Location: 5th and Mass Avenue NW, DC
Time: Night (7:30pm-12am)
I was walking from my house to the Gallery Place Metro Station. I had to stop at the corner of 5th and Mass until the light changed. A teenager (probably between the ages of 16-18) asked me if I had a dollar. I usually dont give out money on the street, well not not to younger people who dont appear to be homeless. But I happened to have 4 quarters in my jacket pocket so I did. I was on my cell phone at the time (talking to my brother) and the guy starts telling me that I have a sexy voice and he noticed that I started to get nervous so he started to get closer to me and asked me “what is wrong with me and if I’m ok” hes completely violating my space and starts to follow me.
I asked him to leave me alone and that I wasnt interested. He still follows me on his bike asking me whats wrong with me. I stayed on the phone with my brother, to feel safer and I said to my brother I should get a cab instead of going any further to the train station. The guy rode his bike on another street by then…but as soon as I hailed the cab the guy on the bike rode up to the cab and basically chased me in there and I had to get in the door before he could try to open it, he was still saying things to me.
This was around 8:20 pm, it wasnt completely dark yet and there were plenty of people outside. The cab driver noticed that the guy chased me to the cab (while still on his bike). This should not be happening.
Read more stats via Stop Street Harassment; www.stopstreetharassment.org
Emphases by CASS.
Submitted 4/27/13 by Anonymous
Do you have a personal experience with gender-based public sexual harassment or assault?
Submit your story to help raise awareness about the pervasiveness and harmful effects of street harassment. All submissions are posted anonymously unless otherwise specified.
Whether the event is happening at the moment or occurred months ago, we strongly encourage you to report to Metro Transit Police (MTP): www.wmata.com/
 |
In December, a Yahoo! Group for DC’s Cleveland Park neighborhood, posted a message detailing a 
I’m an intern in the D.C. area. I was bitten by a stray cat and went to the ER at Howard U after work to get it checked up and receive any necessary shots. ERs always take a while, so by the time I was finished, it was almost 12 am so I called a cab back to Silver Spring, MD where I lived. The cab came pretty quickly (it’s the Yellow Cab company) and I got in. My driver seemed friendly and I sat in the front to make sure he knew where I was going and to talk (I’ve only ever taken cabs while in Nanjing, China where it’s expected of passengers to chat with cabbies). Our conversation was fine until we neared where I lived. At this point, he slowed the cab down to almost a crawl and asked when he would see me again. It was late and I was tired so I just said “if I ever need a cab.” And he said “no, I meant personally.” This cab driver was at least 40 years old. I said no, thank you, not interested, you’re too old. And he asked me if he could at least have a hug. This is in the middle of the night in an empty street so I thought it was better to oblige him than to potentially escalate the situation, so I briefly gave him a 4-point hug (no full contact, just my hands on your shoulders) and drew back quickly. Before drawing back I felt his breath close to my face and he laughingly admitted that he tried to kiss me. That is disgusting. Honestly, this is only the most uncomfortable instance out of a number of such situations I’ve encountered this summer. I love DC as a city, but the sketchy men I’ve been accosted by have made me come to have quite a low opinion of the more peripheral areas (aka not Union St, Capitol Hill, Foggy Bottom, etc.).
