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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 harassment against women. The mayor is handing out plastic whistles. They're meant to scare off offenders in the public transportation system. NPR's Carrie Kahn reports officials are pushing ahead despite criticism and mockery.

CARRIE KAHN, BYLINE: Passengers deposit their five and half pesos into a coin slot as they board a bus at the Zapata metro 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 sardines 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 harassed 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 harasses 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 barrage of criticism on social media and in the press. One tweet asked if the mayor had future plans to distribute maracas to combat corruption. 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")