Street harassment is a problem that occurs worldwide. Anyone can experience it. Unfortunately, women, girls, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community are regularly harassed in public. They are, for example, verbally abused, subjected to sexually explicit comments, or followed on the street.
Street harassment isn’t limited to the streets or to nightlife. It also happens in shopping centers, supermarkets, and other public spaces. You might be stared at during a walk in the park, or receive an inappropriate comment while cycling.

Forms of street harassment

Street harassment comes in different forms: non-verbal, verbal, and physical. Sometimes it starts small. Someone whistles as you walk by, hisses at you, or stares at your body for minutes as if you’re an object. Or you suddenly notice someone deliberately following you, on foot or driving slowly behind you in a car. This is non-verbal behavior that doesn’t need words to make you feel unsafe.

The second form is verbal: explicit comments about your body, sexual innuendos, or unsolicited questions like, “Can I have your number?”, “Are you going home, can I come with you?”, or if you’re queer: “Do you want a threesome?” If you don’t play along, the comments can suddenly turn into insults like: “Whore,” “Slut,” “Bitch.”

Finally, there is physical street harassment: a hand suddenly on your butt during a night out. Someone touching you without your consent or suddenly pushing you against a wall. Sometimes even someone trying to drag you into an alley. That’s not just intimidating, it comes dangerously close to assault.

What all these forms have in common is that they are not compliments. They’re meant to control, dominate, or make you feel like you don’t belong in public spaces. And that feeling that you have to be careful, that you have to think about your clothes or your route lingers and leaves its mark.

Who are the victims and perpetrators of street harassment?

Although anyone can experience it, it is primarily women, girls, and LGBTQIA+ individuals who are frequently targeted by street harassment. The reason these groups are targeted more often is not a coincidence. Street harassment is rooted in social power dynamics and gender norms. It’s a way of putting people who “deviate from the norm” in their place. For LGBTQIA+ people, it is often a punishment for breaking gender expectations or sexual norms, such as holding hands with your partner.

In theory, anyone can commit street harassment, but in practice, the perpetrators are almost always men. In fact, in 70% of cases, the harasser is a man (Plan International). This is related to deeply ingrained gender roles about how men are supposed to behave in society. In our society, power is still often exercised over women and queer people.

The media plays a role in this. Think, for example, of music, porn, or advertisements that portray women as sex objects. Peer pressure among boys also reinforces this behavior: in groups, some feel the need to prove their masculinity. If young people don’t receive proper sex education at home or school, they learn about boundaries mostly from each other or from the streets. This sustains a culture in which harassment is excused or even encouraged. Often, the impact of behavior isn’t considered.

Impact on daily life

Street harassment limits people’s freedom — literally. It affects where you walk, what time you go somewhere, what you wear, and who you walk with. Sometimes you avoid certain neighborhoods or public transport. In the worst case, you miss school, skip work, or quit sports.

According to Plan International (2023), 83% of Dutch girls between 16 and 27 years old have experienced street harassment. 63% of them say it affects their freedom of movement.

What’s often underestimated is the effect of repeated “small” incidents. Even without physical violence, street harassment leaves mental traces — such as hypervigilance, anxiety, or avoidance of public spaces.

This is known as “accumulative trauma” or chronic microtrauma. It’s a form of somatic trauma, where the body remains constantly “on” due to repeated stress stimuli. Your body remembers what happened, even if your mind tries to push it away (The Body Keeps the Score, Bessel Van Der Kolk).

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Street harassment is not an isolated incident, but a structural problem deeply rooted in our society. The numbers speak for themselves and show how widespread this issue is and how normalized this behavior has become.

A confronting image
Research by Plan International from 2023 reveals that no less than 83% of Dutch girls and young women aged 15 to 25have experienced unwanted sexual behavior in public spaces. For 63% of them, this has led to limiting their freedom of movement: they avoid public transport, sports clubs, or hobbies, and in extreme cases miss school or work. Additionally, the 2022 Prevalence Monitor on Domestic Violence and Sexual Transgressive Behavior shows that 17.8% of women and 7.5% of men have been victims of sexually transgressive behavior.

What makes this even more confronting is that sexual harassment often starts at a young age. Plan International’s (2023) research shows that girls and young women aged 12 to 27 are most likely to experience street harassment. Reports decrease after that age, not because the problem disappears, but because women develop strategies to avoid it more often, for example by spending less time in public spaces. The fact that harassment starts so early illustrates how deeply embedded and normalized sexually transgressive behavior is in our society. Girls have to start adapting in secondary school already: changing their clothes, avoiding certain routes, wearing earphones, staying alert. The public space is rarely neutral for them, let alone safe.

LGBTIQIA+ Community: hit twice as hard
LGBTIQIA+ people are often confronted with street harassment, especially when their sexual orientation or gender identity is visible. In Rotterdam, research showed that many LGBTIQIA+ individuals choose not to walk hand in hand or wear eye-catching clothing, out of fear of negative reactions such as verbal abuse, staring, or even physical violence. According to the 2023 Safety Monitor, 25% of LGBTIQIA+ individuals aged 15 and older were victims of ‘’traditional’’ crime, including violent offenses, within the past twelve months. Non-binary individuals are the most frequently targeted. The LGBTIQIA+ community is thus often doubly impacted when it comes to transgressive behavior.

