TBWA\Paris: HandsAway defends women’s right to wear what they want

Men think little about harassing a woman in the street. Not all men do it. But not enough men think it’s wrong. 86% of women say they have been victims of street harassment, according to data collected by the French Institute of Public Opinion in 2018.

From time to time, there is a call against harassment. Too frequently, the women who have been assaulted or harassed are held responsible for what happens to them. Arguments about what they were wearing often end up winning, justifying what should be unjustifiable.

French association, HandsAway, which fights against gender and sexual violence on the streets and transport, has worked with TBWA\Paris to change the discussion about street violence. Their print campaign stands up for women’s right to wear whatever they want. Standing up for the fact that wearing a tight-fitting outfit, a mini-skirt, a plunging-neckline, or revealing a bare shoulder or midriff should not be seen as an invitation as or an element legitimising aggression or sexist remarks.

The campaign was shot by Shelby Duncan, an American photographer involved in the fight against harassment. Duncan also produced a series, Wild Things, which captures today’s youth expressing their freedom.

TBWA\Paris and HandsAway’s previous work includes the film, Bande de bites (Gang of dicks), which denounces sexual harassment…

…and Poids des Mots (Weight of Words), in which violent and sexist messages received by women were engraved on weights of several kilos and distributed online and offline during a harassment trial in 2018. On the back of the weights was written, “Never underestimate the weight of words. Let us fight together against street harassment. An effective way to illustrate the real weight of street harassment.”