When feminist activist Ben Atherton-Zeman asked us if we wanted to produce a public theater piece he’d written to address harassment on the Metro, we said ABSOLUTELY! Even though WMATA has made huge strides towards addressing public sexual harassment and assault, we continue to receive submissions from people who were harassed or otherwise violated on Metro cars or buses. We were so excited to bring our message to the people who matter most: YOU.

In August, with the help of our good friend Holly Kearl, videographer Micah Bochart, and volunteers John Bartelloni and Graham Boyle, we took our act onto actual Metro cars. The skit shows how intrusive and humiliating public sexual harassment can be, as well as the empowerment that can come from “hollering back” and bystander intervention. Check it out!

ABOUT HARASSMENT ON THE DC METRO SYSTEM

• • In the hundreds of incidents of public sexual harassment CASS has collected since 2009, at least 30 percent took place on or around Metro transit stations, trains, or buses.
  • According to Metro, 84 cases involving sexual offenses were reported to Transit Police in 2011. They included one rape and 40 cases of indecent exposure or other sexual acts. Of the 40, 12 involved arrests.
  • Until this spring, Metro did not track sexual harassment complaints. Our metro skit aims to bolster WMATA’s recent efforts to tackle harassment on the Metro system.

WANT TO PERFORM THE SKIT ON YOUR OWN TRANSIT SYSTEM?

Contact CASS or Ben for the script and guidance on how to pull it off!