Last Day to Vote: Hollaback!

You got us here, now help us seal the deal. Give your five star rating to Hollaback and help us win the Knight News Challenge. Over the past month 1,732 of you have checked out our application, making us the most viewed project of the competition. Even more impressive, 102 of you have voted for our project, securing us the most votes. But yesterday, our competitors showed their poor sportsmanship by slamming our project with one star votes and sinking Hollaback! from #1 to #15. It's your take-no-shit attitude that has made our project a success over the past five years. So let's rally on this cold winter day hollaback! at these haters to get this project funded. This is your chance to fight street harassment worldwide. Vote now. Voting ends today.

Hollaback is KYW Newsradio's Web Pick of the Day!

Reprinted from the KYW's site by KYW's Bob Bicknell: At last. Folks in the Big Apple and plenty of other cities have a chance to fight back against those who harass you on the streets. If you get whistled at, ogled, or otherwise annoyed by people while you’re trying to live your life, snap their picture with your cell phone and shame them at hollabacknyc.com. There are sites for other U.S. and foreign cities, just look for their direct links on the left hand side of the page. Go to HollaBackNYC.com.

Interview with HollabackNYC co-founder Emily May!

Check out Emily's interview on The Daily Femme! And for those of you curious where Hollaback is heading: Where would you like to see this site and program be in 10 years? In ten years HollabackNYC will be part of a larger organization called Hollaback!, which will be the pre-eminent anti-street harassment organization worldwide. The number of Hollaback affiliates will have grown from 20 to 50, and instead of blogs and cell phone cameras, we will be using smart phone applications and GPS mapping to track street harassment and break the silence. By 2020, there will be a notable decrease in the amount of street harassment worldwide, and I will take a much-deserved vacation. Until then, Hollaback!

Time is Running out: Vote for Hollaback 2.0!

As you know, we have made it to the second round of the Knight Foundation! To win, we need your help. Give Hollaback! your five star vote here. Voting ends on Sunday!

Pinched by a Prick

This guy was sexually harassing my friend by groping & pinching her behind! I asked politely to apologize, he didn't, so I took a video...

Holla Right Back 'Atcha

Perv taking a pic of me on train. Submitted by E.

Cell Phones Used to Report Rapes in Guinea

Mobile phones are being used increasingly across the world to track violence against women, although there are still challenges. Check out this article from Gender Across Borders: A women’s rights advocate in Guinea noted that “some lost their lives particularly because they took pictures; this is a new trend in Guinea. It is a first in our history. Guineans now have access to mobile phones and, despite their degrading nature, women are in the process of breaking silence and participating in circulating pictures.” The article goes on to talk about the pitfalls of citizen journalism, and how many of the images have not been picked up by the traditional media because their credibility is questioned. Still, these images have started a conversation and brought attention to rapes that would have otherwise gone unreported -- ultimately breaking the silence. My heart goes out to those that lost their lives in the process. They are truly heroes, HOLLAheroes. To read the full article, click here.

"If you don't like people looking at you, stay inside"

I recall an incident where the guy says, "If you don't like people looking at you, stay inside," right before I maced him. That's a ringing statement that he sees us as not even being persons, but an object to control. The fact along that they get violent if their sexual advances are rebuffed shows that - just like rape - it is not about sex, or you, or your attractiveness, but their desire to have power over you against your will. I find no matter how you tell them off, they will come strong, especially if you are weak in your rebuff. Submitted by Raven

Groping: Reported to LAPD

NOTE: Our readers often ask us about reporting harassment and assault to the police. Although we've heard some horror stories, it's almost important to realize that if we don't report it these creeps will never stop. Here is a story of a brave woman who reported it. If it wasn't for your blog, I wouldn't of had the courage to contact the LAPD regarding that attack along with a groping situation that happened back in Nov. by someone who I thought was going to be a prospective client. I have always been adamantly disdainful of sexual harassment and your blog shows what I have been saying all along: It is NOT about compliments, it is about the power guys get off of demeaning women. Since we gained power in the workplace, etc, they feel that there is a need on their part to show us "who is boss" and put us in our places for daring to have freedom and no longer be their property. Just like rape is used as a weapon, so is sexual harassment. Submitted by Raven

NYC Govt. wants you to HOLLABACK!

It looks like the city has taken a page from HollabackNYC and created HollabackNYPD! Here's how to submit your photos: The City accepts photos and videos along with 911 reports and most 311 Service Requests. To include a photo or video from a cell phone or computer with a 911 report, tell the 911 operator that you have photos or videos related to your emergency. The 911 operator will enter a special code in the New York Police Department (NYPD) internal communications system. The photo or video will be sent to the NYPD Real Time Crime Center. Depending on the case, the images may be shared widely with the public, police officers on patrol, individual detectives, or other law enforcement agencies. The images may also been used to identify and locate suspects as quickly as possible, or they may be used to help with responding to emergencies. When you submit an eligible Service Request through 311 and provide a valid email address, 311 will send you an email with a link that allows you to upload photos or video to include with your Service Request. This service is available for most but not all 311 Service Requests. 311 does not currently accept photos or video for Service Requests taken by Agency Specialists or Literature Service Requests. All 911 reports and 311 Service Requests are forwarded to the appropriate Agency and actioned regardless of whether you include photos or video.

Doused by a Douche

Last Monday, Jan. 4, 2010, I was driving in my car down 8th Street in downtown Los Angeles when I noticed a man on the side of me who was staring in my direction. I rolled my eyes at him and proceeded talking over the phone to my brother via bluetooth. All of a sudden, I noticed as he got on the side of me and effectively blocked me from getting into the next lane. Not knowing if he was just trying to get into my lane, I rolled my windows down to ask if he could move out the way since I needed to get into the next lane. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, he threw water on me and blocked me from pursuing him. Check out Raven's super-smart article "Street Harassment is a Crime" here. Submitted by Raven.

Californians: Make Your Workplace Harassment-Proof

Harassment doesn't just magically go away; it takes work. If you want to make your workplace harassment-proof, check out our corporate sponsors at CalBizCentral. From CalBizCentral: When it comes to sexual harassment in the workplace, you have to know what is required of your company and your human resources department. Harassment is not a topic you can take lightly or decide to learn about at a later date. If you work in human resources for a company, it's time to learn everything you need to know about sexual harassment. HRCalifornia will help you find information and tools to assist with training.

You Got Us Here: Now Help Us Go Further!

Thanks to the 3,800 of you who voted for Hollaback 2.0, we made it to the second round of the Knight News Foundation. Now we are asking you to vote again. Click on the fifth star and wait for the number of votes to increase to make sure yours is counted. If you want to stop worrying if you could run in those heels if you needed to, vote again. If you want to slap the next man who tells you to "smile," vote again. If your head scarf, puffy coat, and winter boats still aren't making you harassment-free, vote again. Each story you submit is read by 1,000 people: now that's leadership. Your stories, your vision, and your commitment got us here. Now it's time to step up our game and build a platform that uses today's technology to make even easier to Hollaback. We've never been able to do it without you, so we're not going to try now. Vote again. It's your future. Make it harassment-free.