Originally Posted by le brad
I'm curious if women cyclists are harrassed as much more often as I imagine. My girlfriend commutes too, but she has only a very short distance so her harrassment window is small, but from what I gather people don't seem to have a problem telling women they don't know to "Smile" or "You look tired" etc. Does this translate into increased car to bicycle harrassment?
Hm, I'd answer yes
and no. Based on my observations in traffic and what other cyclists of both sexes relate, it seems to me that men are harassed more often than women and women are treated better more often than men. However, when a woman
does get harassed, it's generally nastier and scarier because of an undercurrent of sexual violence that seems to be present in such situations. Women seem to get the best
and the worst. Of course, this is all personal opinion, but I've become pretty convinced of it. When all is said and done, I do think I make out better because I clearly look female when I'm riding my bike, at least where I live. Portland is not a sexual harassment-intensive city. Even the downtown contstruction workers have manners here.
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