Abstract:
Since 2008, Stop Street Harassment (SSH) has collected thousands of street harassment stories. This ground-breaking study confirms what the stories suggest: Across all ages, races, income levels, sexual orientations, and geographic locations, most women in the United States experience street harassment. Some men, especially men who identify as gay, bisexual, queer, or transgender, do as well. This report presents the findings of a 2,000-person, nationally representative survey (approximately 1,000 women and 1,000 men, ages 18 and up). GfK, a top surveying firm, conducted the Internet-based survey in February and March 2014. Additionally, SSH conducted 10 focus groups across the nation from August 2012 to March 2014…Key findings [show that] street harassment is a significant problem in the United States, street harassment happens multiple times to most people, street harassment begins at a young age, most harassed people were at least somewhat concerned that the incident would escalate, most harassed persons change their lives in some way as a result of the experience, street harassment doesn’t just happen on the streets, men are overwhelmingly the harassers of both men and women, when experiencing or witnessing harassment, half of the respondents had a proactive response at least once, [and] most people believe there are actions we can take to stop street harassment. (Author Text)