Director’s Blog – Lisa Charlotte Davis
Working with young people on our recent Weaving Stories project, it was evident that public transport was a real challenge point for them, with girls reporting frequently being stared at by adult men in ways that made them feel uncomfortable.
The first point to note about this is that the boys couldn’t believe this was a regular thing that happened. In response, the girls were absolutely definitive that this was something that happened to them very regularly.
The second point to note possibly relates to why the boys weren’t aware of this. It was evident from talking to our young people (and this very much tallies with the findings of the UN Women UK report we referenced yesterday relating to public sexual harassment and the reasons women don’t report) that there are lots of thing that happen that they see as too “normal” or too “small” to say anything about.
Yet they were very clear that these things made them feel uncomfortable.
In our animation, the image of the man staring at Matilda progressively becomes more monster-like to indicate her increasing discomfort and possibly also fear – will he get off at the same stop as her – what will happen then – is she safe?
From the point of view of White Ribbon UK ‘s call for us to Speak Up there are a few steps we need to put into play –
1. We need to acknowledge that things that seem small might have a bigger impact than we imagine on women and girls’ perceptions of their own safety
2. We need to start noticing those “small” day-to-day behaviours – it’s not ok to claim ignorance – the information regarding the prevalence of this is out there
3. If it is safe for us to do so, we could Speak Up and challenge the intrusive behaviour we notice
Let’s make public transport a place where women and girls do not feel uncomfortable and anxious!
Image credit : Tom Kindley Sheryl Jenkins
