If you are a woman, young or old, can you remember the first time you were sexually harassed? You probably do, you may not be able to recall what you were wearing, but we’re sure you remember that if you told someone they told you to be quiet and move on. They might have tried to blame it on what you were wearing, or maybe they told you that you were laughing too loudly, or your makeup was too attractive, or you carry yourself with too much confidence, or any one of the other excuses used to blame the victim.
And the time after that? Your mother told you not to ruin your reputation by telling, your coworkers told you not to get in trouble by reporting your boss, your brother told you not to shame the family. The words might be different, but the message is always the same. Stay silent, cover-up, and don’t walk alone next time.
Last week blogger, influencer and entrepreneur Ascia courageously spoke out about an incident that happened to her right outside her place of work, and soon after Najeeba Hayat, already an avid proponent of putting social issues at the forefront of the social conversation and founder of the designer shoe concept Liudmila, chimed in about her experiences too. The highly visible women and influencers implicitly gave others permission to speak up too, demanding the creation of an online platform where harassment can be reported and tracked. And just like that, the floodgates were open. This is the one time we’re happy to see everyone embrace the conversation to jump on the hashtag. Enough is enough.
Gender-based violence directed at women has always been a problem anywhere you go in the world, but the culture of silence and shame makes it doubly hard for a woman to tell anyone that she was a victim of this heinous crime. Women have been sharing their stories, and they are shocking, from catcalls to rape, every one of them is an assault on our sense of safety and right to exist in this world.
This is our #metoo moment that is slowly becoming a movement. An account called @lan.asket popped up on Instagram and is sharing these horrific incidents. The response was so immense, they set up a Google form so women could anonymously share their stories and the account’s administrator is resharing them. We’ve already been seeing horrible crimes against women and children being fought by social warriors like @Abolish153, and it’s high time that these issues are put at the forefront of policymaking.
While the movement is meant to be bilingual and Lan Asket is trying to ensure communication reaches women of different backgrounds, whether Kuwaiti or expat, Arabic is used often as the primary language to ensure that the changemakers who could affect policy are paying attention.
Artists have also answered the art by creating art that gets the message across!
It is a huge issue that won’t magically go away by sharing a few stories on social media. But breaking the silence and saying “Lan Asket” is the first step many of us have been waiting for.
Do you or someone you know have a story of harassment to share? Get in touch with @lan.asket on Instagram. More importantly, contact your local lawmakers to ensure that real change is brought to combat harassment against women.
