Life

This Video Turns the Tables on Everyday Sexism

by Nathalie O'Neill

What would it be like if men had to experience the sexist situations that women are subjected to on a daily basis? The Guardian's Leah Green made a short film, drawing on tweets from the @EverydaySexism Twitter account, about what that might look like. Green didn't make this stuff up — all scenes in her film are based on real encounters women have reported to @EverydaySexism, and the whole film was made with hidden cameras.

"Never, ever, have I heard of a woman being surprised when, for example, she is honked at by a male driver," writes Green. "Scared, perhaps; embarrassed, almost definitely. Women have grown to expect sexual aggression and thus it becomes normalized. By turning the tables we can look at harassment with fresh eyes." The men's disbelief mirrors the disbelief we all should still feel when such acts of everyday sexism happen to women; their surprise reminds us this should not be taken as a compliment, or brushed off, or tolerated."

By turning the tables on men, Green shows us how ridiculous and downright unacceptable these instances of everyday sexism are. Of course most of the men in the video don't react like most women would, but that's what makes it so interesting. At some point, a construction crew actually straight-up tells Green "You can't talk to us like that." Clearly, telling someone to "get their arse out" is never OK.

Check out Green's video for yourself:

Image: The Guardian/YouTube