This week, thousands of women marched in Paris to protest sexual harassment and assault.
The anti-harassment energy has been building all month, with women in France and abroad using #metoo and #balancetonporc to draw attention to inappropriate sexual advances in the workplace and in the streets.
Activists have even set up a special phone number that women can give men badgering them for their digits, which sends them a message saying, “If a woman says no, she means no,” if the man attempts to contact the number.
Marlene Schiappa, France’s new Gender Equality Minister, has a number of laws coming to the table that would outlaw sexual harassment and allow police officers to hand out on-the-spot fines to those found catcalling or conducting inappropriate sexual behavior.
But on a lighter note, let’s check out the signs these women made. My personal favorite is “Moins de patriarcat, plus de chocolat” (“Less patriarchy, more chocolate”), a motto that I think should be implemented everywhere, immediately. Schiappa, let’s get some legislation on that.
