Sexual harassment is the plague of the 21st century.
It will affect 1 in 5 women in the UK before the age of 16, and 96% of these cases will go unreported, leaving victims to suffer alone, in silence. At Newstead Wood School this week, two Police Constables from the Bromley branch of the London Transport Police (LTP) gave talks to the sixth form and upper school pupils about the critically rising levels of sexual harassment on trains and tubes in Greater London.
The LTP’s latest campaign, “report it to stop it”, is all about empowering the victims of sexual harassment on public transport, and reassuring them that they have the voice to report this heinous act. It also acts as a reminder that within that voice is the power to prevent the perpetrator committing the crime again. As PC Jones* said, “every piece of information is part of a much greater puzzle.”
And he is right.
If everybody who is harassed by one person reports one detail, eventually the perpetrator will be caught. Each time the victim feels too insignificant to report anything, the predator walks free. This is why it is vital that we see victims for exactly who they are: victims. Nobody should ever have to endure unwanted sexual attention, let alone feel they do not have the voice or authority to report it.
It is not just the harassed who can report sexual harassment. The LTP is urging anybody who sees it happening to report it immediately to the police with the new 24/7 text service on 61016.
Save that number now.
You never know when you might need it.
*name has been changed for anonymity
