asking for 'what' ?

thank you Vignesh (from Dindugal) for sending us the link and also for directing us to more such film clips!

tamil to english translation coming up: anyone wants to volunteer to translate?

and Ramyah Veer from the BN Chennai mailing list has sent this in :

"The perpetrator apologises to the male actor for misbehaving with the actress.But the actor drags the culprit near the actress and makes him brush his hands against the actress's hands.The actor didn't stop with that.

I think it would be better if i explain the dialogue in direct voice.

The actor to the perpetrator:

"Are you satisfied with this or u want something else from her?Are u behind her skin,flesh?If this is all what you want, then go get it from a meat shop."

Now the actor takes a complete look at the actress(top to bottom) and starts his next set of dialogues

Between the actor and the actress:

Actor : I don't find any saree or innerskirt.You are just wearing a panty.

Actress: This is called 'shorts'.

Actor : For you girls it is 'shorts'.For us(men), it is a 'panty'...... Then I dont find any blouse or duppatta.You r just wearing a bra.

Actress:This is called 'Sleeveless'

Actor: For you girls it is 'Sleeveless'.For us, it is a 'bra'..... Wearing all these for letting enough air get into ur underarms or showing off the body piercing done on ur navel or a tattoo on ur thighs .... is this a product exhibition or body exhibition(i.e. show-off)?You girls wear dresses in a way that let others count the moles on ur body and then complain if a perpetrator touches ur body..... This has become a job for u all... Just know this. God created men for women and women for men...Main purpose is that a woman is for man's need and a man for woman's need.God has created all of us in huge but it is us who has to be disciplined.Disciplined in the sense being true to one person in ur life.If u feel that u want to live with only one man forever,then showoff to him alone.But if you showoff ur body to everyone,then every men will want/desire to live with you only.

(The crowd applauds the actor by making some comments)

Actor:If you dress like a traditional Indian woman wearing a saree with whole body covered up, then men will treat u more than a woman ... they will treat u like Godess Mahalakshmi....

The actor then ends the dialogue by asking her to leave in a contemptuous manner.

This is what the entire scene conveys .

************

send a garment you wore when you were sexually harassed on the street.

I never ask for it.

I never ask for it.

I never ask for it.

I never ask for it.

I never ask for it.

Street Tales of Love/ Lust/ and possible misinterpretations:

" Excuse me?"


if you've got a story on being approached by a random stranger

if you've got a story on approaching a random stranger because you found him or her attractive
write to us.

*


if you've got a story where you experienced sexual harassment from a stranger but now feel that maybe he was trying to stalk you/ talk to you (etc) because that's the only way he could express himself/ or his interest in you...

if you've got a story where you tried to approach someone / make conversation / express interest and you feel that maybe the other person interpreted it as sexual harassment.

write to us


*

feel free to send in movie clips, songs, texts that also look at the different codes and interpretations to street sexual behaviour.

you know where to find us!
blurtblanknoise at gmail dot com

reference blog post and more links here:
http://blog.blanknoise.org/2009/07/street-sexual-harassment-could-be.html

Action Heroes (source NDTV)

An incident of alleged molestation in Assam's Halflong town would have passed unnoticed, but for a girl who decided to take on an entire group of army personnel.

Thanks Maya Kovskaya, Jenelle Eli for sending us the link.

Got a story on how you dealt with street sexual harassment? Share it here. At Blank Noise we do not prescribe or suggest a formulaic response to street sexual harassment. We gather and archive your stories/ your testimonials and learn from your experience. We do not suggest you apply one person's reaction to your experience; but instead the Action Heroes blog focusses on how common and everyday these experiences are; and that it is important to respond, be pro active towards the issue rather than simply ignore it.

We also invite you to look at dealing with street sexual harassment in ways that do not necessarily always need aggression but sometimes wit? humour? a non defense approach perhaps?
Got a story? Tell us. Be an Action Hero.

one kind of street sexual harassment could be a series of very 'serious' misinterpretations of codes and boundaries

Being stalked is not fun. Even when you know that it is not dangerous , and harmless. Or maybe it seems like stalking only to me. For many others, including my “stalker”, its trying to woo or flirt. Maybe even being caring and protective. No wonder the whole school was surprised as to why I wasn’t madly in love with my stalker as yet. Action Hero Shreyasi

Do you have a story on how you have been approached? followed? stalked? hit on? 'desired' by a random stranger?

How did you say no. or maybe you said yes? ( in which case it could be street flirting; not necessarily harassment?) In retrospect do you feel that he was 'hitting on you' but it was harassment for you?

