Catcalling: Women write in chalk to stop street harassment – BBC News

“You better learn to answer a man when he speaks to you!”
It’s a rainy afternoon in east London and two women are writing these words on a pavement in coloured chalk.
The words are a catcall – shouted by a stranger to a woman walking down a street in London.
The trend of writing out catcalls started in New York and now it’s spreading to other cities around the world.
The woman who started the idea says she wants to stop “street harassment”.

via Catcalling: Women write in chalk to stop street harassment – BBC News

‘Shocking’ level of sexual harassment at music festivals – BBC News

Nearly half of female festival goers (43%) under 40 say they have faced unwanted sexual behaviour at a music festival, new survey suggests.
Overall, 22% of all festival goers have faced assault or harassment, rising to 30% of women overall.
The most common forms were unwelcome and forceful dancing and verbal sexualised harassment.
YouGov surveyed 1,188 festival goers. The poll also suggested only 2% of such incidents were reported to police.
Earlier this year, separate data released in the Crime Survey for England and Wales in February showed more than 80% of victims of sexual assault did not report it to police.

via ‘Shocking’ level of sexual harassment at music festivals – BBC News

What Is Sexual Harassment? A Glossary of the #MeToo Movement | Glamour

Either way, the #MeToo era has given these training sessions an added urgency, especially when it comes to a full understanding of the movement’s key terms (and how to use them correctly). While the fact that we’re having more transparent, nuanced conversations about assault and abuses of power than ever before in history is inarguably a good thing, it’s also a dialogue that will ultimately prove more productive if we—men and women alike—are all on the same page about what we’re actually talking about. If our shared goal is more open and consistent conversation about #MeToo and all it entails, it’s crucial to get on the same page with terminology.

via What Is Sexual Harassment? A Glossary of the #MeToo Movement | Glamour

Chloe Dykstra details emotionally and sexually abusive relationship with nerd-culture mogul

Dykstra takes care to not explicitly name names in her post, but she does give some big hints, such as “I watched and supported him as he grew from a mildly successful podcaster to a powerhouse CEO of his own company” and saying that the unnamed ex “pressured [me] to take an on-camera job at his company I didn’t want.” She adds, “When cameras were on us? He was a prince. Turn them off, he was a nightmare.” During this time, she writes, her existing struggle with anorexia got worse, and:

via Chloe Dykstra details emotionally and sexually abusive relationship with nerd-culture mogul

Rose-Colored Glasses: A Confession. – Chloe Dykstra – Medium

In my early twenties, I was a vibrant, goofy kid who loved video games, Doctor Who, dressing up in cosplay with my friends, and karaoke nights. One day, I met someone at a convention and ended up falling for a man almost 20 years my senior. It wasn’t the first time I’d found myself in a relationship with an older man; I’ve always joked about my daddy issues, and thought that with age came stability and wisdom. Welp.
Our relationship started out poorly. Within 2 weeks, rules were quickly established. Some of these included:

via Rose-Colored Glasses: A Confession. – Chloe Dykstra – Medium

Chloe Dykstra, Ex of Chris Hardwick, Describes Disturbing Abuse by ‘Successful Podcaster’ Ex Boyfriend

n a gut-wrenching essay on Medium, actor Chloe Dykstra describes a years-long emotionally abusive relationship with a man 20 years her senior, who she supported as he went from “a mildly successful podcaster to a powerhouse CEO of his own company.” Though she never mentions him by name in her piece, many are speculating that the man in question is Nerdist founder and host of @midnight and Talking Dead, Chris Hardwick.

In the essay, titled “Rose-Colored Glasses: A Confession,” Dykstra says that her relationship, which began after meeting her ex at a convention, became immediately controlling, with her partner forbidding that she go out at night without him, drink alcohol (he is sober), or have male friends.

via Chloe Dykstra, Ex of Chris Hardwick, Describes Disturbing Abuse by ‘Successful Podcaster’ Ex Boyfriend

Emily Mortimer interview: I get scared by the sanctimony of #MeToo. Life’s not as simple as that | Times2 | The Times

In her new film, The Bookshop, Emily Mortimer plays the owner of a bookshop in 1959 who scandalises her small Suffolk town by selling copies of a controversial new novel called Lolita. How quaint, you think. How far we’ve come since then. Or have we? Mortimer is not so sure. “Lolita would have a hard time being published today,” she says, sipping a cappuccino in the drawing room of a hotel in central London. “And there’s something wrong about that.”

She’s talking about the climate surrounding the #MeToo movement, whose achievements she relishes, but which she fears has made us lose some of our boldness when it comes to risky material.

“It’s a weird moment that’s both really exciting and wonderful, and also quite confusing. I get scared by the sanctimony sometimes. When everybody thinks they’re right. Life’s not as simple as that. That’s why we need art, movies and books, because they’re exploring the grey areas of life.”

via Emily Mortimer interview: I get scared by the sanctimony of #MeToo. Life’s not as simple as that | Times2 | The Times

Absolute Twat Blocks British Law to Ban Taking Upskirt Photos

In an effort to console Americans by proving that their country’s politics aren’t alone in being completely fucking mental, let me bring you this story from my homeland: A Conservative member of Parliament blocked a bill that would have made upskirting—surreptitiously taking photos up a woman’s skirt without her consent—a criminal offense punishable by up to two years in prison.

Sir Christopher Chope blocked the bill by shouting “Object!” in Parliament, the BBC reported on Friday—you know, the normal way to prevent progress on misogyny.

via Absolute Twat Blocks British Law to Ban Taking Upskirt Photos

Expose trolls, says Labour MP Jess Phillips after 600 rape threats in one day | News | The Times

One in five women in Britain has suffered online abuse or harassment, Amnesty International revealed last year. Common psychological affects included low self-esteem and confidence, apprehension when using social media and a sense of powerlessness. A third of women said that the police response to online abuse was inadequate.

via Expose trolls, says Labour MP Jess Phillips after 600 rape threats in one day | News | The Times

Geek Celebrities Can Help Shut Down Vitriolic Fan Behavior

At some point over the past few weeks, actress Kelly Marie Tran, who played Rose Tico in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, deleted all of her Instagram posts for reasons that have not been explained. io9 has reached out to Tran’s representatives for comment about what happened but as of publishing, they’ve not returned our calls. Multiple reports are alleging that it might have been in response to racist, misogynist trolling from the Star Wars fandom, reports themselves based off of an as-yet unverified tweet from a fan account that spread quickly on social media.

Regardless of the specifics reasons for Tran’s disappearance from Instagram, the fact remains that groups of fans targeting specific people for harassment is a very real problem that’s not likely to go away soon unless people get serious about addressing it head-on.

via Geek Celebrities Can Help Shut Down Vitriolic Fan Behavior