The first time I got catcalled was in the 7th grade walking home from a music camp I was attending at the time. I was 12 and these landscapers in a truck shouted obscene phrases as I walked in my green YMCA t-shirt and blue jean shorts. I ran home from there terrified. That day was the first of many times I would be catcalled, and I would have to say it's sad that I got used to it.
Sophomore year homecoming I was dancing with a couple of my friends. From behind a random guy grabbed my butt. I told him off but he ruined my night from there, and tarnished what could have been a good memory.
My first job I worked at a nursery, and I wore many hats but my title was a cashier. The women in the nursery were the cashiers and the men did the heavylifting. It was interesting how they never considered that women could go help deliver the flowers at venues, carry the flowers to a customers car. I always felt uncomfortable at that job, especially around the grown men working there who would ogle the 16 year old cashier's body and flirt with her. I was one of those cashiers. Needless to say, I quit after 7 months of tolerating such behavior. Soon after I got messages from my old coworkers telling me how one of the men sexually assaulted one of the girls. After it was reported to the bosses they simply brushed it under the rug as if it was no big deal. All of these things makes up my anger and why I will never stop advocating for a better and safer world for women.
Every girl has had their own experiences. Many of us are scarred and uncomfortable in our skin, but I pose the question: Why? Why can I not be confident wearing shorts and a tank top as I walk through my neighborhood? I was about 10 when I first was given "the stare". The stare that makes you go cold. The one in which the tips of your toes to the top of your head are analyzed by an individual you gave no power to. It made my skin feel icky and it made me feel less than. I am not the only girl to have gone through this uncomfortable circumstance and I am sure I have plenty of more difficult stories but I hope you know that you are not alone and that most importantly you are not the issue.