ARGENTINE CONGRESS CONSIDERS MAKING STREET HARASSMENT CRIME

[WestVirginiaRebel]

AP:

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) -- When she left her house each day, Aixa Rizzo would brace for a barrage of sexually laden comments from male electricians working on a project in her neighborhood.

 

It started with under-the-breath remarks, applause and whistles, but over several weeks developed into vulgarities about her body and chants about sexual fantasies. One day, three of the men followed her, prompting Rizzo to turn around and shower them with pepper spray. The men swore at her and told her she was crazy, but they ultimately walked away.

 

"They shouted these things at me for an entire month," the 20-year-old university student said in an interview with The Associated Press. "I couldn't walk out of my house in peace."

 

Frustrated by something all too common in this South American country of 41 million, Rizzo in April posted a video on YouTube about her experience. She argued that verbal assaults could lead to physical abuse.

 

The video, seen by half a million people, touched a nerve, turning Rizzo's campaign into a cause celebre and prompting lawmakers to draft legislation that would make such street harassment a crime. A vote is expected within a few months.

 

The moves come amid a national campaign protesting physical attacks against women. Tens of thousands of Argentines took to the streets last week in a march dubbed "ni una menos," meaning not one more woman lost to gender violence.

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Leave harassment to the government where it belongs...