a predictable pattern.

 

I believe the abuse and that sort of thing comes from the whole “men are bigger and better than woman” sort of behavior. While this of course, should be regarded as entirely false, the large part of the U.S. male population seems to still behave in this way no matter how much they’ll blindly deny it failing to realize all of the cases and instances which makes them the perfect embodiment of the idea. I’m no supporter of feminism on the extreme levels of course, but I believe that in thought, and on shallower levels, males and females are entirely equal and should treat each other as such, not just on deeper levels.

 

10. For the laughs

 

The biggest reason, which has been said multiple times in this thread, is that we find it fun. Its not meant to be disrespectful or degrading. Just fun. Sometimes its received well and reciprocated, and sometimes its not. If its not received well then you should stop. If so, then hey, have fun. That is the point after all.

 

11. For the jokes

 

I’ve always been the pain in the arse that calls people out for calling and whistling at women, any where and any time at anyone. I’ve always said that it’s a form of bullying, but there was one occasion when I did wolf whistle at a woman.

 

It was a very good friend of mine who was walking the opposite way to me on a very crowded footpath in a large city. She spun around and was letting loose with the foulest language I’ve ever heard from her until she saw it was me. Boy, did I feel ****ty.

 

She apologised, I apologised, and we’ve laughed about it ever since.

[jen1447]

I think it's interesting to note that most states AFAIK have statutes defining an aggressive level of verbal shouting/antagonism as a form of assault specifically. So you don't have to physically attack someone to assault them, and a catcalling type behavior that was actually so aggressive that it got to that point would then conceivably be criminalized as assault, not harassment.

 

Food for thought.

[Phoenician]

If the whistling is similar to what happens in a Tom & Jerry episode it could be just funny.

 

beyond that it is a harrasment,,

[Phoenician]

Phoe ,

 

If you pass by me , I might whistle

[loveweary11]

I think it's interesting to note that most states AFAIK have statutes defining an aggressive level of verbal shouting/antagonism as a form of assault specifically. So you don't have to physically attack someone to assault them, and a catcalling type behavior that was actually so aggressive that it got to that point would then conceivably be criminalized as assault, not harassment.

 

Food for thought.

 

 

Correct.

 

Assault is typically defined as verbal threats of physical violence. " Im going to kill you" or "ill kick your your ass" are assault. "I'm going to rape you" would be too.

 

The actual physical violence is battery.

[Rejected Rosebud]

It depends on how it is done and what is yelled.

 

If a guy says "Hey pretty lady" with a nice smile, that is a HUGE difference than making crude comments about her body parts and what he'd like to do to her.

Or have intense eye contact and make gross movements with his tongue I specially HATE that. :sick:

[Got it]

I think because men are so visual, they have no idea how it feels to be a "prey" to their predator behavior. They view it as some sort of compliment that you have decided to deem me worthy of your acknowledgement, that I am sitting here waiting for said validation.

 

The N.Y study also spawned another experiment where men cat called other men, and it was NOT well received.

 

Rarely does anyone like feeling like chicken. And I actually question the person who gets validation off of the attention. That seems to be a real need for external validation purely on one's physical appearance.

 

You want to get my attention, compliment an achievement I have made, a contribution I have made, some meaningful benefit I have made towards something, not how I look.

[acrosstheuniverse]

Yes. It is unwanted sexual attention. It's rude and often threatening. As a woman I've had all kinds of unwanted sexual attention since my teens, ranging from being groped while unconscious as a 13 year old to having a group of men stick their hands up my skirt in a club queue to guys asking me in broad daylight if I fancied a **** in the back of their van to being told I'm '****able' in a queue in a garage to being wolf whistled at and cat called. I worked in a male prison and those guys weren't as bad as some of the stuff I've experienced from the general male population in England. Not that it should make a difference but I never wear low cut tops or micro skirts, generally I'm in flat shoes, I mean that I am seen as attractive but I don't look like I am dressed to impress. Cat calling is a thin end of a wedge that sees lone females as an acceptable target for sexual attention, but it's definitely part of the wedge.

