The issue of sexual harassment in societies is alarming and dangerous. With the continued spread of harassment in public places and attacks behind closed doors and in the virtual world (cyber), it is necessary to sound the alarm to avoid these crimes, which leave physical and psychological scars that accompany the victims for many years, according to experts interviewed by the site. “Free”.
The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) defines sexual harassment, in its guidebook, as “unsolicited sexual offers, requests for sexual favours, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Such conduct is either explicit or implied.”
For its part, the International Labor Organization says that it is difficult to measure violence and harassment in the workplace, “and often the victims who disclose their experiences to another person, have suffered more than one form of violence and harassment.” The most common reasons for non-disclosure, according to the organization, are “wasted time and fear for reputation”.
And if the word “victim” is feminine, then it is suitable in the field of harassment for both males and females, because all groups are subject to harassment, despite the experts’ focus on the reality of females.
As described by experts, a harasser or abuser is “a person who possesses power or dominance granted to him by society, and re-establishes control in a harmful way over other parties less powerful and more vulnerable than himself, including sexual harassment.”
harassment
Sexual harassment is not limited to foreplay or touching, and therefore the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission classifies the multiple types of harassment, explaining that they are “those words and actions of a sexual nature that violate the privacy of the body or feelings, and can be verbal, non-verbal, or physical,” such as :
- Inappropriate staring and scrutiny.
- Blocking someone’s way with the body.
- Giving personal (intimate) gifts.
- Telling lies and jokes about another person’s sexuality.
- Expressions that carry a suggestion that has sexual dimensions
- Calls, whistling, screaming, and whispering, which carry sexual overtones.
- Sexual notes about the body.
- Tracking someone down and getting close to them in bad faith.
- Advocating for overt and implicit sex.
- Display sexual images.
- Online harassment.
- Touching, feeling, scratching, getting too close, and many more.
- Undressing and showing intimate parts in front of another person.
Who is the harasser?
The therapist and psychoanalyst, university professor, Dr. Marie-Ange Nohra, explains to Al-Hurra that “the methods adopted by the harasser are deviant, so he gets very close to his victim, and adopts gentleness and attractiveness, in order to be able to attract the victim, especially if she is a child or younger than him in age, Consequently, the seriousness of the issue is that the harasser is not exposed, because he is sometimes a relative or a co-worker, and the idea of harming his victim and being superior to her gives him pleasure.
She adds that “fame allows a person to hide behind his reputation and prestige and prevents the victim from revealing him. The more the harasser is in a position of authority, the more the victim will be silenced.”
For her part, the coordinator of prevention programs in “Abaad”, an association that supports gender equality, Lama Jaradi, points out, during an interview with “Al-Hurra” website, that “the harasser or aggressor is a person who has power or dominance granted to him through society and restores his control in a harmful way.” on other sides that are less powerful and more fragile than it.”
She points out that all groups in society are vulnerable to harassment, but because our societies are masculine, there is more control and authority for males, and women and girls are the most vulnerable groups, and groups most at risk of sexual harassment, especially in places where males have power over women, such as workplaces and places where It has economic or familial dominance.
Harassment may occur through abuse of position, by a manager, relative, or clergyman, and the greatest danger is when sexual harassment turns into repeated rape by the same person.
Within the framework, Nohra asserts that “the danger of the harasser is that he adopts long-term methods, and the victim may continue to remain silent for years. We see this in the clinic, and after speaking, signs of healing and courage begin, so the victim expresses himself in front of society.”
Resist the harasser
“The danger of the various methods of harassment lies in their disguise, because they cannot be detected easily,” says Nohra, before adding, “The aggressor prevents his victim from seeking help when he is near her, and she can no longer resist because she becomes in a vulnerable position.”
She points out that the harasser is usually responsible for his victim at work (a manager), her aunt, uncle, or someone close to her from an emotional or practical point of view.
She stresses that harassment is not confined to females only, but also to males, as it can occur between an adult woman and a younger man, a child or a teenager.
“Society condemns the victim and does not condemn the oppressor,” according to Nahra, and by suppressing it, it prevents the victim from speaking until after years, when she has matured and has self-confidence enough to expose the oppressor.
For her part, Jaradi points out that “the victim remains silent because she feels guilty,” and explains that this is caused by “upbringing and habits, for example, for fear that it will be said that she seduced him, and that she left her house late, so the guilt falls on her.”
In addition to the stigma that society can place on the victim, and her lack of knowledge of the existence of bodies that can provide her with protection or support.
Psychological consequences
Nohra and Jaradi enumerate the psychological consequences experienced by the victim of harassment:
- She suffers in silence.
- The repercussions are very great on the psychological level (refraction stage).
- Loss of appetite over time.
- Loss of desire and pleasure to go out with her friends.
- Anxiety and sleep disorders.
- Anxiety, insomnia and lack of focus.
- Shyness of personal relationships.
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (it can be a physical disorder up to the stage of harming the victim herself).
- Loss of opportunities.
- Loss of many relationships, and many opportunities in society.
How to educate children
Experts agree that the best way to prevent harassment is to educate minors and warn them not to interact with any stranger, and not to approach anyone they do not know who tries to approach them.
The role of parents is very great in immunizing the teenager and protecting him from exposure to harassment.
Nohra explains, “At a very young age under the age of 10, we can simply explain to the child that his body belongs to him, and that no one can approach this body.”
In addition to encouraging the child to:
- Always communicate with his family in case he feels the danger of harassment.
- Mutual trust and parents’ ability to listen.
What age is suitable for sexual awareness?
Jaradi explains that it is possible to talk to children about harassment in special ways. And this happens at very young ages, since the nursery classes, by making them aware of the private parts of their bodies, and who can see them, and from this moment sexual awareness begins.
She stresses the need to educate children on how to protect themselves from sexual harassment, by providing them with self-protection, and introducing them to the forms of harassment and what this phenomenon means, and why this harassment occurs to them, and that this matter is not their fault, and then the child gets the self-skills to protect himself.