GRAPHIC: Stop street harassment. (HUB Graphic/Emily Tran)

…our culture needs a strong shift.

Editorial by Xochitl Armién

HUB Staff

Over spring break, while on a day trip to San Francisco, men catcalled me numerous times, staring me down as if my body was theirs to objectify. I was even followed down the street after ignoring a man demanding my number. 

I’m not alone in this experience. Sexual harassment is something that an estimated 81 percent of women face frequently. 

“Girls and women, they get no say because if they say ‘no’ they fear for their lives. If they comply, they are put into a situation they don’t want to be in,” junior Verane Ngassam said.

So much weight is put on how we respond, but in my experience, disturbingly, unless another man is there to “claim” me, the boundaries I set are not respected.

Empower Yolo is a local organization that’s been fighting sexual violence since 1977. It’s associate director, Celina Alveraz, explained that the daily sexual harassment that women and gender non-conforming people are forced to endure can have lasting affects, not only on our mental health but on how we trust ourselves and others.

“There probably isn’t a girl who walks around who doesn’t fear… being assaulted. And there are things that we do everyday to limit our lives and try to protect ourselves,” Alveraz said.

People of multiple marginalized identities are harassed and assaulted at higher rates and are often spoken over and excluded from conversations of sexual violence.

Sexual harassment and sexual violence is a real threat that is exacerbated by the institutions that protect perpetrators and rarely hold them accountable for their actions.

“We don’t have to live in a system and a culture that objectifies women or non-conforming individuals… We can change things,“

Even with civil rights laws like Title IX that protect victims’ rights in education programs, gray areas and jurisdiction limits make it so that people often continue to share space with their perpetrators even after reporting.

Culture plays one of the biggest roles in normalizing and trivializing sexual violence.

“It is essentially rape culture that normalizes… gender-based violence and blames the victims for their assaults based on things they wore, what they said, where they went and does not offer them support,” Alveraz said.

Senior Alyssa Campos has been advocating for victims of sexual violence at Davis High and has many ideas about how to improve the situation.

Campos would like a DHS counselor on campus that specializes in supporting those who have been harassed or assaulted. She would also like administrators to hold listening sessions with affected students to get a better idea of how victims can be heard, supported and provided with a safe environment. 

As for me, I would like to live in a world where I don’t have to watch men as I walk, making conscious decisions and ignoring harassment.

We cannot control or prevent sexual violence through actions like wearing baggy clothes or not going outside. 

But we can make a lasting societal change by educating ourselves and others on sexual violence and bringing to the forefront urgent conversations on consent, harassment and autonomy.

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…men must be part of the change

Editorial by Jeremiah Haskins

HUB Staff,

Sexual harassment is mainly seen as a women’s issue, but by excluding men from the conversation we cut off possibilities for real change.

In order to solve this issue, men must step up and challenge the ways that we have been socialized to view and treat women as objects and possessions.

Since birth, cisgender men are taught to be aggressive and confrontational while girls are taught to behave passively and submissively. As men grow up, their entitlement to control women grows and leads to more violence against women.

In my case, when I witnessed an instance of street harassment directed at my fellow HUB staff member, I didn’t think much of it; when they kept persisting, I got angry at seeing that that’s how women are treated.

In our society, disrespect towards women is not only accepted but praised as it validates a false sense of masculinity in boys and men.

According to Celina Alveraz, the associate director of Empower Yolo, the media intensifies the glorification of violence against women.

The constant objectification of women and misogynistic lyrics in mainstream music normalizes sexual violence and gender discrimination, perpetuating myths like “no means yes” and “she was asking for it.”

“Men must step up and challenge the ways that we have been socialized to view and treat women as objects and possessions.”

“Unfortunately, rape culture is strong and prevalent and we see it normalized in all media and through jokes and comments and ‘boys will be boys’ type of mentality and attitudes,” Alvarez said.

The pressure for men to have as many sexual partners as possible makes it hard for men to hear ‘no’ and recognize the signs that the other party is not comfortable with sexual advances or acts.

Consent is defined as the mutual agreement by all participants to engage sexually, but there is often a lack of education surrounding what that really looks like.

“The true prevention (of sexual violence) is actually saying, ‘Hey, man, that’s not cool. Hey, she’s drunk. That doesn’t mean you can take advantage of her,’” Alverez said.

As men, we should help prevent sexual violence and harassment by confronting the perpetrator.

When it comes to solving the root of these issues, Alvarez explained that it is important for people to reflect on themselves and their own behaviors to see the harm they may be causing.

“You can be an ally and do all the right things in one day, but maybe the next day you made some mistakes and you have to acknowledge that and be able to commit to making change and to continuing to educate yourself,” Alvarez said.

Men must break out of this harmful mindset of masculinity by educating themselves and others. We can’t let our environment make us who we are; there is room for positive change.