Dear Stop Street Harassment Supporters,

Every day I comb the news and social media for information about street harassment, and I often find inspiration from other countries, like Egypt and Yemen.

Both Egypt and Yemen have had national studies on street harassment (83% and 99% of women experienced it, respectively) and activists are successfully using the statistics to galvanize the media, the public and their governments to support anti-harassment initiatives. Just Monday, the Egyptian Prime Minister said a new law against street harassment was in the works.

Rampant Problem
The USA does not have a national study yet and no national government officials are addressing the issue. From stories shared online, however, we know that street harassment is a rampant problem in the USA. Women are evaluated by strangers, masturbated at, rubbed against, told to smile, asked if they want a boyfriend if they’re in public alone, told to do sexual acts, and sexually assaulted. New research shows it’s a problem most men who are gay or bisexual experience. Transgender individuals face some of the most violent forms of harassment – including murder.

We need national statistics to help us better understand the issue and to prove to policy-makers, law enforcement, and educators that this is a serious issue that must be addressed. We also need statistics to help us craft new policies. My master’s program in public policy included a course on statistics and that’s because it’s often stories + statistics + public support that = policy changes.

Donate Today to Fund a Study
Stop Street Harassment is now a 501c3 organization. Up to this point, I have self-funded all of the work of SSH. But now I am asking for YOUR help. Please donate today so that the USA can have its own nationally representative study. (Learn more about the survey.) The survey firm I plan to use is very reputable and in my day job at AAUW, we used them for a 2011 national study on sexual harassment in schools, which the white house recently called a “gold standard” for studying the topic.

While I have sent out letters of inquiry for a few grants, most places specify “no research” for what they’ll fund, so I am very reliant on the donations of people like you. The Razoo campaign ends in one week, so please donate today. (Scroll down to see what you get for donating and to learn how the data will be used.)

Thank you for all of your support,
Holly Kearl
SSH Founder

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