Do you (as a male) have a story on how you have approached a female stranger? How did you go about it and what followed?

Tell us. blurtblanknoise at gmail dot com

subject titled: street sexual harassment could be a series of very 'serious' misinterpretations of codes and boundaries. Should you wish to be anonymous you could fill this form instead.

Spread the word:

Post the event on your blog/ on facebook/ twitter. We will link your confirmation towards participating. You could email us your story and or share it on your blog.

Deadline: August 15th.

past reference:
Street Tales of Love and Lust. year 2008.
announcement
food items, songs , other names (bijli. chammak challo), statements


and some more past reference
refraction , jace,
anthonysmirror

jeans and 40 lashes

• she was arrested for wearing jeans.
• faces 40 lashes for wearing 'inappropriate' clothing.
• ten of the women opted to plead guilty, and immediately received 10 lashes and were fined 250 Sudanese pounds.

more here and here and here and here

credits: thanks fred miller for sending us the link

APPLICATION: BLANK NOISE 'CITY' CORE TEAM

[Delhi. Bombay. Calcutta. Bangalore. Lucknow. Hyderabad. Chennai. Vizag. Chandigarh. Nagpur. Ahmedabad. Jodhpur. Jaipur]

The Blank Noise Core Team will have to :
1. meet a minimum of once in 2 weeks
2. work towards a street event a minimum of once in 1.5 months
3. report to the BN city mailing list about current BN events undertaken
4. specify and list involvement
5. be involved for 2 months minimum following which a new core team could be elected.
6. respond to emails / email groups/ facebook
7. participate in existing ongoing projects and campaigns
8. propose Bombay specific ideas + also make connections with BN ideas / events in other cities
9. submit a weekly working report.


You can apply by filling this form here. Don't forget to put your contact details.
http://blog.blanknoise.org/2008/10/calling-blank-noise-volunteers-call-for.html

Your application will be followed by a telephone/ skype interview.
For any queries call us at 98868 40612 or email us at blurtblanknoise @ gmail dot com

The BN city core teams will be announced on the 7th of August and will remain so until the 7th of October -following which a fresh round of applications will be announced. Core team memberships can also be renewed based on the projects the individual has taken.

We look forward to hearing from you.

In spirit
Blank Noise Team




faqs:

But I already am an eager volunteer!
That's great and if you wish you could renew your volunteering status and be part of the core team.

I want to be part of the core team but don't know what skills I have to offer?
It's okay to not know what exactly you can do right away. We would like you to apply
because you are concerned, driven and committed towards addressing the issue of street sexual harassment.
You could be a good conversationalist, a musician, a programmer, a home maker, an accountant- anyone really.
We truly believe that every person can contribute in more ways than one. The 'how' is something that sometimes one arrives at after getting hands dirty!

I have another job / I am at college but not sure of the time- can I still volunteer?
We expect time and energy from your end. Volunteers have managed to take time off despite other work.
Ofcourse you can volunteer but we do expect your time and your attention for a couple of hours every week.

I am a guy. How can I get involved?
BN members are both male and female. Men have always been part of BN.
Street sexual harassment is also a male issue as much as it is female because it concerns male attitudes. Have you been here yet?
http://bnguy.blanknoise.org/

How many people can form the core bn delhi team at a time?
A minimum of 2 and a maximum of 7. We think 5 would be a good number!

I live in "eg: aligarh" and my town has not been listed for BN activites- can I still apply?
Yes you can. We need a minimum of 2 people to form the core team. It could be you and a friend.

Does this mean that the rest of us don't volunteer in that time?
No. It means that you are not held accountable in the same way as the BN core team is. It means that if you are volunteering you would have to report to the BN core team and update them.

My aunt/ uncle/ grandmother/ domestic help/ are interested but they don't use the internet- can they get involved?
Of course! But since most of our communication happens online- they might have to update the rest of us through you!

Build the list below and create your own evidence :

1. Name:
2. Age at time of experience:
3. time:
4. clothes worn at the time of incident:
5. type of harassment/ 'teasing'/ violence:

e: post mail us the garment you wore when you experienced sexual harassment. say out loud . I NEVER ASK FOR IT. BELIEVE.
Be an Action Hero.

e:blurtblanknoise at gmail dot com.

your attention please:

• report here if you experienced it. tell us how you dealt with it. would you deal with it any differently today?how did you become an action hero in your own eyes.

