ABSTRACT
Harassment is any unwelcome behaviour, quotes or comments made by one person to another. Sexual harassment is a term usually used to describe unwanted sexual contact, act, conduct or behaviour that happens more than once at work, home, or in school. It includes any unwelcome sexual advances or requests for sexual favors that affect a person’s job, school work, or housing. Street harassment is behaviour or comments that can be sexual but are not always and may target your sex, gender, age, religion, nationality, race, ethnicity, or sexual orientation.
INTRODUCTION
Sexual Harrasment means unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favours, and other verbal or physical conduct, act of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual’s employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual’s work performance, or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.
CLASSIFICATION OF SEXUAL HARRASMENT
1.) Sexual coercion entails sexual advances, act, conduct and makes the conditions of employment (or education, for students) contingent upon sexual cooperation.
2.) Unwanted sexual attention also entails sexual advances, but it does not add professional rewards or threats to force compliance. In this category are expressions of romantic or sexual interest that are unwelcome, unreciprocated, and offensive to the target; examples include unwanted touching, hugging, stroking, and persistent requests for dates or sexual behavior despite discouragement, and can include assault.
3.) Gender harassment is by far the most common type of sexual harassment. It refers to ‘‘a broad range of verbal and nonverbal behaviors not aimed at sexual cooperation but that convey insulting, hostile, and degrading attitudes about” members of one gender.
STAGES OF SEXUAL HARRASMENT
Stage 1 :- Foeticide and infanticide – Where there is an economic or cultural preference for sons, the pregnancy diagnostic tools can lead to female foeticide.
Stage 2 :- School going age – Many Girls are not given the access to and completion of proper primary and secondary education as compared to boys and otherwise may also suffer from discrimination at the hands of parents and teachers in their upbringing.
Stage 3 :- Adolescence – Many adolescent girls become victims of sexual abuse both on internet and otherwise, exploitation and violence, acid attacks, rape ,early marriage, or even HIV/AIDS.
Stage 4 :- Marriage – Many women are tortured physically, economically and emotionally after their marriage by their husband and inlaws.
Stage 5 :- Motherhood – Women are sometimes not provided proper medical care and healthy food during and after her pregnancy .She is often compelled to abort a female foetus.
Stage 6 :- Workplace – often women suffer from exploitation , unequal pay for equal work , lack of promotions despite merit and physical, economic and emotional abuse.
The exact number of people who are sexually harassed at work, home, or school is not known. This is because many people do not report sexual harassment.
TYPES OF SEXUAL HARRASMENT
Verbal or written sexual harassment :-
1.) Making comments about your clothing, body, behavior, or romantic relationships.
2.) Making sexual jokes or comments.
3.) Repeatedly asking you out on a date after you have said no.
4.) Asking you to engage in sexual acts, such as kissing, touching, watching a sexual act, or having sex.
5.) Requesting sexual photos or videos of you.
6.) Threatening you for saying no to a sexual request.
7.) Spreading rumors about your personal or sexual life.
8.) Whistling or catcalling.
9.) Sending online links or photos with explicit or graphic sexual content.
Physical sexual harassment
1.) Being uncomfortably close to you.
2.) Blocking you from moving or walking away.
3.) Inappropriate touching.
4.) Coercing you into sexual activity by threatening to hurt your career, grades, home, or reputation (this is a type of sexual assault) if you do not engage in sexual activity.
4.) Physically forcing into sexual activity without your consent (rape and sexual assault).
Visual sexual harassment
1.) Displaying or sharing sexual pictures, texts (sexting), computer wallpaper, or emails.
2.) Showing you his or her private body parts (called “flashing”).
3.) Masturbating in front of you.
MEASURE TO STOP WOMEN HARRASMENT
As with all other types of abuse, if you are being sexually harassed, it is not your fault. You can take steps to alert others to the harassment and protect yourself from the person harassing you. Many types of sexual harassment are against the law. If you are being sexually harassed, try one or all of these actions:
Say “no” without saying anything else. If a harasser asks you for dates or sexual acts, just say “no.” You do not need to offer excuses like “I have a boyfriend,” or “I don’t date people I work with.” If you give a reason or an excuse, it gives the harasser a way to continue the conversation or to argue with you. Physically leave the situation if you can. If the person continues to ask you for unwanted dates or sexual behavior, report them to someone in authority whose job it is to help you stop the harassment, such as a human resources manager.
Tell the person to stop the harassment, if you feel safe enough to do that. If someone is harassing you by making sexual comments or showing sexual images, tell them that the comment or image is not OK with you. Saying “Stop it” and walking away is a good way to respond also.
Keep a record. When you experience harassment, write down the dates, places, times, and any witnesses to what happened. Store the record in a secure place, such as your phone. If the harassment happened online, save screenshots or emails of the interactions.
Report it. It can be difficult to talk about personal topics with someone at work or school, but you should tell your manager, human resources department, rental company, or school about the harassment. Describe the harassing experiences and explain that they are unwelcome and you want them to stop. If you can, it’s best to make your report in writing so you can save a record of it. Keep copies of everything you send and receive from your employer, landlord, or school about the harassment.
Research your company’s or school’s complaint procedures. Most employers and schools should have a specific procedure on how to respond to sexual harassment complaints. If at work, get a copy of your company’s employee handbook so you can use these procedures to stop the harassment. At schools that get federal funding, you can get a copy of the sexual harassment policy. Follow the complaint procedures and keep records of it.
File a government agency discrimination complaint. You can take your workplace sexual assault case higher by filing a lawsuit in federal or state court, but note that you have to file a formal sexual harassment complaint.
CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN
Sexual Harassment at Workplace :-
Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 was passed with the objective of providing protection to the women at workplace.
Acid Attack :-
Acid throwing, also called an acid attack is a form of violent assault defined as the act of throwing acid or a similarly corrosive substance onto the body of another with the intention to disfigure, maim, torture, or kill.
Rape :-
Rape is one of the most heinous atrocities committed on a woman in our society .It is known to be the fourth most common crime against women in India.
Seven Descriptions of Rape :-
1.) Against her will.
2.) Without her consent.
3.) With her consent, when her consent has been obtained by putting her or any person in whom she is interested, in fear of death or of hurt.
4.) By getting her consent by pretending to be her husband.
5.) When she does not understand the nature and consequences of what she has consented to because of unsoundness of mind or under the influence of alcohol.
6.) With or without her consent, when she is under eighteen years of age.
7.) When she is unable to communicate consent.A rape victim can file an FIR in the local police station under following Sections of Indian Penal Code.
Domestic Violence
Domestic Violence can be described as where one adult in a relationship misuses power in order to control another. It is the establishment of fear in a relationship through violence that includes other forms of abuse.
CONCLUSION
From above discussion these are the points of crime against women. There are many steps which we should follow to stop this violence or crime against women. As we all know unity is diversity, so we should all take positive initiatives to stop this kind of crimes.
REFERENCES :-
1.) 1Barnes v. Costle, 561 F.2d 983, 987 (D.C. Cir. 1977).
2.) U.S. Department of human services, women harrassment, gender equality.
3.) www.womenlawsindia.com c/o FIRE NGO.
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