Many women may have experienced being catcalled. You're just walkin' down the street, trying to listen to Adele and mind your own business when someone calls your ass "delicious." Unacceptable.
You may try your best to make light of the situation, but it makes many women feel uncomfortable and unsafe. So, 28-year-old Minneapolis resident Lindsey has taken these feelings into her own hands.
Lindsey, whose Craigslist ad went viral last year after she was harassed on the street, had the idea for Cards Against Harassment. Women can download and print funny, business card-like pieces of paper that explain to their catcallers why their actions may be unsavory.
While Lindsey, who prefers to only be identified by her first name, confronts someone on the street, she films the interaction and blurs out faces. She's never overly confrontational and genuinely seems curious, stating that she's genuinely interested "in what place this is coming from," according to an interview with Buzzfeed.
After watching a few of her videos, it's clear these men are completely unaware of the discomfort they may be causing. Below are a few memorable quotes, with a link to their source videos.
1. "I can smell your womanhood ‘cause I'm a wolf."
Utterly disgusting.
2. "Are they having a modeling contest going on?"
As Lindsey states in the video, this is the worst pick-up line to hit Minneapolis. If you're going to catcall us, don't. If you have to, be creative. But still...don't.
3. Man: "You're gonna see a lot of fairy gays." Lindsey: "Hey, some of us find that language offensive, so try keep it positive, okay?" Man: "What is your problem, dumb blondie?"
That language is awful and we hated just typing it. However, the story has a happy ending when the bus driver kicks these bigots off at the next stop.
4. "Bitch" means that you're sexy."
Wrong. So wrong. Do not call us that word and then attempt to spin it into a compliment.
5. Our personal favorite: "Women are put on this earth to satisfy a man so if she feels offended, she shouldn't have never been born."
WHAT? NO, REALLY. PLEASE REPEAT WHAT YOU JUST SAID.
This guy equates catcalling to freedom of speech and sees it as a compliment. If a woman is offended, he says, she must have a "conflict" within herself. He thinks Lindsey sees him as a "pimp" and justifies his actions by saying: "I'm from Ohio so where I'm from, we holler at women." Ohioans, are you feeling good about this guy calling out your state as a whole? We didn't think so.
While her videos feature many men of all demographics, one brings up the idea that Lindsey is only upset because her street harasser is a black man and she's a white woman. To that, Lindsey says: "Harassers come from all races. Though I'm filming as I'm encountering experiences, I'm in no way attempting to target a specific demographic. Sexism is sexism."
Since creating the cards early this summer, Lindsey says she's distributed 25-30 of them when the situation is right. If her personal safety is at risk, Lindsey avoids the situation all together.
What's the most common response she receives? "The theme I hear the most often is that they truly, genuinely think it's a compliment [to catcall], and they are shocked," Lindsey said. "If that is true, then simply telling people it's not a compliment may go a long way."
Hopefully, many of these men will realize that women are not "put on this earth to satisfy a man." Nor, do we dress so you can holler at us on the sidewalks.