Me Too
I mean, ya, #MeToo.
I think the most recent occurrence was a year ago at the Sheepdog Trials when some strange dude wouldn't let go of my arm and kept trying to herd (see what I did there?) me into a tent for a massage, while also suggesting that I give him a lap dance.
And actually, the only thing that made this hard to shake off was that my niece was with me, and watched the whole interaction.
Because afterwards, as I walked away, I was super worried that since my niece had watched me deescalate the situation by smiling and laughing, she would think that I thought the dude's behavior was okay.
I think I dropped the ball at an important moment, because I was so focused on not being confrontational or making a scene, that I don't think I made it clear to the 7 year old watching me that a stranger touching you is never okay.
I feel like I need to make it clear that I know there are vastly worst things that happen to women every day. I'm sharing this story because (1.) I'm okay sharing this level of a story, and (2.) one of the purposes of the #MeToo stories (I think) is to show the sheer volume of crap that ladies deal with on the regular. Every woman EVERY WOMAN will be harassed, bothered, assaulted... whatever you want to call it... multiple times throughout her life. Usually starting at age 12. My niece is going to start being harassed soon. So I hope that talking about appropriate and inappropriate situations will help her to fearlessly verbalize her discomfort in the moment, instead of internalizing it and waiting for a national movement to come along.
I think the most recent occurrence was a year ago at the Sheepdog Trials when some strange dude wouldn't let go of my arm and kept trying to herd (see what I did there?) me into a tent for a massage, while also suggesting that I give him a lap dance.
And actually, the only thing that made this hard to shake off was that my niece was with me, and watched the whole interaction.
Because afterwards, as I walked away, I was super worried that since my niece had watched me deescalate the situation by smiling and laughing, she would think that I thought the dude's behavior was okay.
I think I dropped the ball at an important moment, because I was so focused on not being confrontational or making a scene, that I don't think I made it clear to the 7 year old watching me that a stranger touching you is never okay.
I feel like I need to make it clear that I know there are vastly worst things that happen to women every day. I'm sharing this story because (1.) I'm okay sharing this level of a story, and (2.) one of the purposes of the #MeToo stories (I think) is to show the sheer volume of crap that ladies deal with on the regular. Every woman EVERY WOMAN will be harassed, bothered, assaulted... whatever you want to call it... multiple times throughout her life. Usually starting at age 12. My niece is going to start being harassed soon. So I hope that talking about appropriate and inappropriate situations will help her to fearlessly verbalize her discomfort in the moment, instead of internalizing it and waiting for a national movement to come along.
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