 

Have I ever felt flattered? No. Have I felt threatened? Sometimes, yes. I deal with it much more aggressively now I'm in my late twenties and feel able to look him in the eye and tell him to go F himself, but in 2015 we really shouldn't be living in a society where as a female you sometimes feel nervous walking around alone in broad daylight ready for the next comments, it's humiliating and I do believe most men do it just for the power of it, it's rarely to spark off a conversation, it's usually screamed out of passing white vans 'GET YOUR T1TS OUT' as though you're actually going to strip off.

 

It makes me feel sick. It's absolutely harassment, and needs challenging. If a guy wants to talk to me, flirt with me, absolutely fine. Just don't scream vulgar, nasty or intimidating things at me when all I am trying to do is walk to the shops. I've seen mums with babies in pushchairs get it while walking round the park. It really disgusts me, and I am ashamed for the women who appear on the media giggling and flicking their hair and saying its a nice compliment and we all need to lighten up. Most men have no idea how it feels to be stared at like a piece of meat. It is awful.

[Moy]

I've never catcalled or wolfwhistled at a woman in my life. Threads like this are why I am too scared to even make eye contact with a woman in the street now, as even saying hello can be classed as a sexual crime. Some of the comments in that Shoshana Roberts video were obviously creepy, but others were totally innocent e.g. "Have a pleasant evening."

[Popsicle]

I didn't read the article but my answer is no. I like it.

[Got it]

I've never catcalled or wolfwhistled at a woman in my life. Threads like this are why I am too scared to even make eye contact with a woman in the street now, as even saying hello can be classed as a sexual crime. Some of the comments in that Shoshana Roberts video were obviously creepy, but others were totally innocent e.g. "Have a pleasant evening."

 

Really, you see making eye contact on par with catcalling and that a woman wouldn't differentiate the difference?

 

I am sure you don't see how absolutely insulting that comment is. And how it really tries to make MEN the victims of everything and how unfair women are to speak out against behavior imposed upon them.

 

I guess we should just shut up, smile, and say thank you because how men feel is just so much more important than how each individual feels.

[Moy]

Really, you see making eye contact on par with catcalling and that a woman wouldn't differentiate the difference?

 

I am sure you don't see how absolutely insulting that comment is. And how it really tries to make MEN the victims of everything and how unfair women are to speak out against behavior imposed upon them.

 

I guess we should just shut up, smile, and say thank you because how men feel is just so much more important than how each individual feels.

 

Did I say that? Of course catcalling is wrong! That's why I never have or ever will catcall anybody.

 

By the way, I'm not 'MEN' - I'm me.

[Auspecial]

There is a big difference in yelling out a "hello" or "looking good," or whistle as opposed to saying something then actually following me, or saying something very crude and vulgar, or saying something then getting angry and yelling insults.

 

I've gotten all of these. The majority being the "nice" catcalls, and these don't bother me, in fact if it is done in a respectful way, often I will smile and wave back. Its just harmless, innocuous fun.

 

The others morph into a misogynist, dangerous, entitled form. These are harassment, and truly potentially dangerous because the people perpetrating them are very angry, entitled men, and do not respect women as human beings.

 

I have called out these men very harshly, in public, and keep watch on them in case I have to alert police. I used to give benefit o the doubt more, but in cases of angry men bullying women, we really do have to be proactive to remain safe.

[NGC1300]

I'm male and hate "cat calling".

 

Nothing more pathetic than a bunch of blue-collar bozos acting like they've never seen a woman before.

[Got it]

Did I say that? Of course catcalling is wrong! That's why I never have or ever will catcall anybody.

 

By the way, I'm not 'MEN' - I'm me.

 

Well your argument that since women get upset by catcalling that you can't even make eye contact without fear of being accused of harassment.

 

So just following the line of logic.

 

 

 

General - While we are on that, can I say how much I also hate, especially in a work setting, when a man makes it ever so obvious when he decides to eye fu&k/or lingering up and down look, like you should be happy about it. Exactly when did that seem like an appropriate behavior to exhibit.

Edited May 10, 2015 by Got it