The Role of Social Media in Street Harassment
Social media play a significant role in how young people perceive gender roles and sexual behavior. Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat are major sources of social pressure and sexist norms. Research by Plan International (2023) shows that 58% of young women aged 15 to 25 in the Netherlands experience online sexual harassment. This digital intimidation has offline consequences: young people internalize certain beliefs, which contributes to the normalization of sexually transgressive behavior in public. Influential figures like Andrew Tate reinforce this. His sexist statements contribute to a culture where women are seen as inferior and harassment is considered “normal” behavior. As a result, the boundaries between online and offline harassment are increasingly blurred.

What do these numbers tell us?
The figures show that street harassment is a widespread issue that deeply affects the daily lives of many. It limits victims’ freedom, safety, and self-expression, and contributes to a culture where intimidation is normalized. It is crucial that we take these statistics seriously and work together towards a society where everyone, including queer individuals and women, can feel free and safe in public spaces.

In this blog, we’ll discuss the three most important stakeholders when it comes to street harassment (victims, bystanders, and perpetrators) and offer concrete tools for what each group can do.

What can you do as a victim?

Despite all precautions—turning on “Find My Friends,” calling someone when you get home, holding your bike keys in your hand as a weapon—you can’t always prevent harassment. And that is never your fault. Still, many people feel powerless after an instance of harassment.

Did you know that many people freeze in uncomfortable or dangerous (sexual) situations? Research shows that up to 70% of victims freeze during sexual violence (Slachtofferhulp Nederland). Your body automatically enters the well-known “fight, flight, or freeze” response. You freeze, even if you don’t want to. Your body shifts into survival mode. And that is normal. That is not weakness. That is nature.

If you are able to act, here are some things you can do:

• Trust your instincts. If something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. Take that feeling seriously.
• Avoid physical confrontation if that’s safer. Your safety comes first.
• Use your phone as a tool. Film or take photos if you can. Did you know you can set up an emergency call feature on your phone? It lets you silently call 112, trigger an alarm, or notify your emergency contacts automatically.
• Seek help. Call the police, the Center for Sexual Violence, or confide in someone you trust. You can also report it (anonymously) via intimideermijniet.nl. Don’t feel safe reaching out to the police or other organizations? We can help you with that.
• Why reporting matters? Not just for your own processing, but also to pinpoint unsafe areas. Your report contributes to creating a city where everyone can feel safe.

The role of bystanders

Bystanders can make or break a situation. And yet, we often do nothing. Out of fear, uncertainty, or because we think: “It’s not my business.” This is known as the bystander effect, a psychological phenomenon where people are less likely to help in emergency situations when others are present. People are then more likely to assume someone else will step in.

Two key factors are at play in this:

• Diffusion of responsibility: The perceived diffusion of responsibility means that the more bystanders are present, the less likely we are to feel a personal responsibility to take action.
• Social influence: This means that people look to others to decide how to act. This can cause a kind of collective “freeze mode.”

Your presence alone can make a huge difference. Want to be the perfect ally? Use the Bystander Intervention Model:

1. Recognize transgressive behavior: Learn the signs of sexual harassment. Stay present and alert. Just being there and showing that you see what’s happening can already scare off the harasser. Your presence can offer the victim a sense of support and safety.
2. Acknowledge the seriousness of the situation: Know that you’re more likely to underestimate the situation if others do nothing.
3. Feel responsible: Don’t let the presence of others stop you from taking action.
4. Know how to intervene: Ask, “Are you okay?” and watch for body language. A “yes” should be enthusiastic. Distract the harasser or make up an excuse: “Come with me, I need to show you something.” This removes the victim or the harasser from the situation.
5. Decide to act: Acknowledge your hesitation, and act anyway. Don’t feel safe? Ask help from a security guard, staff member, or another bystander. Give clear instructions: “Can you call the police?” or “Will you help me?”

Good news: You can practice this. Yes, really. The organization Fairspace offers training through “Join in with 5D”. This online tool teaches you five strategies—Direct, Distract, Delegate, Delay, and Document—for how to intervene during harassment. Because being an ally is like a muscle, you can train it.

What can you do as a perpetrator?

“I’m not a perpetrator.” That’s what almost everyone says. Yet research shows that many people who harass don’t see themselves as perpetrators. For instance, young men often say they stare at women without meaning to, and a quarter of them believe it’s acceptable to compliment women on their bodies in public (Plan International). Have you ever catcalled someone? Whistled? Stared too long? Commented on someone’s body in the street? Maybe you didn’t mean anything by it, but the other person felt unsafe.

It’s important to let go of the stereotype that street harassers are only “creepy men in alleyways.” Perpetrators can be friends, family, or even you. And that’s exactly why we need to change how we look at perpetration. That’s how we create real change. Not just through punishment, but through awareness, reflection, and taking responsibility for what we do and what we don’t do.

Ask yourself: “What’s my intention when I approach someone on the street?”, or, “Have I ever unintentionally made someone feel scared?”, or, “How do I react when someone calls me out on my behavior?”

What is consent?

All of this relates to consent. Consent is not a checkbox or an admin task you tick off and forget. Consent is a living, active, and continually ongoing process. A helpful way to remember what consent truly means is through the consent fries:

Freely given: Voluntarily agreed to.
Reversible: Can be withdrawn at any time.
Informed: Based on complete information.
Enthusiastic: Given with clear verbal and non-verbal enthusiasm.
Specific: Consent is specific to the situation. You can agree to have a casual chat on the street, but that doesn’t mean you want to give out your number.