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Unfortunately, a lot of us have had unpleasant experiences with people who wanted our phone number or a romantic relationship and wouldn't take "no" for an answer.
Actress Jameela Jamil posted a shocking tweet detailing how she once rejected a man's advances and was punched in the face, reports The Guardian.
She wrote: "I once said no thank you to a man when I was 19 and didn't have an excuse... and he punched me in the face.
After that whether or not I have a boyfriend, I say I do. Being a woman is truly, constantly scary. It's like existing on thin ice."
I once said no thank you to man when I was 19 and didn’t have an excuse... and he punched me in the face. After that whether or not I have a boyfriend, I say I do. Being a woman is truly, constantly scary. It’s like existing on thin ice. https://t.co/cw1BCc9XUB
— Jameela Jamil (@jameelajamil) March 24, 2019
The actress went on to detail another unpleasant incident where she was insulted and threatened after rejecting another man, tweeting:
"Was out at the shops with my friend. Man ogles me. Man then approaches me to give me his number. I explain I have a boyfriend but thank him for the offer. Man then threatens my career, saying I better remember that I rejected him. And then shouts at me that I'm low class..."
Was out at the shops with my friend. Man ogles me. Man then approaches me to give me his number. I explain I have a boyfriend but thank him for the offer. Man then threatens my career, saying I better remember that I rejected him. And then Shouts at me that I’m low class... ??????
— Jameela Jamil (@jameelajamil) March 24, 2019
More than 15 000 people have since retweeted the post, with women followers from all over the world bravely sharing their own experiences, showing just how common an issue it is for women.
One woman wrote: "Throwback to the guy who insisted that me having a girlfriend wasn't a good enough excuse not to date him because "girls don't count" and managed to get all my contact info except my address and harassed me from multiple accounts for months. Now I say I have a boyfriend, too."
READ MORE: 58% of men now recognise the importance of calling out sexual harassment and the #MeToo movement
I was harassed 2 weeks ago by a man while waiting for my local transport. He came behind me and touched me inappropriately, so I walked away and asked him to leave me alone, that I wasn’t interested. He then yelled at me telling me I was a “ugly fucking whore “ it was so scary.
— Ivy Clarke (@IvyIvonClarke) March 26, 2019
A guy who was about 60 once humped my leg on a night out (after waiting for my 6ft4 best mate to go to the loo) when I told him to get off and back away he told me I should be grateful because I’m a fat chick for the attention!
— Elin T Jones (@ElinTJones) March 26, 2019
Was in an Uber once and the driver asked me out and I wanted to reach my destination safely so had to lie about having a boyfriend. The driver then went on to ask me details about this guy. Now I always have a back story in place in case I meet such guys again.
— Shruti Pimplikar (@shrutipimplikar) March 25, 2019
"I got called a lesbian and told I was probably on my period when I rejected a guy, his friend also spat a chip at me and this this awesome girl came out of nowhere and started shouting at them," commented another.
A study by the University of Kansas researchers on male aggression in the face of female rejection outlines how men often associate rejection with their masculinity, and when that is threatened, they tend to fight for it. In an attempt to re-prove their manliness they resort to aggression.
Jameela shared that she believes harassment due to rejected advances from women could be prevented if children are taught healthier ways to handle rejection.
Canadian journalist Joanna Chiu recently wrote a Twitter thread about how she had to intervene after witnessing a man harassing a young woman on an airplane.
Thread about airplane creeps: I’m on a plane from a late-evening stopover from and was very tired and had a row to myself to sleep but couldn’t avoid noticing what was going on in the row behind me.
— Joanna Chiu ??? (@joannachiu) March 25, 2019
"As soon as he asked for a “dirty” photo while leaning close to her I turned around and rage-whispered exactly what I thought of that and he didn’t say anything back and went off to use the washroom," she wrote.
Have you ever experienced harassment from a man you rejected? Chat to us here
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