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people have been trained with Stand Up.Join the movement, get trained here!

80% of women have experienced sexual harassment in public spaces.

Street harassment is an experience that devalues women and men of all sexual orientations, cultures and beliefs causing them to doubt their own experiences.

When we watch harassment happen without intervening, it deepens the trauma for the person being harassed and shows the person doing the harassing that their behaviour is OK. We want to disrupt this dynamic one intervention at a time.

Prevalence rates of the different types of sexual harassment in public spaces

  • Inappropriate and unwanted sexual looks, gestures, staring or leering that make me feel uncomfortable
    54%
  • Sexually suggestive or intrusive comments or jokes about my appearance, my clothing, anatomy or looks that make me feel uncomfortable
    47%
  • Somebody repeatedly whistling at me, catcalling, making kissing sounds, howling or smacking lips in a sexual way
    45%
  • Someone being intrusive and insisting to know my name, phone number or any personal information, or pressuring to get a date
    40%
  • Somebody inappropriately and repeatedly referring to me as a girl, hunk, doll, babe or chick, somebody insulting me
    40%
  • Intrusive and repeated questions about my private or sex life that make me feel uncomfortable
    38%
  • Unwanted touching, hugging or kissing
    37%
  • Somebody hanging around me or following me with sexual intentions
    32%
  • Somebody exposing themselves to me in a sexual way, flashing me, or masturbating in front of me
    29%
  • Somebody showing me sexually explicit pictures that make me feel uncomfortable
    26%
  • Unwanted and repeated pressure for sexual favors, someone insisting that I show parts of my body I don’t want to show
    24%
    • 100%_

Average % of women who have personally experienced these types of harassment in 20 countries as per 2023 survey by L'Oréal Paris with IPSOS "International Survey on Sexual Harassment in Public Spaces".

Street harassment is not always clear to identify. Its often very subtle and insidious. But whenever it’s unwanted verbal, non-verbal, physical conduct of a sexual nature, it’s harassment.

Other types of street harassment include: “accidentally” brushing, demanding ”give me a smile”, backhanded compliments, groping, invading a person’s space, pressing or rubbing against the person’s body, sexual sneak attacks (i.e. grabbing breasts or buttocks when not looking), sexist jokes, sexual innuendos, and sexist and insulting graffiti.

76% of people have already witnessed sexual harassment in public spaces.

But what are main reasons why we don’t take action?

No one else is doing anything

This kind of thinking is called the “bystander effect.” The greater the number of bystanders, the less likely that one of them will help. It takes courage to be the first to take action.

I’m afraid I’ll make things worse.

You can pick a less direct action, like asking someone to help.

It’s harmless, right?

Verbal harassment makes targets feel uncomfortable and threatened, and can escalate to physical violence.

Stand up when you see it happen.

Overcome your fears and freeze as a bystander by knowing how to identify street harassment first, then how to stand up to it using The 5Ds - a set of different actions proven to help end it.

See the 5D's

Stand up when it happens to you.

Never think it’s your fault or that you’re alone when you're being harassed. Trust your instincts, reclaim your space, and remember you’re worth it with these insights and proven actions.

See the actions

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Street harassment ends here, and we are all part of the solution!

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L'Oréal

L’Oréal Paris is the number one beauty brand in the world with products available in 150 countries around the world. Through its pioneering products and services, L’Oréal Paris empowers each and every woman to take charge of their lives, believe in themselves, take the place they deserve in society and make change happen.

Right to be

Right To Be is a global, people-powered movement to end harassment. We work together to ensure equal access to public spaces.

YWCA

Hong Kong Young Women’s Christian Association is a member association of the World YWCA, the largest international women organisation which was established in 1894, and is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.