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Fighting Back Against Harassment on Public Transit

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A Governing article about a Bay Area Rapid Transit campaign to deter sexual harassment on public transportation cited research by Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris, professor of urban planning and interim dean of UCLA Luskin. The BART program was designed and developed by young people of color to encourage people who witness sexual harassment on trains and buses to discreetly intervene. Loukaitou-Sideris has led extensive studies of sexual harassment in public places, which she describes as an “omnipresent and consequential” phenomenon. Public transit environments can be uniquely conducive to harassers engaging in unwanted verbal and physical abuse, her research has found. Crowded vehicles provide both proximity and anonymity, while empty vehicles or stations can be unsafe for other reasons. The BART campaign includes circulating cards saying, “I got you” and “You got me?” It also encourages ways of showing support including standing with the person who is being harassed, texting BART Police or contacting the train conductor.

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Astor Emphasizes Emotional Intelligence as a School Priority

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Professor of Social Welfare Ron Avi Astor spoke to the Southern California News Group about ways to prevent bullying and violence in schools. In a survey of California middle and high school students, about one in three reported being bullied or harassed over a five-year period. However, schools that have implemented a focus on “social-emotional learning” saw lower levels of reported bullying. Social-emotional learning emphasizes that students get in touch with their own emotions and mental well-being and show empathy for others. “This actually moves into the core purpose of what schools are supposed to do for society; they are supposed to create a society that cares, that supports and helps people,” Astor said. “It puts schools out in front of what we hope society will be in 10 years.” During the COVID-19 pandemic, many California school districts have increased their focus on students’ mental health and well-being.

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Loukaitou-Sideris on Making Public Transit Safer

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Urban Planning Professor Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris was featured in a Greater Greater Washington article about a proposal to temporarily ban people from public transit in Washington, D.C., if they are charged with sex or weapons offenses on the transit system. The Washington Metro’s safety board gave preliminary approval to the policy as a response to a significant increase in the number of reported sex offenses during the pandemic. In her research on harassment on transit, Loukaitou-Sideris has found that sexual harassment rates change based on environmental conditions. “Crimes like groping tend to happen in overcrowded buses or rail cars, while those committing indecent exposure tend to be emboldened when few people are around,” she explained. In one global survey, Loukaitou-Sideris found that 80% of women reported having been harassed on transit in the last three years. “That harassment, and fear of harassment, has real implications for mobility, particularly for women, LGBTQ folks and people of color,” she said.

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Loukaitou-Sideris Provides Insight on Rideshare Safety for Women

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Urban Planning Professor Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris shed light on women’s interactions with transportation systems in a Rewire article explaining female riders’ frustrations with rideshare services. Loukaitou-Sideris said sexual harassment is incredibly common in transportation settings around the world. Incidents of sexual harassment and uncomfortable behavior with rideshare drivers have prompted requests for increased safety measures, especially for women. While nearly 45% of female rideshare users have expressed their preference for a female driver, only 20-30% of Lyft and Uber drivers are female, and neither rideshare service allows female riders to request a female driver. Loukaitou-Sideris’ research on women-only public transportation in other countries, such as women-only train cars, found that women worried such an arrangement would “perpetuate discrimination” by taking away the option to sit in other cars of the train. Many women express their desire to be able to safely use the same service as men, instead of needing a women-only solution.

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