Agents in the running, the British police initiative to counter catcalling

Too often liquidated as a compliment, the “catcalling»It is a phenomenon as widespread as underestimated: unquestionant comments or winking phrases aimed at the street to women and girls, in fact they represent one form of verbal harassment which invades the personal space generating not a little discomfort. Some studiesshow how those who suffer it can try anxiety, embarrassment and a sense of vulnerability which even limits the freedom to move alone in the city. However in recent years also thanks to social networks, more and more people have started tell direct experiencesmaking the theme visible and stimulating a public debate. Precisely for this reason that Surrey’s police, a south-eastern England county not far from London, started a project to report this phenomenon.

As shown from LBC Newsin the English city of Reigate The police experienced a pilot operation Duration one month that saw some women’s agents, in a sporty estate, jogging during the times of greatest turnout in order to observe the phenomenon closely, while the units specialized in the surroundings are waiting to intervene when an abuse had occurred.

“One of our agents received horn shots within ten minutes, then another vehicle slowed down by playing the horn and making gestures just 30 seconds later,” the inspector explained to the headboard Jon Valeresponsible for the initiative, continuing “if someone slows down, fixes, screams, even if it is not always a crime, It can have a huge impact on people’s daily life And prevent women from doing something simple like going to run ».

The operation would have already made its fruits by informing the transgressors of the damage they were causing. It is Abby Hayward, among the undercover agents involved in the project, to declare: «This behavior It is the precursor of something more serious Or it is pure ignorance, and it is resolvable. This is where our interventions come into play to stop potential recurrence or help people understand that what they are doing is not good ». The LBC reporters, to whom the exclusive opportunity to observe the operation was granted, saw two men stop at the helm of a van and then advance their excuses: “They apologized to us and this has meant a lot for us, because it shows that this operation is working: we are here to make sure that the change happens” says Hayward.

During last month 18 arrests were carried out As part of the operations aimed at contrasting similar or greater severity episodes, and even if not all interventions ended with an arrest, the agents have still adopted different measures, ranging from simple warnings to formal interviews. Nonetheless, the police invite citizens to report the areas considered to risk through Streetsafethe online platform that allows you to indicate the areas perceived as problems in anonymous form.