Meaning of Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment is a pervasive issue affecting women and girls in every society, country even globally. Sexual harassment happens with men and boys, too. It is defined as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. It's not just about physical touch, but also emotionally; it includes a wide range of behaviors that create a hostile or intimidating environment, which makes girls and women to weaker in society and offices.
This can be verbal, such as lewd comments, jokes, or catcalling, eye rolls, or calling the username, pinching ot pulling their clothes, and non-verbal, like suggestive gestures, staring, or displaying sexually explicit materials.
For women and girls, sexual harassment can occur in various settings and places, including the workplace, schools, public spaces, houses where girls go to domestic work, which can become a safe place for trolls, and even online. It's a form of gender-based discrimination that undermines their dignity, safety, and well-being. The impact can be severe, leading to psychological distress, anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Then sometimes we hear of death due to sexual harassment; it is a fact. It can also have significant professional and educational consequences, where women's and girls ' growth in their lives, career progression, academic performance, disrespect, and equality. The meaning of sexual harassment is rooted in the imbalance of power, with the harasser leveraging their position to intimidate and control the victim. It is a hynash violation of human rights violation and a significant barrier to achieving gender equality.
Let's find out some major sexual harassment at home, workplaces, with women and Girls, and also try to understand how it's occurring and interventions by you and me to stop it and make a safe place for them.
Power Imbalances and Control
Emotional trauma is more painful than physical trauma. Sexual harassment is fundamentally about power, not sexual desire. We can see it in both professional and domestic settings; the harasser often has a sense of power or dominance over the victim. As we can see in professional life, a boss or officer wants to dominate his or her colleagues. And even at home, there is no safe space for domestic workers. Especially in joint families where multiple family members live. I'm not talking about nuclear families. Have you heard of cases of sexual harassment of domestic workers in your neighborhood? Thousands of girls and women are victims of sexual harassment every day. Harassment has become very commonplace worldwide. And for those who are victims, it is very dangerous; they cannot recover from this entire ordeal for the rest of their lives. They are unable to leave the house to do anything or go to their jobs. Facing society becomes very challenging. In such a situation, completing school or college becomes a challenge for them, and progress in life is difficult. To progress, a person must face challenges. They will feel very nervous.
At the workplace, this could be an employee's supervisor, where the harasser is trying to maintain their position and make demands, especially on girls. Fear of losing their job, being demoted, or facing negative professional consequences leaves victims insecure, and many girls become victims of lust. Raising their income becomes a costly task for them, ultimately becoming victims of shame because they are unaware of their rights or are not fully aware of the law. Meanwhile, the officer, on the other hand, is determined to assert his authority by violating the sexual harassment rules. Officials should use their power to advance girls and develop the country. However, we are part of a society that refuses to respect girls, let alone provide them with respect and information. This hinders the victim's development.
Gender Inequality and Societal Norms
The practice of patriarchy remains a challenge for many countries even today. Because patriarchy originates in the family, a problem that begins with a small family can be eradicated within the family itself. The next generation should learn to respect women from childhood so that girls do not have to endure incidents like sexual harassment in the future.
Sexual harassment is a direct result of a society that views women and girls as subservient to men. This is a societal tradition that can stop the development of girls and women. It is rooted in patriarchal ideologies that dangerously dictate rigid gender roles, where men are considered dominant and authoritative over women, because they were taught from childhood to be authoritative people at home. As you know, many girls and women have had a good education, but they are at home because of societal norms. This is the reason today we expect to be submissive and available. We have created such a societal measurement where these girls are not getting proper development
These harmful norms normalize violence and harassment as "natural" male behavior or "harmless" flirting. In the workplace, this manifests as a hostile environment where women are objectified, their professional contributions are devalued, and they are viewed as sexual objects rather than colleagues. At home, this ideology can lead to the belief that men have power over women's bodies, and women's roles are to satisfy their desires. This social conditioning makes it difficult for victims to recognize harassment, as they may have been socialized to accept such behavior as a normal part of life.
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