美国国家公共电台 NPR Mexico City's Plan To Fight Sexual Assault: Whistles On The Subway

Mexico City's Plan To Fight Sexual Assault: Whistles On The Subway

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And across the border, Mexico City's mayor is fighting sexual harassment² against women. The mayor is handing out plastic whistles. They're meant to scare off offenders³ in the public transportation system. NPR's Carrie Kahn reports officials are pushing ahead despite criticism and mockery.

CARRIE KAHN, BYLINE⁴: Passengers deposit their five and half pesos into a coin slot as they board a bus at the Zapata metro⁵ station in the southern end of Mexico City. It's midday, and the buses and subways are packed, the perfect condition for harassment, say women. Just ask around. Nearly everyone has a story.

VANESA SUMANA: (Speaking Spanish).

KAHN: "They tried to grab me from behind," says 20-year-old Vanesa Sumana.

Luckily, she was on the subway with her dad.

SUMANA: (Speaking Spanish).

KAHN: "I said, Dad, they're grabbing me," says Sumana. Before she knew it, her dad turned around and punched the guy.

Sixty-four-year-old Hilda Mangana Ramirez says it doesn't matter your age, the harassment is constant.

HILDA MAGANA RAMIREZ: (Speaking Spanish).

KAHN: "Especially when squished like sardines⁶ in the subway - the men come behind you and start grabbing," says Magana, as a group of women listening to her nod in agreement.

According to Mexico's National Statistics Institute, nearly 3 million sexual assaults occurred between 2010 and 2015. A recent survey by the city showed that 7 out of 10 female passengers were harassed⁷ on buses and subways.

(SOUNDBITE OF WHISTLE)

KAHN: Earlier this week, city officials boarded one of the pink-colored, women-only buses to spread the word about the whistles. Governmental Secretary Patricia Mercado Castro says it's time for women to speak out against the problem.

PATRICIA MERCADO CASTRO: (Speaking Spanish).

KAHN: "The whistle is here to help women break the silence and make noise when someone harasses⁸ them," says Mercado.

So far, it's critics of the whistle plan that have been making the most noise. Since he began handing out the whistles earlier this summer, the mayor has received a barrage⁹ of criticism on social media and in the press. One tweet asked if the mayor had future plans to distribute maracas to combat corruption¹⁰. Or was he going to pass out soccer fans' favorite noisemaker, the vuvuzela, to crack down on extortion? Jimena Soria if GIRE, a women's reproductive choice group in Mexico City, says the problem needs more serious solutions.

JIMENA SORIA: The amount of violence against women doesn't deserve such a simple answer.

KAHN: She says the city is putting the burden on women to protect themselves.

SORIA: I don't think you should be responsible of carrying, like, a whistle around your neck so you'll be safe.

KAHN: Soria says men need to be held responsible for their actions, and the macho culture that enables such harassment needs to change. City officials insist the whistles are just one part of a comprehensive plan to combat violence, which includes panic buttons in subways and buses and sensitivity training for police.

(SOUNDBITE OF HORN HONKING)

KAHN: For now, officials hope to distribute half a million whistles by December 1. Vanesa Sumana, the 20-year-old business school student, says she'll use her whistle for sure.

SUMANA: (Speaking Spanish).

KAHN: She says, "we can't remain quiet any longer."

Carrie Kahn, NPR News, Mexico City.

(SOUNDBITE OF CALEXICO'S "WHIPPING THE HORSE'S EYES")

1 browser   

n.浏览者

参考例句：

• View edits in a web browser.在浏览器中看编辑的效果。
• I think my browser has a list of shareware links.我想在浏览器中会有一系列的共享软件链接。

2 harassment   

n.骚扰，扰乱，烦恼，烦乱

参考例句：

• She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
• The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。

3 offenders   

n.冒犯者( offender的名词复数 )；犯规者；罪犯；妨害…的人（或事物）

参考例句：

• Long prison sentences can be a very effective deterrent for offenders. 判处长期徒刑可对违法者起到强有力的威慑作用。
• Purposeful work is an important part of the regime for young offenders. 使从事有意义的劳动是管理少年犯的重要方法。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 metro   

n.地铁；adj.大都市的；(METRO)麦德隆(财富500强公司之一总部所在地德国，主要经营零售)

参考例句：

• Can you reach the park by metro?你可以乘地铁到达那个公园吗？
• The metro flood gate system is a disaster prevention equipment.地铁防淹门系统是一种防灾设备。

6 sardines   

n. 沙丁鱼

参考例句：

• The young of some kinds of herring are canned as sardines. 有些种类的鲱鱼幼鱼可制成罐头。
• Sardines can be eaten fresh but are often preserved in tins. 沙丁鱼可以吃新鲜的，但常常是装听的。

7 harassed   

adj. 疲倦的，厌烦的 动词harass的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He has complained of being harassed by the police. 他投诉受到警方侵扰。
• harassed mothers with their children 带着孩子的疲惫不堪的母亲们

8 harasses   

v.侵扰，骚扰( harass的第三人称单数 )；不断攻击（敌人）

参考例句：

• This man harasses his female co-workers. 这个人骚扰他的女同事。 来自互联网
• A drone attacks and harasses the SCV building the bunker, preventing it from being completed. 但工蜂攻击并骚扰建造这座掩体的工程兵，阻止工程兵完成掩体的建造。 来自互联网

9 barrage   

n.火力网，弹幕

参考例句：

• The attack jumped off under cover of a barrage.进攻在炮火的掩护下开始了。
• The fierce artillery barrage destroyed the most part of the city in a few minutes.猛烈的炮火几分钟内便毁灭了这座城市的大部分地区。

10 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。