Each year our school hosts an all day event, Social Justice Day, meant to get all students involved in social issues, spread awareness, and allow kids passionate about specific causes to share their knowledge and hard work. It features school-wide speakers and interactive student-led workshops. On Watkinson's 2019 Social Justice Day I ran a workshop with my friend Olivia called Sexual Harassment: Perspective and Intent. 
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Olivia and I began the workshop with three clips detailing sexual assault cases: one about a freshman girl from Missouri, and two from boarding schools in New England, meant to show how prevalent sexual harassment culture is in these prestigious, mainly white prep schools. We emphasized on the role of the aggressor versus the victim; often, the aggressor is in a role of power, whether it be socially, financially or business related (like a teacher, a boss or someone with a respected reputation). Then we transitioned into the more controversial discussion based scenarios, like the case of girls harassing a boy and hypersensitivity around sexual harassment of women. Despite my original concerns, people in my workshop participated well and made good points,  one sophomore even introducing the topic of LGBTQ+ relationships and harassment and the assumptions made. We talked about the Watkinson dress code versus stricter public school dress codes, and whether one was better than the other. Ultimately, we more than achieved the depth of discussion I was hoping for. I was surprised and pleased by people’s willingness to contribute to such an uncomfortable discussion. I know now that as long as they are done so respectfully, I should not fear to broach controversial topics that need to be discussed.

Above are the two sexual assault cases at New England boarding schools we showed students attending our workshop

What is Sexual Harassment? 

Sexual harassment is any behavior that contains unwanted inappropriate or sexual language, or unwanted physical actions relating to sex. Sexual harassment can range from minor verbal remarks to serious physical assault and abuse. The EEOC also recognizes requests for sexual favors and "rewards" in exchange for sex (like a promotion) as sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is not limited to man-to-woman, or woman-to-man. It can happen between any combination of sexes. Sexual harassment also does not necessarily have to be sexual; making an offensive comment about someone's sex, whether it be personal or general, is also considered sexual harassment as the comment is based off of said person's sex and therefore discriminates against them. 

Why Focus on Sexual Harassment? 

​Sexual harassment culture has been a large area of interest for me since hearing about the St. Paul’s scandal in New Hampshire involving freshman Chessy Prout and senior Owen Labrie. Labrie allegedly raped Chessy Prout attempting to fulfill a tradition at the school called the “Senior Salute”, where senior boys try to take the virginity of as many freshman girls as possible before graduating. This case not only grabbed my attention because of the shocking outcome (while Labrie was expelled, he faced no criminal charges and pled not guilty despite strong evidence), but because I knew of St. Paul's school and its prestigious reputation. After doing some research, I found that many St. Paul's students had sided with Labrie. It was extremely difficult for me to understand their point of view; any other time I have discussed sexual harassment with my friends or family, we are always on the victim’s side. However, as I thought about it more, I considered the personal aspect of many of these cases that makes them so hard to judge fairly. Oftentimes, the harasser and victim are of a similar friend group or school. They both have connections to the same people, and reputations.

Common Environments

Sexual harassment often occurs in a workplace or school environment, where tense situations regarding promotions, raises, grades or favors can occur between superiors and subordinates. School and work environments can often also prove a difficult meeting ground for someone who, for example, you have rejected to go out with; this may result in offensive comments or persistent sexual advances. In many cases, sexual harassment is a gray area because can be seen as not offensive but "romantic": someone who won't give up until they get what they want. However, any case of truly unwanted attention regarding sex is sexual harassment and is not romantic; it is against the law.