What Is Sexual Harassment?

As more and more women entered the workplace over the last half-century, a new term entered our vocabulary: sexual harassment. The term was first used in the mid-1970s, but most people didn’t become aware of it until the ’80s. By the end of the ’90s, thanks to several very high-profile cases—involving a U.S. senator, a Supreme Court justice, the U.S. Navy, and even the president of the United States—nearly everyone was aware of the term. But how to define it has often been the subject of fierce arguments.

Over time, general agreement has been reached on what sexual harassment is and what it isn’t. Sexual harassment is any unwelcome, unwanted sexual behavior—such as crude gestures, uninvited touching or grabbing, leering, suggestive remarks, dirty jokes, the display of pornographic pictures, or asking for sexual favors—that makes you feel uncomfortable, helpless, or afraid. It can interfere with your work on the job or in school, and it can happen among friends and even family. It is not a mutually desirable flirtation or a friendly, welcomed kiss or hug.

Sexual harassment can be a problem in offices, schools, stores, restaurants, and other public places. It can even occur online, when you are emailing, chatting on message boards, or direct messaging on social media. Wherever people interact, harassment can occur. People of any gender or sexual orientation are capable of harassing anyone of any gender or sexual orientation. A person you trust who is in a position of authority, such as a teacher or coach, may use that trust and power to try to take advantage of you. But a teacher-student or coach-athlete relationship should always be professional and never sexual. That is the law. Or perhaps your boss may threaten you with getting fired or losing a chance at a better shift or raise if you don’t go out with them or give sexual favors. This, too, is an illegal abuse of power.

It is also possible to be harassed by someone you don’t know very well or by a stranger. Comments made on the street that make you feel like a sexual object (“Hey, nice legs!” “Will you marry me?” “Hi, gorgeous!”) are also harassment. If someone invades your personal space—touching you in a crowded subway car, elevator, or bus, for example—that is harassment, too. An obscene phone call or text can be extremely disturbing and is another form of harassing behavior. All harassment shows a lack of respect for the other person. The harasser is trying to exert power over their victim.

It Can Happen to Anyone

Studies over time have shown that sexual harassment is not just an issue for prominent public officials in the country’s highest offices. It is a daily, very real problem for millions of American citizens. A survey conducted by Stop Street Harassment in 2018 showed that 81 percent of women and 43 percent of men have been harassed in their lifetime, with 38 percent of the women reporting they were harassed in the workplace. Estimates for men vary widely since men are less likely to report harassment than women.

The issue of sexual harassment is a global one. In 2019, the United Kingdom’s Trades Union Congress (TUC) conducted its first major survey of sexual harassment of the LGBTQ+ community and found that nearly seven in ten (68 percent) of its members had been harassed in the workplace. LGBTQ+ females were considerably more harassed than their male counterparts. In 2020, the Levada Center, a sociological research organization, conducted a poll and found that more than half of Russian men and women felt that the problem of sexual harassment is either exaggerated or not an issue at all—even though one in six female workers and one in thirteen male workers in the country reported experiencing sexual harassment in the workplace that the same year.

An increasing trend, especially among teens, is cyberbullying and electronic sexual harassment. Malicious gossip, lies, sexual put-downs, sexual come-ons, cyber stalking, and violent and sexual threats are now often delivered via text messaging, message boards, or social networking sites. The anonymity of digital communications can make people feel more free than they ordinarily would to either reveal intimate things about themselves or say provocative, hurtful, or aggressive things to or about someone else. It’s a good idea not to treat the Internet as some special realm where anything goes. You should not say anything online that you wouldn’t say to someone face-to-face, nor should you engage someone in online conversation who is harassing you or someone else.

Have you ever felt that your boss or teacher is paying too much attention to you? Maybe he stares too much or asks a lot of questions about your boyfriend. Maybe she pays you compliments that make you uncomfortable or touches you frequently for no good reason. Maybe they let you know that you’ll have to be a bit more “friendly” if you want to get a raise or a good grade in class. Or maybe you’ve been grabbed or pinched in the hallways at school, on a crowded bus, or on a busy street.

All of these situations are examples of sexual harassment. Sexual harassment happens to all kinds of people in all kinds of places. It happens at work, in school, on the street, and in social settings. One of the worst things about sexual harassment is the way it can make you feel: scared, confused, embarrassed, angry, and powerless. Anytime people make you feel threatened sexually, they are harassing you. When people try to force you to accept this treatment so that you can keep your job or get a passing grade in a class, they are also breaking the law.

Sexual harassment is wrong; it is illegal. It is never your fault when someone harasses you. You did not invite it or ask for it in any way. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to stop sexual harassment and places to go for help and support.