What to do if you are a witness to sexual harassment or someone confides to you that they are a victim?

If you witness a situation which you consider sexual harassment:

• Ask the person you think is a victim whether she/he feels comfortable or whether she/he needs your help.
• Express disapproval of the situation. It is usually difficult for the victim to oppose harassment. Therefore, it helps if you take a stand even if you are not directly affected by the situation. The victim will know she/he is not alone in defending their rights. This does not apply just to sexual harassment. For instance, when a teacher makes jokes demeaning minorities it is good to express disapproval as a member of the majority; when a teacher humiliates women in class, disagreement should be voiced also by a male student (and vice versa).
• If it is difficult to express disapproval or to ask the victim during the incident, try to approach her/him later (after the class, exam etc.) and make sure they do not need help.

If someone confides in you about being a victim of sexual harassment:

• Assure the person that you believe them and that you appreciate their trust
• Emphasise that the person is not guilty.
• Bear in mind that each person responds differently. While one person is able to give a rational account of events, someone else may be paralysed.
• Ask the person whether she/he wants any help. You can offer them various possibilities to tackle the situation as mentioned above.
• Suppress your curiosity. It may be beneficial to speak about the experience for some people, whereas it may be a trauma for others if they are forced to relive the situation.
• Do not push them. A victim of sexual harassment is not obliged to deal with the situation or report it. She/he has experienced an experience that violated their personal integrity. Try to formulate your suggestions as offers – for instance: “Do you want me to call Modrá linka with you?” Do not formulate them as orders: “Call the police! You must report it!”
• Do not do anything against the will of the person who confided in you.
• Being a someone for a victim of sexual harassment to confide in can be psychologically challenging. You can also seek help – you can contact one of the contact persons at MU who will provide you with individual advice.

The StandUp Against Street Harassment project offers a 10-minute digital training that can help you learn what to do if you witness public harassment.

This text was created in collaboration with the Konsent association, which exposes myths about sex and sexual violence. All used text sources can be found below or here.