1. First Off, This Is Not Only A Problem For Women
When most people originally think of sexual harassment, or derogatory name calling they think of women and girls as the victims, and men and boys as the perpetrators. Though this is the case for most sexual harassment situations, it is not always 100% the case. Sexual harassment can be between 2 women, 2 men, and even directed at men from women. Larry Davie brings light to heterosexual male sexual harassment in his article "Boys Can No Longer Just Be Boys: Same-Sex Sexual Harassment Perpetrated by Heterosexuals Found Actionable under Title VII." He says that historically, that when dealing of heterosexual male sexual harassment cases in schools, courts are dismissive, and claim that "boys will be boys." He also cites a court case as his main example, "Doe vs. City of Belleville" where 2 brothers took summer jobs where they endured months of intense sexual harassment by their heterosexual male co-workers. After quitting they filed a law suit, where the court originally ruled (but was later appealed) that a heterosexual male could not make a sexual harassment claim against another heterosexual male. This is just one example where sexual harassment is being dismissed even at the legal level. Women are not the only ones enduring sexual harassment, and also not the only ones finding it hard to take legal action.
This article talks about the impact of male sexual harassment in the workplace. The author offers many examples of reasons men might be verbally sexually harassed in the workplace, many of his reasons stemming from "masculine" traits. If men take time off to take care of their kids, or even show ANY sort of un-masculine trait, they are now easier targets of sexual harassment. The article also mentions workplaces with predominantly female employees tend to be more discriminatory towards men. Male sexual harassment has been on the rise, and reporting sexual harassment can be just as difficult for men, but for different reasons. Men fear even more ridicule from peers in reporting sexual harassment because of course, men's masculinity is in jeopardy.
Source: Davie, Larry D. "Boys can no longer just be boys: same-sex sexual harassment perpetrated by heterosexuals found actionable under Title VII." Southern Illinois University Law Journal, vol. 23, 1998., pp. 239.
2. Just Because It’s In The Media, Does Not Make It Okay
Media in the form of television, radio, magazines, social media websites, music, etc. influences us on a daily basis. Because it is so prominent in our lives, it is common for us to replicate what we here and see in pop culture into our everyday lives. Music, TV, and other media platforms have slowly become more and more explicit, especially in the way that they describe women, sex, and relationships. In an article called "Prime Time Sexual Harassment," Elizabeth Grauerholz and Amy King observe over 80 prime time television shows on popular networks and gather data on sexual harassment depicted. Grauerholz and King separate the sexual harassment into visible and invisible. Visible mainly consisted of sexist comments made by characters, offensive jokes, insults, and other negative sexual advances. Invisible mainly consisted of less noticeable acts, like adding a laugh track after during an interaction which otherwise might be seen as hostile without, as well as bystanders' reactions that minimalize sexual harassment. On average every show had 3-4 incidences of sexual harassment (very few shows had absolutely no occurrences) and most was directed at women. This study shows that sexual harassment is depicted in every day life through media, even though we don't notice it. As time goes on, we become normalized to offensive and sexual comments on TV and don't rally notice it's impact it has, since it "isn't real life". However, if you look at the comments individually and closely, and ask yourself "If this happened in real life, would it be offensive," everything changes. Seeing people be verbally sexually harassed on TV makes viewers think it's normal, so when the same thing happens in real life, people are less likely to speak out.
While we see sexual harassment on television, we also hear it every day in popular music on the radio. A good example would be Chris Brown's "Loyal," where he says "why give a bitch your heart, when she'd rather have a purse," and "these hoes ain't loyal." These comments might not seem like sexual harassment but as soon as the are said in real life directed at specific people, it becomes much worse. Anther example in a different genre would be RaeLynn's "God Made Girls," where she sings "somebody's gotta wear a pretty skirt," "somebody's gotta be the one to cry," and "somebody's gotta let him drive." These are all examples of benevolent sexism, because it's "sung by a girl so it can't be sexist" and talks highly of women, however it still places women in an inferior and submissive state. Once again, verbal sexual harassment includes sexist comments, and these comments sound okay in songs, but when said in real life, it can become verbal sexual harassment. These 2 songs show how common verbal sexual harassment is no matter the genre, and how normalized it has become.
GRAUERHOLZ, ELIZABETH, and AMY KING. "Prime Time Sexual Harassment." Violence Against Women, vol. 3, no. 2, 1997., pp. 129-148.doi:10.1177/1077801297003002003.
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3. Street Harassment Isn't A Joke
One major type of sexual harassment is street harassment, and in the article "Women in the Street: Reclaiming the Public Space from Sexual Harassment," author Deborah Thompson agues it's the most common type of sexual harassment experienced by woman in America and all over the world. Street harassment can also be termed as cat-calling, when strangers make sexual advances and comments towards someone they don't know in public so others can hear. This can be extremely degrading and humiliating to the target, though some may see it as harmless. Thompson borrows the term "spirit-murder" as a way to describe street sexual harassment and its impacts. Spirit murder consists of hundreds or thousands of "micro-aggressions" – major and minor spirit injuries and assaults that have a cumulative affect on the soul and psyche. So though one comment may seem harmless, after time it can damage the victim and their moral. The fact that they "shrink us, rather than enrage us" is what makes these comments so powerful. One aspect that makes this type of sexual harassment worse, is that when women ignore it or just try to keep walking, harassers get angry due to lack of response, as if the victim owes the harasser a thank you for admiring them in a sexual way. Thomson said that during her study she walked 7 and a half hours in urban areas like New York City and was sexually harassed by 112 men, and initial comments were often followed up by phrases such as "Be a fucking bitch, all I said was hello."
