Being of a South Asian background I am all too familiar with the concept of ‘eve teasing’. For those of you who are unsure of what this term represents, basically it’s a euphemism synonymous with the Indian sub-continent for invasive forms of public street harassment of women perpetrated by men. The scope of the ‘teasing’ itself ranges from sexually suggestive remarks, cat-calling, unwanted sexual advances and aggression and groping.
The whole concept of referring to it as ‘teasing’ is absurd enough on its own. Somehow suggesting the presence of an acceptable romantic overture or tolerable form of behaviour when in reality the act in and of itself is a definitive form of sexual harassment.
During my travels in the region I have often heard people justify the behaviour of those perpetrating these acts by pointing to what the woman who was subjected to the assault was wearing. Let’s be honest, this concept is evident even here in Australia when the first line of questioning will inevitably revolve around a women’s reputation and how she was ‘conducting herself at the time’. What is her sexual history? “You’ve seen what she wears”, “she’s always out late at night”, “I’ve heard she drinks….”
The incident that occurred on MG Road in Bangalore on New Year’s Eve in 2016/17 was the ultimate example of sexual aggression, harassment and molestation perpetrated through a pack mentality and justified with ‘but she was asking for it’ response.
I remember watching a CCTV footage clip immediately after the incident which makes my skin crawl when even considering it all these months later. Let me set the scene, a young woman gets out of a 3 wheeler at the top of her street. Her house is less than 200 metres away. But as she walks you see 2 men ride by on a motorbike, circle back in her direction and place themselves directly between her and her path home, effectively blocking her only route forward. They then proceed initially to verbally harass and demean her to then escalate their disgusting behaviour by groping at her, clawing her clothes of and sexually assaulting her.
The fury I felt upon seeing these images is difficult to explain or attempt to put into words now. The sickening justification which was purported on mass after this clip went viral first sought to question why this woman was out so late anyway?! Not why is it that men feel so entitled to a woman’s body that they willingly strip her of her safety, her dignity and her basic human right to be free from harassment and violence. No one thought to consider that perhaps the ongoing justification so-called eve teasing has cemented an endemic culture of sexual aggression and entitlement; and that this ideal has manifested into a socially accepted form violence against women.
End – Day 2.
Check out some further reference points to eve teasing:
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2158244017697168
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I blog for Change. 