License to Harass
Law, Hierarchy, and Offensive Public Speech
Chapter One
INTRODUCTION
This guy says to me, "I hate women, they're all sluts." (24-year-old
white woman, student, interview #10)
And he said, "I love that smile. I would have liked to have been there
this morning when your man put that smile on your face. What did he do
to put that smile on your face? I'll bet he fucked you so long you'll be
smiling all day." (field notes 1994)
"Monkey for a dollar!" (18-year-old African American woman, interview
#54)
I get these comments all the time. Mostly because of the fact that I am
a lesbian. When I am walking down the street with my girlfriend we get
lots of comments like, "Try me and you'll never go back" or "I can show
you things that she can't." (19-year-old Hispanic woman, emergency
medical technician, interview #6)
A man says to me, "[H]ey white bitch, come suck my dick." (26-year-old
white woman, unemployed, interview #30)
WORDS LIKE THESE are spoken on the streets of America every day. To women,
such words instill fear as a possible pr ... read full excerpt from License to Harass: Law, Hierarchy, and Offensive Public Speech ebook
