Behind the Façade: The Untold Stories of Street Harassment in Rome

In Photos

By Giorgia Zampini | Photoreporter

The author of the picture stages a bag on the sidewalk in front of Piramide Metro A, Rome, Italy

This article addresses the subject of gender violence, including street harassment as a form of sexual assault.

Major cities are seeing a rise in violent and predatory crimes this past year. Rome and Milan alone account for 15 percent of the 30 percent of crimes, according to Il Mattino.

In Rome, a city known for its beauty and rich history, students face a frightening, frequently overlooked reality: they are subject to sexual harassment in public settings where usually millions of people visit on a regular basis, sites that are linked with comfort and familiarity.

A 20-year-old JCU student, known here as P.G., describes an event on Lungotevere where, as she went along the river, a man on a bicycle stopped abruptly in front of her, openly masturbating and fixating on her.

“I was speechless. I just could not believe the audacity,” said P.G. “Part of me wanted to kill him and the other wanted to cry for me and for all the people who go through something similar every day,” We all know things like that happen, but you never expect it will happen to you,” she said.

Recent incidents with John Cabot University’s students have emphasized the alarming dangers that students confront even in seemingly everyday circumstances.

In another case, M.P, 20, was walking home one evening after noticing that a man in a car was making vulgar gestures towards him.

“It made me feel unsafe in my own street,” said M.P.

A 21-year-old student, K.S., had a similar account of being groped in Rome’s metro system. When she stepped off Metro A, she felt the unwanted hand of a stranger who grabbed her without her consent.

“I was mostly in shock, I had been assaulted before, but it is not like it is an everyday occurrence,” said K.S. “I was not alone when this happened, but I stopped taking the metro by myself, and I’m still afraid even when someone is with me.”

In the relatively peaceful settings of Villa Pamphili, C.B., 22, was also harassed by a man who approached her and touched himself inappropriately.

These experiences highlight the common and indiscriminate character of harassment, affecting individuals regardless of their gender.