This is not a misandristic hate article. Don't mistake it because I know some people on the Internet are idiots and will. Men and women are equal and therefore neither is the 'better' gender.
No, the incident happened on the way back home on the 20 minute train journey when 4 (hopefully drunk) middle aged men (by which I am assuming that the average lifespan is around 100-120 years) decided it was their duty to begin a delightful conversation, beginning with a loud, slurred "ave you ad a good day girls? Done some shopping? Bought anything sexy?" These men were definitely older than my dad and could quite easily have been my grandfathers' ages.
*shudders*
The group then began to laugh hysterically because it's oh so funny to randomly make suggestive comments to teenage girls. Not degrading, embarrassing or just goddamn perverted, creepy and downright slimey. Hysterical.
I bit my tongue to prevent myself from screaming at them AS AN ENTIRE CARRIAGE OF PEOPLE JUST SAT AND LISTENED. Because we're British. And what the British do best is turning a blind bloody eye.
But that's not even what I find disgusting or distressing. The worst part of the story wasn't the comments, having to sit near them for the journey (the train was so packed that we couldn't even go and stand by the door) feeling infuriated as I willed the train to pull in to the station or tried to blank out the additional ridiculous remarks that the group of idiots were making and it wasn't even the fact that nobody even tried to intervene. It was the fact that this is normality. This wasn't a shock, wasn't a surprise. This has happened nearly every time that I have caught the train after 5pm. Another time, there was a group of 20 year old idiots, making unwanted remarks to both myself and my friends and a mother who was alone with her toddler as they threw beer cans around. Another, a middle aged business man was being a moron. And of course, you tend to run in to the wonderfully twittish male specimens at school that feel it is their God given right to comment on things that are in no way whatsoever any of their business.
But it's just accepted. Girls accept that comments will be made, that they should arrange alternative transport when alone or with other girls after dark, that they should watch what they wear because then it's 'their fault' and they'll give off the 'wrong impression'. But why should we? Why should we accept these things? We have as much right as anyone to feel safe and secure in our environment and the lack of a Y chromosome shouldn't impact that. So let's not let it.
It's everyone's responsibility. Small actions to fight for equality. Men and women are EQUAL. One gender is not better than the other. Yet this is often not represented in society.
Treat others as you would like to be treated.
Remember that.
Elle xx
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