The Paper Shall Focus on Sexual Harassment
The paper shall focus on sexual harassment through its definition as a way of recognizing its occurrence, to determine the preventive measures, and how to deal with it before and after it occurs.
Recognizing, Preventing, and Dealing With Sexual Harassment
The office of civil rights and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission defines sexual harassment as unwelcome sexual advances, verbal or physical sexual nature, and requests for sexual favors in situations such as a condition for employment and promotion (HerscH, 2015). When sexual harassment occurs, most people do not take it seriously maybe until they have been physically disturbed by the perpetrator, but still, many victims fail to report the occurrences or do not know where to present their case. Sexual harassment could lead to fear, depression, and mood disorders among other problems in a victim's life. I have witnessed sexual harassment both at school and workplace thus, the paper shall focus on recognizing, preventing, and strategies for dealing with sexual harassment.
Sexual Harassment is Common Both at School and Workplaces
Sexual harassment is common both at school and workplaces. Recognizing sexual harassment has occurred requires a person to understand the definition which stipulates which conducts should be considered as part of this crime. Sexual harassment is a gender-neutral offense; however, more women reported more cases than men being sexually harassed by men (HerscH, 2015). Additionally, people of the same gender could sexually harass each other is the harassment concerns sex and not their sexual orientation. I have witnessed and at time became a victims of Sexual harassment. For instance, I received unrequested nude image via my Facebook account. My friends reported to have been touched or grabbing body parts, other received sexual notes attached in the midst of their books. Moreover, while walking on the road to the mall a stranger made sexual gestures which was very scary. Additionally, a classmates was spreading sexual rumors, about another class member just to get their attention. Sexual harassment should not be confused with flirting which is mutual in most cases since sexual harassment is random and unwelcome. Being a victim of sexual harassment I can confirm it makes a person feel uncomfortable, threatened, humiliated, angry, and trapped among other negative feelings. These cases could be perpetrated by fellow students or teachers at schools for various reasons as shown above. Thus, in the presence of such occurrence, a person should consider the situation a sexual harassment occurrence and report to the relevant authorities for legal action.
Prevention of Sexual Harassment
Prevention of sexual harassment is an effort by both the potential victims and the institution. Through personal experience I have realized that creating an enabling environment for instance where the school has a strict policy about sexual harassment, can encourage the learners and other faculty members to report such cases (Stein, 1995). The policy should define acts that should be perceived as sexual harassment and indicate what actions victims should take. Also, training employees at work or students at the school could improve the awareness on the matter. For instance, through a training on sexual harassment at work I was able to distinguish between sexual harassment and flattery. Also, monitoring the school or the workplace for signs of sexual harassment could help to identify and eliminate such occurrences before they affect students or employees. For instance after the training I was able to identify a stalker and warmed him before reporting to the management. He stopped his stalking and after some research I realized he has usually stalk people but the reason for this is not known but this confirms he is a potential assaulter, based on the training. Moreover, from a Christian perspective, the dress code of a person could send wrong signals to a colleague at work or friend at school thus dressing with modesty should be considered especially for women as shown in the book of First Timothy 2:9. Also based on first Corinthians 14:19 and First Thessalonians 4:3-5 the Bible states that people should be firm when rebuking unwelcomed conducts and show the perpetrator that the argument is from a Christian moral perspective. My parent usually recommend that I dress in a modest way to appear decent and not attract unnecessary attention. My parents are Christians thus their teaching about how I should dress emanates from the bible. This is contrary to the secular world which relies on fashion and trend to determine how a person should dress. Some of the trendy clothing attracts the wrong attention and may increase the risk for sexual harassment. Thus, the Christian belief suggest that modest dressing is a critical consideration to prevent sexual harassment while the secular world relies on the legal frameworks which may be inconvenient if it cannot be accessed in time. For instance my friends say their dress is their choice and the law is there to protect them. My parents say before the law comes for me I have to defend myself, a principle from Christian values.
Dealing With Sexual Harassment
When sexual harassment has occurred, it is essential to understand the different ways of dealing with it to avoiding the situation affecting other areas of life such as school and work (McLaughlin, Uggen, C., & Blackstone, 2012). First, it is essential to warn the harasser to stop and inform him/her that there is a plan to report the incident if it continues. Second, finding previously victims of the harrier who might have reported similar experiences and securing their testimony would be helpful when filing a complaint about the criminal. Whether at school or work find the appropriate channel and report the case. If the case is not solved after all these steps, it is essential to contact the equal employment opportunity commission which investigates sexual harassment at the workplace or file a lawsuit. Finally, seeking support from a psychiatrist would be a proper consideration to discuss the trauma and find coping strategies as shown by Rentoul, & Appleboom, (1997). I have never been in a position to utilize this channel but I have helped friends deal with the problem especially depression and trauma.
In Conclusion
In conclusion, the cases of sexual harassment are common at schools, and the workplace and both women and men are victims. I have been a victim same case to my friends which have been valuable opportunities to learn about these crime and perpetrators. People should be prepared, prevent, and deal with sexual. However, when they occur they need to know the sources of help such as the courts, and schools management, and psychiatrist. Both the secular and Christian world has ways of dealing with sexual harassment. As a Christian I believe I have the inherent responsibility to prevent sexual harassment before relying on the law as perceived by the secular world.
References
HerscH, J. (2015). Sexual harassment in the workplace. IZA World of Labor.
McLaughlin, H., Uggen, C., & Blackstone, A. (2012). Sexual harassment, workplace authority, and the paradox of power. American sociological review, 77(4), 625-647.
Rentoul, L., & Appleboom, N. (1997). Understanding the psychological impact of rape and serious sexual assault of men: a literature review. Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 4(4), 267-274.
Stein, N. (1995). Sexual harassment in school: The public performance of gendered violence. Harvard Educational Review, 65(2), 145-163.
