HARM caused by verbal abuse is at the heart of a new campaign launched by the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC).
The campaign got underway with a series of adverts across the region, reflecting comments and feedback from young women and girls who described the ‘ever-present’ fear and impact that relentless verbal harassment has on their day-to-day lives.
Verbal abuse is the use of abusive, insulting or threatening language that causes someone else harassment, alarm or distress and is a form of abuse that are deployed by perpetrators against women and girls.
The PCC, Simon Foster, said it challenges the language used by perpetrators to reinforce that unwanted comments are far from harmless
Figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that for the year ending December 2023, 13 per cent of women had experienced at least one form of harassment in the previous year.
This was significantly higher among younger age groups, with one in five 16- to 19-year-olds and 20 to 24 year-olds having experienced at least one type of harassment in the previous 12 months.
It also showed three-quarters of victims of harassment experienced the behaviour in-person, rather than online.
Mr Foster, said: “When we hear from young women and girls about their experiences, there are some distressing themes that come to the fore.
“Firstly, this is a common unwanted occurrence and they can all recall instances of experiencing verbal harassment in public spaces and places.
“Secondly, the impact of these experiences is truly severe. The words used by perpetrators may differ slightly but the feelings of fear and being unsafe persist. It’s not ‘just’ banter. It’s abuse, plain and simple.”
Malia Dayus, one of the Youth Commissioners who advises the PCC on matters affecting young people in the region.
She said: “In my experience, verbal harassment in public spaces is very common and is almost always used to reinforce an imbalance in power.
“It almost never happens when we’re in groups with lots of friends or with our parents despite being in the same places.
“It often comes from groups of people, loud for everyone to hear like a megaphone of humiliation as you walk past silently.
“We never know if that catcall from someone on the street will end there or escalate to being followed or something more serious, and that’s what makes the seemingly simple action so profoundly damaging.”
