Aspiring actress, Shoshanna Roberts walks through multiple New York City neighborhoods to illustrate the frequency of catcalls women receive on the streets.
Hollaback! via Youtube
In a video that has gone viral, aspiring actress Shoshanna Roberts is shown walking 10 full hours through a range of many New York neighborhoods, including SOHO, South Ferry, and Harlem. She walks without saying anything, but is catcalled more than a hundred times during the course of the video. Along with myriad messages of support, the video has received quite a bit of backlash, ranging from lighthearted protests against the idea that catcalls are harassing at all to outright threats of rape on the actress. There has also been many other responses to the video that add proof that the conversation very much needs to continue and on an international scale.
The video was created by Hollaback!, a non-profit organization whose aim is to end street harassment. According to areport on Nov. 8 from the Olympian, the video was made in an effort to raise awareness and funds to help along the cause. It has received tens of thousands of views, comments and shares and is being talked about all over the internet and the news.
One bit of backlash came from the fact that every single face doing the catcalling in the video that featured Shoshanna Roberts was either of an African American or Latino male. Roberts told Access Hollywood that a lot more catcalls were filmed than could have been put into the small video. It turns out that though Caucasian and other races of men harassed the actress, those instances for some reason were edited out.
In response to this, Jezebel published a commentary about what the Hollaback! video had left out. Women in the video explain that it’s a problem that the Roberts video alludes that the only people harassing women are men of color because it reinforces specific stereotypes while not including all the culprits involved. “And to be honest, it’s usually white guys that make me feel the most uncomfortable,” said one of the women in the video, just before a man of European descent walked up to her and answered that he wanted to come stand next to her in hopes of getting a kiss.
In efforts along the line of nixing sexual harassment, Hollaback! encourages people to share their stories on their website. “Your stories are inspiring legislators, journalists, academics, and the guy on the corner to take street harassment seriously and create solutions that make everyone feel safe,” they write. Reading any one of the stories already listed on the site shows that harassment is very real, is happening now and is a subject of international importance to men and women alike.
Below, you’ll find notes from some of those who have defended catcalling as nothing threatening or harmful to those who absolutely disagree. You’ll also find videos that show this is an international issue whose importance in the national dialogue for change is at the forefront and still in its beginning steps.
Shoshanna Roberts walks through multiple New York City neighborhoods to illustrate the frequency of catcalls women receive on the streets.
In this Hollaback! video, Shoshanna Roberts walks through many New York City neighborhoods over the span of 10 hours and receives over 100 catcalls, 108 of which were kept in the edits for this short film. According to the actress, the instances shown were mild in comparison to many others that were not included.
Is cat calling really a compliment?
This is a topic that has been at the forefront of media conversation since at least August. In an article for the New York Post, Doree Lewak wrote that catcalls are flattering and women should just “deal with it.” Fox News defended the idea of catcalling, saying that we should just “let men be men.”
Many, like Media Matters, explain how these responses downplay “the harmful impact widespread street harassment has on women,” and according to the CDC, the harmful impact also extends to men.
Fox News Defends Catcalling as a compliment
Fox News reasoned that catcalls were mere flirtations; nothing harmful or disrespectful, and that harassment was “in the ear of the beholder.” This seems to beg the question of where the line lies “between what is being friendly, what is flirting and what is being offensive?” In the Hollaback! video, most of the catcallers filmed seemed “polite” by the worst approaches most can think of.
During this piece, Dori LeBlanc wrapped up with a message to men to just generally be respectful to women. This comment came just after telling the story about a situation in which she had felt unsafe and after Bob Beckel had told her that she should cover up. It was a jest but the uncomfortableness it caused in her was evident. “It’s appropriate and important,” to be respectful, LeBlanc said.
Don't be like these guys
Stop Street Harassment Now, is one of the many who are focusing on education on how to treat women “like human beings, with respect and dignity.” Don’t be like these guys in this Buzzfeed video which illustrates that catcalls not only disrespect the person being harassed but could also be a signifier of a lack of self respect.
Does the beard match the carpet?
This Buzzfeed video illustrates what might happen if women catcalled men. Sure, it’s a jest with a few more blatant catcalls and advances mixed in (which are closer to what happens to women, as in “Is that bulge real?” or “Does the beard match the carpet?”). But, if you’re still not sure whether catcalling is harassment, you should check out the social media campaign #DudesGreetingDudes by Twitter user Elon James White. White asked the question, “Why don’t men catcall other men?” He hits the point home and adds that it wasn’t that long ago that there were news reports about how a “woman was just killed for not accepting a man’s advances but we’re going to pretend that our right to engage women unsolicited outweighs their right to feel safe? No.”
Many are talking about sexual harassment on an international level
The Hollaback! video mirrors another video that was featured from two film makers in Egypt who are creating a documentary called, “The People’s Girls.” In the video, Colette Ghunim takes a walk down the busiest bridge in Cairo to illustrate what one might experience as a woman or girl. The video shows that this conversation is indeed an international issue. “People from around the world are also engaging in complex discussions on sexual harassment,” said Ghunim, “This confirms that the issue resonates beyond just Egypt [or America].”
*originally published on the now defunct Examiner.com
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