HollaBack!: Feminist Responses to Street Harassment
Street harassment, or sexual harassment in public spaces, is an issue with which just about every woman has some experience. Activists from New York City and Washington, DC will discuss new, innovative ways to combat street harassment using technology, mapping, and community organizing. Through online activism, public policy and advocacy, and outreach, these activists have succeeded in giving people from many different communities a forum in which they can speak out against gender-based street harassment.
Shannon Lynberg is the co-founder of Holla Back DC! Shannon has worked with various organizations to improve the lives of women and girls. In November 2008, Shannon was featured as one of “Tomorrow’s Leaders” in O, The Oprah Magazine.
Emily May is a social entrepreneur and the co-founder HollaBack!, a movement to end street harassment, and New Yorkers for Safe Transit, a coalition dedicated to safe transit for all. Emily also has a Master’s Degree from the London School of Economics and was recently selected as one of thirty “Women Making History” by the Women’s Media Center along with Rachel Maddow and Nancy Pelosi.
Oraia Reid is a social entrepreneur with over a decade of experience dedicated to empowering communities on behalf of LGBTQ communities, socio/political justice, women’s rights, with a focus on direct services to eradicate gender-based violence. She is the Executive Director of RightRides for Women’s Safety, an award-winning New York City nonprofit she founded in 2004, whose mission is to create safer communities by ending sexual harassment and assault through direct services, safety advocacy and community organizing.
Chai Shenoy is the co-founder of Holla Back DC!, an online, community-based organization whose aim is to educate and address public sexual harassment and assault. In addition to Holla Back DC!, Chai is Policy & Technical Assistance Attorney at Break the Cycle and oversees policy initiatives that relate to how schools address dating violence and sexual violence.