The Inevitable
By: Jessie Sing
Tags: Creative Writing, 97percent, Sexual Harassment, Short Story, Sexual Assault

The leaves crunched under her feet as she walked along the crooked footpath, heading home from a long day of Uni. The Autumn breeze sent goosebumps crawling up her naked arms, her shoulders bare from the singlet she wore. Loud hooting and repetitive honks caught Kat’s attention as she turned her head, her gaze focused on the source of the noise. A black Ute slowed down to Kat’s pace, a man peered his head out the window.

“Aye, where you headed gorgeous? Can I give you a lift?” The man leant further out the window as he smirked at Kat. His gaze traveled up and down her curvy frame, wolf whistling as his cold eyes met hers.

Kat sneered at the man in disgust, ignoring his catcalling as she rolled her eyes. “No thank you” Kat spat out as she picked up her pace, turning the corner hastily.

The man drove closely behind her, “Aw come on sweetheart don’t be like that” He sent her a wink as he licked his chapped lips, his gaze travelled down her body once more, making her feel grimy.

The man’s stare bore into the side of Kat’s head as she lifted her arm, flipping him off as she crossed the street. The black Ute sped up, whipping past Kat as the man yelled out the window. “Your loss, bitch!”

The back of the Ute grew smaller into the distance as it disappeared out of view down the street. Kat hurriedly pulled out her phone, dialing her friend Tom. Kat’s eyes darted all around her as she tightly held her phone to her ear.

“Hey Kat” Her heartbeat slowed down as she heard the familiar and comforting voice.

“Some man just harassed me, he drove past and tried picking me up, what a disgusting prick” Kat cringed as the man’s seedy face appeared in her mind, his scruffy face smirking at her, his cold eyes twinkling with animalistic hunger.

“What an asshole, are you ok?” Kat nodded her head, giving him a short yes in response. “But what were you wearing?” She halted in her steps, blinking twice.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she scratched her head in disbelief, “Excuse me?”

Tom sighed into the phone, “What were you wearing that made him do that? Where you wearing something that was a bit slutt-” Her knuckles turned white as she gripped her phone tighter, temper rising.

“I’m sorry what?! That has nothing to do with this! Don’t justify that heinous pig’s actions, what I wear shouldn’t matter. I should be able to wear whatever I want, whenever I want and not have to feel uncomfortable or unsafe.” She abruptly hung up, not waiting for a response. She aggressively shoved her phone into her pocket, pulling out her keys as she made it home.

“Alexa, play Violent Crimes by Kanye West”

(4) Kanye West — Violent Crimes (Lyric Video) — YouTube

Fallin’, dreamin’, talkin’ in your sleep

I know you want to cry all night, all night

Kat lay on her bed scrolling through Instagram, tik tok videos captioned with #97percent kept popping up on her feed.

Piquing her interest she grabbed her laptop, typing #97percent tik tok trend into google. Kat gasped in surprise as she saw numerous articles show up, articles stating that 97% of women have been victims of sexual harassment in public spaces (Thompson, R. 2021). She read in an article that this trend was inspired after the disappearance and death of 33 year old Sarah Everard, inspiring women across the globe to share their own stories of sexual assault or harassment under the hashtag #97percent. (Honore, P. 2021).

Kat shut her laptop, she was flabbergasted. So many thoughts ran through her mind, the earlier events of being harassed playing over and over in her mind. As she lay down on her bed her mind wandered to what Tom had said.

“What were you wearing that made him do that?”

She fumed at the idea that it was “her” fault for being harassed. Kat closed her eyes taking in a deep breath, mind going blank, as she listened to Kanye’s song Violent Crimes, the lyrics tugging on her heart strings. Goosebumps erupted all over her arms and legs as the lyrics hit home, as she realised that she is now a part of that 97%.

Don’t do no yoga, don’t do Pilates

Just play piano and stick to karate

I pray your body’s draped more like mine

And not like your mummy’s

The lyrics resonated with her, realizing that it’s just a man rapping about his worries for his daughter, as if he knows she’ll be a part of that 97%. Kat stared at her ceiling wide-eyed.

“What has this world come to?”

****

Everyday millions of women have to deal with sexual assault and harassment, whether that’s physical, cyber or verbal. The reports suggest that almost every woman has experienced it, resulting in many women being able to attest to receiving unwarranted nudes or catcalls at some point in time (Honore, P. 2021). A UN Women UK investigation found that 97% of women aged between 18 and 24 have been sexually harassed or assaulted, with a startling 96% of these cases not being reported due to the belief that it would not change anything.

“75% of sexual harassment claims get paid out before they ever see court” (Sexual Harassment Australia). These statistics aren’t comforting, resulting in other women subjected to sexual harassment or sexual assault not coming forward and reporting their story, as they are too afraid that nothing will be done about it.

Sexual harassment and sexual assault is such a current issue, people need to be more aware of the signs of sexual harassment and assault. The more people know, the more we are able to prevent and reduce these cases.

For victims of sexual assault in 2019:

The majority (83%) were female (22,337 victims)

Around two-thirds (67%) occurred in a residential location (17,395 victims)

A third were FDV-related (8,985 victims)

Almost all (95%) did not involve a weapon (25,583 victims)

There were increases in:

New South Wales (up 768 victims or 7%)

Australian Capital Territory (up 49 victims or 18%)

Nationwide, 81% of women and 43% of men reported experiencing some form of sexual harassment and/or assault in their lifetime. Sexual Assault Statistics | National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC)

One in three female victims of completed or attempted rape experienced it for the first time between the ages of 11 and 17. Sexual Assault Statistics | National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC)

And as time goes on these numbers continue to grow and expand due to the lack of awareness and lack of people treating these cases seriously.

Reference List