Harassment takes over who we are
Harassment is something we've all experienced – in school, at work, even from friends. Some we brush off, other experiences are so intimidating, terrifying or hurtful that we never forget them.
A recent study from Lund University shows that 70% of women in Sweden change their behaviour or the way they look to avoid getting harassed – because it's unpleasant or threatening. So in order words, harassment takes over who we are and we end up being a smaller version of ourselves.
But how do we stop it? Simple. We intervene when we witness it, and through these actions, we can shift the culture that supports harassment. However, we've all been in a situation where we wished we had done something, said something, reacted – but we didn’t.
There are three main reasons why we dont act when witnessing harassment.
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Difficult to notice
Harassment can be extremely hard to notice. In most cases you'll just see two people talking to each other. But if you do notice, maybe you're in doubt of whether you should intervene.
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Not sure about intervening
A discussion or conversation with a friend or partner is a private matter, so even if you notice that something's off, we're often in doubt. Especially if nobody else around you seem to act.
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Not knowing how to intervene
Even though we notice and decide to intervene, we have no training in how to approach or what to say to de-escalate the situation. Many of us even think we have to fight or get into a discussion.
It's our goal to remove these three obstacles by using technology, so we can all be part of changing the culture that supports harassment.
Remove doubt
By enabling users to call for backup through app or jewelry (coming soon), we can make it clear if someone wants and needs support to get away from a harasser.
In this way, all.u.me eliminates the first two obstacles: not noticing the harassment and not knowing whether to intervene.
And by informing our users of how to intervene, we can also tackle the third obstacle.
Learn bystander intervention
In a report by UN Women it's concluded that to change the culture supporting harassment, it’s vital that we all take part and step in when we witness harassment in our everyday lives.
This is why all.u.me’s most important task is to educate our users in an effective bystander intervention method promoted by the NYC based NGO Right To Be.
With the 5Ds in your tool belt, you will be ready to react based on your mood that day and the situation you face.