• report here if you witnessed it. tell us what made you help someone. tell us if you didn't come forward to help and why.

• report here if you're male/ man/ boy/ guy and thinking about the issue of street sexual harassment.

about "blank noise guy" : street sexual harassment is as much a male issue as it is one concerning women because it is influenced by male behaviour, attitude and expression. With this thought we announce "Blank Noise Guy" : inviting males to share their experiences on being in public.

Thoughts on the body, boundaries, behaviours
[flirting, 'teasing' , 'harassing',' intimidating', 'having fun', 'just looking'?]

It could range from the fear of being seen as a perpetrator; how you
approached a female stranger (if you ever did); being attracted to a stranger and what you did or witnessing harassment and introspecting on your response. Welcome.

I NEVER ASK FOR IT/ PROBLEMATIC PROBLEM SOLVING ISSUES

WE NEED EACH OF YOU TO CHALLENGE THE ARGUMENT BELOW.
SEND A GARMENT YOU WORE WHEN YOU EXPERIENCED ANY FORM OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT. YOUR GARMENT WILL CHALLENGE THE IDEA THAT WOMEN 'ASK FOR IT' . YOUR CLOTHING IS YOUR WITNESS. SEND YOUR TESTIMONIAL THROUGH CLOTHING. BE THE AGENT. ORGANIZE A CLOTHING DRIVE IN YOUR COLLEGE OR SIMPLY SPEAK TO FRIENDS ABOUT IT. BE THE CLOTHES COLLECTOR FROM YOUR CITY. WRITE TO US AT BLURTBLANKNOISE@GMAIL.COM AND REPORT IN YOUR CLOTHES COUNT. TAKE A PHOTO OF THE GARMENT AND EMAIL IT ASAP. SAY OUT LOUD- I NEVER ASK FOR IT. BE AN ACTION HERO.
we have clothes collectors in chennai. delhi. bangalore. bombay. pune. calcutta. lucknow. vizag.
to get in touch with any of them write to us at blurtblanknoise @gmail dot com subject titled
"i never ask for it"



Chennai:

The Madras high court has declared that salwar kameez is decent wear.
The college management claims the saree only dress code was introduced “to instil and maintain discipline, dignity, and decorum among the internees.”

Kamalam, a homeopathy internee, to wear saree during her internship at Venkateswara Homeopathic Medical College here. Saying that she was not used to wearing sarees, she wanted to be allowed to wear churidhar. When the management did not relent, she issued a legal notice and approached the National Commission for Women. She then filed the present writ petition. The college claimed that the saree-only dress code was introduced only “to instil and maintain discipline, dignity and decorum among the internees”.

Kanpur:
Students and teachers in Kanpur women colleges better watch out their attire as the authorities of several institutes have barred them from wearing jeans, sleeveless blouses, danglers and high heels in the campuses.
This decision was taken to put a check on eve-teasing and ensuring discipline, according to the college principals.

"Banning any clothing will certainly never solve the issue of sexual harassment," said Uzma, a graduate student from Lucknow University who declined to give her full name.

"The state government has not imposed any ban on wearing of jeans by girls. No dress code has been issued by the government in this regard," Secretary Higher Education Kamran Rizvi told reporters here.

The Uttar Pradesh government has slammed the impromptu decision by the State Principals’ Council of aided post graduate degree colleges to ban girl students from wearing jeans on campus.

Step By Step Guide to Unapologetic Walking tees are ready!

Blank Noise supports the Pride by walking wearing 'step by step guide to unapologetic walking' tee shirts.

These tee shirts can be worn anywhere anytime, they have The Step by Step Guide To Unapologetic Walking on them.


A big thank you to Anwesha , Nimi, Chitra, Soumya, Mohnish, Siddarth, Sanhita, Shreyasi, Paige, Hemangini, Jasmeen, Aarthi, Noopur, Saptarshi, Sunayana, John, Rashida, Neha, Natasha,Rashmi, Vishaka, Shravanthi, Pranav, Lalitha, Kirtana, Aarti, Payal, Nabila, Aparna, Shivangini, Ragini, Tinnie, Saraswathi, Smriti, Oindrilla for being the first to wear them on!

(A fresh new set of tees goes to print in the next 2 weeks!)

credits:
The Step By Step Guide to Unapologetic Walking had existed in the form of a poster prior to this- a big thankyou to BN member/ volunteer Shreyasi Kar for making the idea wearable!
To all those Action Heroes who made it to the street actions and other Blank Noise events- your insights created the Step by Step Guide to Unapologetic Walking.