Will Men Ever Stop?

Yesterday, my jog along the river was interrupted three times by men leaning out of their trucks, whistling and shouting lewd remarks. The day before, a man approached me as I was walking down the street and barked in my face, "Hey, lady, what's up with you?" Last week, I walked out of a restaurant because the man in the next booth spent the entire meal looking my friend over, from head to toe, and then, with a satisfied smirk, turned his attention to me.

Ask any woman if she has encountered similar situations. She will give you an emphatic "yes." Whether she is blond or brunette, tall or short, thin or heavy, daringly dressed or wearing baggy sweatpants and an extra large T-shirt--whether she is what society's conventions consider attractive or not--men will comment, stare and flirt with a persistence that makes traveling salespeople look inattentive by comparison.

These same men will assert that women enjoy and even solicit the attention. Fortunately, most women are not so badly in need of affection. Being ogled by complete strangers--often dirty old men--simply because I happen to have been born a woman is not flattering. Having to change directions because a leering man is sauntering toward me is not flattering. Having to leave a party early because a male under the influence of alcohol is persuaded that he is Romeo and all the women are Juliet is not flattering.

Although women too often cannot walk down a street or enjoy a meal in peace, many of us continue to claim that our society has achieved equality of the sexes. Legally, women may enjoy the same rights and protections as men. Professionally, women are beginning to rise to leadership positions. Even in their own self-esteem, many women now view themselves on a par with men.

But socially, women are still objects that do not command the same respect as men. And as long as images of women as sex symbols continue to feature prominently on billboards, in magazines, on television and maybe even in men's minds, females will remain objects. Our society--politically correct and liberal as it claims to be--shows little inclination to mend its ways.

While Congress busily passes anti-discrimination laws and President Clinton appoints more women to his cabinet, women receive less and less respect in day-to-day social life. The sexual revolution has erased men's inhibitions, with the result that catcalls on the street have become more common than ever. Playboy Magazine and others of its ilk feature prominently on newsstands. The CNN Style segment displays women walking enticingly down catwalks and posing for the cameras with their legs bare and hips swinging. Bars at which women strip are far more popular than Chippendales.

Some might dismiss these complaints by contending it is in men's nature to search out sex. "Men will be men," they say. I say if society stops condoning men's actions they will learn to limit their affection to their girlfriends and wives and leave the rest of feminine society alone. Society needs to realize that, while Playboy and catcalls may seem like small annoyances, men's ill-treatment of women has serious consequences. There has never been a female president of our country, and there probably will not be for a long time. This is not because people do not view women as intellectually equal to men, but because men tend not to vote for candidates they see as sex symbols. Would you want Barbie to lead your country?

Too often a women's ideas can be obscured by comments about her hair style, the color of her suit, her figure and, most disturbingly, her degree of femininity--none of which are the subject of comment when male political leaders speak. When President Clinton first appointed Madeleine K. Albright secretary of state, the media was more interested in analyzing her "manly" style than her policies. Ally McBeal spends most of her time fretting over men and primping herself to look attractive, while male heroes of the Harrison Ford mold only have time to give their wives and girlfriends a peck on the check before they rush off to save the world.

I am not proposing that we make all female heroines She-Ra-type characters or eliminate fashion shows, but I am advocating a change of mindset. We cannot expect the change to come only from men, so women must be pro-active. The stereotypes that prevail in the minds of many men will not fade until women call their bluff. This change will not come from the courts or Congress. Instead of bemoaning our situation, women must convince men that we are more than Barbies and that we abhor the Barbie treatment. And men must acknowledge the rueful truth: Barbie is just a doll. Jenny E. Heller '01, a Crimson editor, is a Romance languages and literatures concentrator in Lowell House.