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Path: utzoo!watmath!wateng!jamcmullan
From: jamcmullan@wateng.UUCP (Judy McMullan)
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: Re: Re: \"Why not send the men home?\"
Message-ID: <2403@wateng.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 16-May-85 12:23:27 EDT
Article-I.D.: wateng.2403
Posted: Thu May 16 12:23:27 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 17-May-85 12:02:58 EDT
References: <1848@decwrl.UUCP> <423@sftri.UUCP> <1467@reed.UUCP>
Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 32


	>> How many times have you UNWILLINGLY been pinched on the rear-end?
	>> How many times has a woman purposedly bumped up against you to "cop
	>> a feel".  

	>You have a point. This behavior is juvenile. I have had it happen (VERY
	>rarely) and while it WAS annoying, I didn't get particularly upset
	>about it.
	>Perhaps if it were a constant thing, I would.  I don't know.

We have been through this one before, in net.women. The behaviour is worse
than juvenile. It is threatening and frightening. If you were merely annoyed
I'll bet the one annoying you was not a physical threat (i.e. not obviously
physically superior). MOST men are stronger than MOST women. So -- both parties
know who can threaten whom. Even when a woman is well-trained in self-defense
(or in some offensive technique!) it is not obvious and she would still be
(initially) seen as likely to be able to be overcome. Experience says that
the first threat (or whatever one would call it) is sometimes followed by some-
thing worse, unless you can stop it or get away.

Whether it is a 'constant thing' is another whole story. I've had months go
by when none of this happens but when I was taking the subway to work and
walking the streets of a big city a lot, I'd be happy if a week went by
without some jerk shouting a smart remark or leering (mildest stuff). Let us
just say that it happens a lot throughout a woman's life.

(To those who are helpful, no need to post the advice to take a self-defense
course, or whatever. We have hashed the whole thing out, already. I deal with
it in the best way for me.)

   --from the sssstickkky keyboard of JAM
   ...!{ihnp4|clyde|decvax}!watmath!wateng!jamcmullan