I’d like to ask, would speaking up and intervening be an appreciated behavior? When I envision this scenario, I see this as likely to incite further discomfort, for “white knighting.”
If taking action expected to reduce future instances of catcalling is negatively received, doesn’t that seem quite irrational and counter to feminist long-term goals? Is the social-expectation impact of “white-knighting” higher than the impact of letting catcalling go on? (“Ah, women need a man to defend them from catcalling, they’re helpless on their own.”, or maybe “It’s alright to catcall as long as some other men aren’t present—it’s a social status thing of men”)
I think this also sidesteps a ton of other considerations: Some women (edit: “people” would be more appropriate and representative, but within context we’re talking about helping women who are being catcalled) have grown up all along as merely victims of various forms of various kinds of abuse and sexism, of which this is sometimes among the lesser ones. If no boys or men have ever stood up for them, and all girls they knew were also victims, what is the default model of the world these women will have, if the subconscious and instincts are left to their own devices? How are they going to feel, in this cruel, unchangeable, hopeless world in which they are helpless and everything they suffer is supposedly their own fault because they “tempt” the males?
I think the long term emotional impact of never having anyone help is far greater than the momentary impact she might feel from being white-knighted and the one the man might feel from the reaction. How true this is also depends on many other factors.
Society (social interactions) is needlessly horrible and complicated. By default.
If taking action expected to reduce future instances of catcalling is negatively received, doesn’t that seem quite irrational and counter to feminist long-term goals? Is the social-expectation impact of “white-knighting” higher than the impact of letting catcalling go on? (“Ah, women need a man to defend them from catcalling, they’re helpless on their own.”, or maybe “It’s alright to catcall as long as some other men aren’t present—it’s a social status thing of men”)
I think this also sidesteps a ton of other considerations: Some women (edit: “people” would be more appropriate and representative, but within context we’re talking about helping women who are being catcalled) have grown up all along as merely victims of various forms of various kinds of abuse and sexism, of which this is sometimes among the lesser ones. If no boys or men have ever stood up for them, and all girls they knew were also victims, what is the default model of the world these women will have, if the subconscious and instincts are left to their own devices? How are they going to feel, in this cruel, unchangeable, hopeless world in which they are helpless and everything they suffer is supposedly their own fault because they “tempt” the males?
I think the long term emotional impact of never having anyone help is far greater than the momentary impact she might feel from being white-knighted and the one the man might feel from the reaction. How true this is also depends on many other factors.
Society (social interactions) is needlessly horrible and complicated. By default.