Vulgar catcalls and come-ons that are more suited for X-rated movies than city streets are a common frustration for New York women, victims said yesterday at a City Council hearing.
Women of all ages told accounts of men who follow them, yell at them and make them feel uncomfortable, while advocates said even preteens are being hounded outside city schools and they pleaded for government to do something.
“Every young woman and girl I know has experienced street harassment in some way, shape or form,” said Alison Roh Park, who testified on behalf of the Center for Constitutional Rights.
Park, a lifelong Queens resident, recalled men leering, blocking her path on the sidewalk and hissing, whistling and making hissing sounds when she was only 11 years old.
A Brooklyn resident, Michelle Barrow, recounted how two men in a garbage truck followed her home several weeks ago and screamed obscenities about her body.
“I felt angry that they felt they have any right to say the things that they were saying,” Barrow, 24, said.
Emily May of the organization Hollaback called for setting up “harassment-free zones” around schools.
A 16-year-old Brooklyn student told council members of men rubbing against her in the subway and, in one case, masturbating in front of her.
“I feel that I cannot look at a stranger in the eye because it will give him some reason to think that I might be provoking or leading him on in one way,” the teenager, Grace Tobin, said.
Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras (D-Queens) said she called the hearing after visiting a school in her district and learning of alarming cases of harassment toward young students.
“This harassment limits the rights and freedoms of women and girls to enjoy a simple walk outside,” she said.
Councilmembers said they are open to many of the ideas, but said they are in the early stages of exploring what can be done.