Fabienne Fleurantin/ Staff Writer
They just wanted to get from point A to point B. If only things were that simple. Grocery shopping should be a no brainer right? Get in, get out and bring your groceries to your respective transportation.
Well, two girls tried that approach, but it didn’t turn out so well.
They just exited a Publix with a few grocery bags and as they passed a Dollar Tree on their way to the bus stop, the girls caught unwanted attention from two men perched on the wall beside the store.
The girls walked on, one oblivious to the sudden matching footsteps that lurked behind them while the other grew more weary because they entered an empty mall parking lot.
The two men began catcalling them, telling them to stop and wait for them, but the girls didn’t slow down. Trying to be safe and secure, they headed towards the nearest store in the mall to surround themselves with people.
One of the men, however, saw the girls go inside, and continued to follow them. The girls screamed and went on their way hoping to get on the bus one way or another.
One of those girls was me.
This is something that many women and girls experience when they walk the streets alone.
Not only do we fear for our safety, but we have to abide by the unspoken rules that we have to censor our freedom of expression in order to save ourselves.
According to stoptheharrassment.org, 75 percent of female respondents have been followed by an unknown stranger in public. More than 27 percent have been followed at least six times. 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.
Nearly 57 percent of women reported being touched or grabbed in a sexual way by a stranger in public while about 18 percent said they have been touched sexually at least six times.
It’s the sad truth that some people believe women crave attention based on the way they dress or claim they want something by the way they dance. In reality though, we are just trying to enjoy ourselves, for ourselves, by ourselves. We don’t want any extra attention.
If we continue to perpetuate this rape culture that we’ve created by making it okay to treat women as objects, with no sentiments or opinions and accept this behavior as normal, we will denigrate the female gender altogether. This was never okay and we should take into account how these actions affect our society today and generations later to come.
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The opinions presented within this page do not represent the views of Panther Press Editorial Board. These views are separate from editorials and reflect individual perspectives of contributing writers and/or members of the University community.
Photo taken from Flickr.