graphic by Robin Hoyt
Street harassment is a serious and multi-faceted social problem that makes women and people of other marginalized groups unsafe in public spaces. HollaBackBoston does not define street harassment but believes harmful power dynamics in society lie at the core of our inequality. We believe that building a safe world demands diverse international fronts of resistance. Dedicated to the city of Boston, we continue to reclaim public space by empowering everyone to “HOLLA BACK” at street harassers.
You can holla back in the moment in a way that is fast and easy. Use your phonecams or digital cameras to DOCUMENT STREET HARASSERS. Add hollabackboston@gmail.com directly to your cellphone. Email us the pics with your story. We accept submissions from anywhere!
Harassment is a serious matter - Boston Globe letter to editor
WMBR 88.1 FM Cambridge What's Left 8/6/2006
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All Holla Backs are independent collectives, in support of the same international mission; they are in no way affiliated with one another unless otherwise noted.
HollaFAQ! Your questions about HollaBackBoston answered
HollaBackBoston's Race and Class Statements
Foreplay for Holla Back Project: Suspected Subway Pleasurer Arrested
If you want to get involved or are a supportive group affiliated with ending street harassment, please contact us: hollabackboston@gmail.com
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-
NoDerivs 2.5 License.
| I was at Downtown Crossing heading to a meeting down a side street when a guy yelled, "HEY BABY!" I turned around, but he wasn't even looking back at me anymore. It's not like this encounter ruined my day or hurt me, but what pisses me off is that I looked. He has that power over me - all men do - and that by just randomly screaming at me, he can have my undivided attention. And people think a power imbalance doesn't exist. Hah. |
| I was walking through the Common this morning, in a hideous mood and on the verge of tears for legitimate personal reasons. As I walked past one of the maintenance buildings, a man came out carrying a huge garbage bag. I had my head down, sunglasses on, and there were quite a few other people around, but - no surprise - he came right at me. "Hey honey, you got a cell phone, wanna make a dollar?" So angry that by being in public, by existing, I was immediately assumed to be available for whatever some man wanted from me, I snapped back loudly, "NO," and kept walking. He said loudly to my retreating back, "Well gee, thanks a lot," as if I'd seriously inconvenienced him. I was furious. Instead of turning around and berating him with tales of my personal sadness, reasons why he should have left me alone; and instead of just letting it go or being afraid, I yelled back, even more loudly, "FUCK YOU!" And it felt really fucking good. |
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