Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment: A thing so dreadful that most people try to shy away from the topic. However, it is something that people encounter almost every day. It happens everywhere: jobs, home, school, college/university, and even on the streets. Some sexual harassment policies go too far, and this is a very important point to understand. There are different kinds of sexual harassment. As a result, it is also important to be specific about what forms of sexual harassment policies are too exaggerated. The form of sexual harassment which is not as much of a threat as it has often been made into is simply verbal ‘sexual harassment’. physical sexual harassment is a serious problem, and I have no qualms with strict policies to fight these violations of people’s physical bodies.
First, freedom of speech should not be infringed upon by certain verbal forms of ‘sexual harassment’ policies. It is one thing to threaten someone, or to physically violate their personal space. It is quite another to notice one’s physical attributes and to compliment the individual on those attributes accordingly. The First Amendment says—and I am paraphrasing—we should be able to exercise our freedom of speech without barriers. The First Amendment is the most important amendment. Accordingly, we as American citizens should give it the most credence and value. One has to be quite practical about the First Amendment’s meaning today in everyday life. So, of course, a threat to somebody’s personal safety should not be legally tolerated whatsoever. However, for example, saying ‘hey babe’ is not a threat, is it? That is a rhetorical question. Obviously, it is not a threat. Therefore, there is no solid ground to stand on in attacking someone who compliments a co-worker or any other person for that matter, regardless of its romantic or even ‘sexual’ content. I should have the freedom to compliment a woman about her physique as she should legally be able to compliment me on my physique. The argument is not that a man should be able to say whatever comes to mind, but simply that he should be able to compliment a woman based on how she looks, not on what he would like to do to her. That is an important distinction to be made.
The Essay on Sexual Harassment
You wouldnt think that giving someone a compliment, like Hey you look sexy today, would be considered harassment. However, in todays world anything is possible. Sexual harassment has become a big issue in society and sometimes a person can take it to the extreme. There are many things that can be considered harassment, there are many ways to prevent it, and there are things you can do to help ...
Secondly, verbal sexual harassment policies are unfairly directed at men. Most people never hear or even think that if a woman were to make a complimentary remark to a man, that this would qualify as ‘verbal sexual harassment’. The fact that the great majority of the time verbal sexual harassment claims are made by women brings us to some very intriguing questions. For instance, why do we have such a strong assumption that women need special laws to protect them from being complimented on their appearance? Is it not true that women appreciate feeling good about the way they look, just as men also equally like to feel good about how they look? Since it is quite obvious that both men and women appreciate being complimented, why should people be legally barred from complimenting someone they think looks attractive? Are men stronger than women on the inside? If not, why do men rarely file claims of being verbally sexually harassed? Women make comments to men (some of them clearly sexual in content) all the time. But, when men complement women, all of a sudden, the man is the bad guy. Why is that? This reality is clearly due to widespread sexist notions of men always being the aggressors and women always being the victims. Once again, this is not to say that men should be able to threaten or insult women, nor does it postulate that men should be able to forcefully communicate to whichever women they choose what their sexual fantasies are. This is simply saying that individuals ought to be legally able to complement one another based on physical appearance.
The Essay on Sexual Harassment 11
... know the real definition of sexual harassment. Men and women explain in differently. When 1200 men and women were asked if they would ... sexual harassment threatens the freedom of speech; one man's vulgarity is another mans lyric, and many of the cases are simply the claims ... looks, and sexual remarks, deliberate touching, pressure for dates, letters and calls, actual or attempted rape (Verbal and ...
Third, verbal sexual harassment policies are exceptionally difficult to enforce. It is not very difficult, for example, to constrain people from making sexual remarks to each other at a formal work meeting. However, how difficult would it be to adequately enforce these limitations on people’s speech during a party? For instance, picture a typical college frat party. There is heavy drinking, probable drug use, loud music, and of course, who can forget the provocatively dressed ladies? If the girl in question claims to have been sexually harassed by a male at the party, but she was absolutely inebriated, how can we objectively assess her claim? The issue becomes even more problematic when male and female witnesses who were at the party claim the girl was making sexual advances on the guy whom she claims made sexual advances on her! Of course, this is not only a problem for dealing with claims of verbal sexual harassment but also physical and more serious claims of sexual harassment. The fictional case mentioned above shows the limits of sexual harassment policies in general, but verbal sexual harassment claims in particular. Ask yourself, how much more difficult would it be to prove that a drunk girl’s half naked body was explicitly complemented at a party by a drunk guy, than it would be to prove that the girl was beaten and physically raped? If she were raped, there is a much greater chance that eye witnesses at the party would have noticed something went wrong.
In contrast, it is next to impossible to absolutely prove or acquire evidence for the claim that the drunken guy said she had “nice tits”, especially if he did not say it loudly or boastfully tell his friends. This issue is complex and obviously will remain a constant problem. But, that being said, the fact is physical sexual harassment is far easier to enforce than verbal sexual compliments which some would call ‘sexual harassment.’ Another noteworthy thing to add is simply that people should use caution wherever they go and not go to places where sexual harassment (whether verbal or physical) is very likely to occur. The girl in the fictional account above probably would not have been as likely to have bad experiences claim to have been harassed if she would have hung out at a church youth group get together, in contrast to an out of control drinking party. In other words, don’t be stupid. Expect harassment in seedy environments. Or, make the better choice and consider not going to these shady places at all.
The Essay on Sexual Harassment 13
Sexual Harassment 1. Policy In order to create healthy working environment at workplace, it is crucial that no employee suffers from any form of sexual harassment. Its also important to convince people that there is no threat that allegations of sexual harassment can be applied to them irrationally. In recent times, many employees tend to explain their poor performance by the fact that their ...
Verbal sexual harassment policies are not positive. First, they violate our First Amendment’s rights. Second, they are unfairly directed at men. Third, they are very difficult to enforce and objectively assess. They are evidence of a common hypersensitivity in our contemporary culture. Threats as well as physical unwanted advances should be opposed by legal policies. However, as often it is the case simple compliments should not be legally attacked. In many of these cases in our everyday lives, we individuals should use discretion when speaking to others, and make sure we gauge the situation before saying what we want to say. In other words, tact and personal individual responsibility are integral. If I have the right to compliment a girl who appears attractive to me, that girl should have the right to tell me to go F myself if she disapproves. This is common sense, yet some people feel the need to infringe upon others’ right to free speech if they don’t like it. This is unconstitutional, this is unfeasible, this is pointless, and this is in fact un-American.