This video is a prime example of street harassment, and how it is never just one isolated instance, it's a part of some people's daily lives, especially for those living in urban cities. To the men in the video, the woman is just eye candy to them. They feel entitled to not only gawk at her body, but make comments and critiques and expect her to respond. Having constant attention on you from people who go from "flattering" to hostile in a matter of seconds, can also instil fear in the victim. Overall, street harassing as lasting affects on victims overtime, and needs to be taken more seriously.
Thompson, Deborah M. ""The woman in the street": reclaiming the public space from sexual harassment." Yale Journal of Law and Feminism, vol. 6, no. 2, 1994., pp. 313.
4. Sexual Harassment In The Workplace Is Often Swept Under The Rug
Though sexual harassment is rarely actually ever taken care of legally, the workplace is one of the few places it is actually illegal. However, that being said, sexual harassment is still relevant in the workplace, despite legal consequences and prevention strategies. In the article "The State of Sexual Harassment in America: What is the Status of Sexual Harassment in the US Workplace Today?" authors Lynn Machin and Steven Cates point out that the number of sexual harassment cases reported to the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) has gone down by 26% in 10 years, that doesn't account for the unreported cases. Sexual harassment in the workplace can create a hostile and threatening environment, and because it's people you know and work with, reporting it can become even more difficult.
It can be hard to imagine how prevalent sexual harassment is when you are lucky enough to not be put into that situation. However, this article gives just 21 examples of real-life instances. Many victims were put in the situation where they had to choose between keeping their job or their dignity. This is an example of how easily one's agency can be limited. Peers might point out that anyone has the power to report incidences to HR, but there are many other forces acting against the victim, limiting their number of choices. Not only is sexual harassment between co-workers, but also between employee and customer, which can make the situation even more difficult. A job is a place for employees to support themselves, and should not have to worry about sexual harassment.
Cates, Steven V., and Lynn Machin. "The State of Sexual Harassment in America: What is the Status of Sexual Harassment in the US Workplace Today?" Journal of Global Business Management, vol. 8, no. 1, 2012., pp. 133.
5. Even Adolescents Are At Risk
Adolescents learn social and gender norms from their peers, parents, media, and anything else exposed to them. They are basically a blank slate, and made by their environment. It should be no surprise that with sexual harassment being normalized through TV, music, adults, peers, teachers, and other social interactions, kids are being influenced from a young age. A study cited in the article "School-based Peer Sexual Harassment" by Sandra Kopels and David Dupper says that 85% of girls and 76% of boys report sexual harassment in school, with the number one type being targeted with sexual comments, jokes, gestures and looks. Koels and Dupper say sexual harassment in school can affect a students' attitude towards school (aka by relating school to unwanted sexual attention), thus having a negative affect on the students' ability to excel. A study cited in the article explained that though the majority of young victims do report the sexual harassment to teachers or administrators, almost half of the time the harassers are not punched and face no repercussions. This is where the problem lies. If there are no consequences, there is no reason to stop the bad behavior, which is likely to continue into adulthood.
The #wheniwas hashtag went around Twitter not too long ago, which was started by the Everyday Sexism Campaign. This hashtag is not limited to sexual harassment in schools, but aims to bring awareness of adolescence sexual harassment in all forms. This movement brought to light how common sexual harassment is for young girls, and even boys, but even more so to the fact that adults tend to dismiss sexual harassment accusations when brought to their attention. This creates an unhealthy environment, and allows sexual harassment to continue, and creates more and more victims.
Kopels, Sandra, and David R. Dupper. "School-based peer sexual harassment." Child welfare, vol. LXXVIII, no. 4, 1999., pp. 435-460.
6. Sexual Harassment Does Harm, Even If You Can’t See It
Sexual harassment over time can do damage to a person, though it may not be visible to the naked eye. Words, technically speaking, can't do any physical harm, though they can cause deep emotional distress and psychological problems. In the article "Impact of Sexual Harassment Victimization by Peers on Subsequent Adolescent Victimization and Adjustment: A Longitudinal Study" by Debbie Chiodo, et al., the authors do a study on the emotional impact of sexual harassment overtime of high school students. Both boys and girls experience the same rates of sexual harassment, with verbal harassment being the most popular. The presence of sexual harassment elevates girls' risks for suicidal thoughts, self-harm, maladaptive dieting, early dating, substance abuse, and school safety. Girls who experienced repeated sexual harassment were more likely to attempt suicide. Based on these results, it's obvious that sexual harassment has severe affects on victims.
This article shows how sexual harassment has physiological (blood pressure) and psychological (suicide) effects on people. Depression is one of the most common, and can lead to a variety of health and social issues just by itself. Though this article uses women, men have very similar effects. All in all, sexual harassment is present all around us, and what really matters it the affect it has on the victims. Because verbal sexual harassment is so common, it can be hard to point out, so our first step as society would be to de-normalize it, and treat it like any other sexual offense.
Chiodo, Debbie, et al. "Impact of Sexual Harassment Victimization by Peers on Subsequent Adolescent Victimization and Adjustment: A Longitudinal Study." Journal of Adolescent Health, vol. 45, no. 3, 2009., pp. 246-252.doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2009.01.006.
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