Recently we noticed a new D.C. blog, called Don’t Be Silent, pop up that’s dedicated to documenting street harassment in the District. In an e-mail exchange with its author, Golden Silence, we learned that she started the site as a way of speaking out against what she sees as rampant street harassment in our city, and out of frustration with the demise of the now-defunct HollaBackDC, which also used to serve as a place where people could document and post photographs of their harassers. Here’s what she had to say:

DC seems to be the worst place for street harassment, and we needed a place to let the world know that we get targeted by these men too much! After coming home from a rough time dealing with street harassment this past Saturday (ending with a guy calling me “gay” because I told him I didn’t need a ride from him), I got on my laptop and started “Don’t Be Silent.” It’s mainly because I know I’m not the only one dealing with this and want the women in DC to know they’re not alone, either.

There are only a few entries up on the site so far, just having started last weekend. The most recent is a letter from a woman who encountered a masturbator on the Red line and, unsure of how to handle the situation, was shaken up pretty badly. It’s disturbing to read, and while it’s great that the Internet is providing a place for individuals to “speak out” and vent about these kinds of situations, we’d be more interested to see a dialogue begin about street harassment in D.C. So we’re starting one here.

What do you think about the level of street harassment you encounter in D.C. compared to other cities? And what, if anything, would you propose be done about?

Photo by philliefan_99