After hearing about the tragic rape and murder of University of Illinois student Ruth George I was completely disgusted. It is alleged that she was killed because she did not respond to a catcall. A catcall is a form of harassment. By definition, a catcall is “to make a whistle, shout, or comment of a sexual nature to a woman passing by.” This hits home for me and so many other women as well. Catcalling happens too often when we’re walking down the street just trying to mind our business.
image: gulfnews.com
Ruth’s murder should spark a conversation about toxic masculinity and men thinking of women as “objects.” Now, that absolutely does not mean that I believe all men are like this. But, obviously, some men are. Catcalling is something all women relate to. Personally, we don’t see it as “cute” and do not think it’s attractive when men do it. The majority of the time, when men make sexual advances or harass us for a phone number it is downright disturbing. When we express our discomfort with them speaking to us, sometimes they get offended. What men like this need to understand is: we do not owe them anything. Not a receptive giggle, a phone number, or a date. If they think that we do, they play a role in the issue regarding toxic masculinity. If we do not want to speak to someone, we do not have to. Some men need to learn that rejection is a natural part of life and not to take it as far as calling us out of our names or getting angry with us. Ruth George did not deserve to be murdered. In my opinion, this should be a wake up call for people to acknowledge that catcalling IS a serious issue. If we don’t, we are supporting the saying that “boys will be boys” – an excuse that gives men the audacity to believe that women owe them something whether that be a conversation or sex.