This past April, a survey of 300 women commuters on the Paris metro system found that every one of them experienced some form of sexual harassment or assault while travelling on the massive transport system. The High Council on Equality, the government agency that conducted the study, urged the French government to address this alarming finding and is now embarking on a nationwide campaign to "define and measure" gender harassment in public spaces.
But French women are hardly the only victims of this degrading and underreported intimidation. Every day, women worldwide must deal with unwanted stares and inappropriate language — in broad daylight, as they carry out their daily routines — that makes them fear for their safety, but often falls short of being a punishable crime.