Abc 20/20 Episode: "My Reality: A Hidden America": Sexual Harassment

Last week abc 20/20 ran an episode on sexual harassment in the workplace. The third section is a nitty gritty view of women truck drivers and what they have to deal with.

Link to the episode's online web page: My Reality: A Hidden America

Couldn't watch the episode, hit a pay-gate. But a few thoughts...

Sexual harassment (anywhere) is primarily fueled by a combination of arrogance and ignorance. Some lame jerk trying to compensate for something they ain't got and couldn't ever deliver. And, left unchecked, such an attitude can lead one of those animals to believe that they're justified in crossing the next line. Sexual harassment is the thing males do to signal to the world that they're quite okay with rape. Sexual harassment is a last resort for predators and cowards!

I believe the most recent episode is blocked except for various cable subscribers until next week. (That would be after April 27.)

Jeremy writes:

Sexual harassment (anywhere) is primarily fueled by a combination of arrogance and ignorance.

True enough. But S/H is also part of the male culture, shown in the phrases "It's a guy thing", "Boys will be boys" and the infamous "Locker room talk".

This door is also opened by an assumption that women might have the same attitude or "desire" as men naturally have. In real life, this is a wrong assumption.

BS. Sexual harrassment is so complicated within the law it is beyond ridiculous now and demeans the real harassment.

if the woman perceives it as harassment it is. so if Old school makes a dirty joke and i like him, its not. but if errol makes a joke and i dont, its harassment. if i overhear 2 coworkers at a grocery store and they dont even kmow im there, even though we are all off the clock i can report them at work! if errol tells a joke to OS and OS does not correct him, i can say they both harrassed me.

harassment by definition is "on going". it is not a one time act. but all these MeToo people are making it a one time thing.

people are sexual beings and pretending we are not is crap. being offended by men who find you attractive makes no sense to me. Joy Behner on the view said "i do not want men looking at me. dont look". uh....shes on TV it is her job to be looked at. women spend BILLIONS on dieting, cosmetics, clothes, hair....for what? to attract men!!! then when it works it is sexual harassment if they attract the wrong guy.

over the past 50 years since the sexual revolution, women have totally confused men and what is expected of them. i seriously think some women just want to.lock men away in prisons and use them for semen productiom and nothing else.

i LOVE men. step.out of line, and i correct them. period.

harrasment comes.when women do not take proper steps. for example..Megan Kelly from Fox News. she is an Attorney. im supposed to believe a millionaire lawyer suffered years without knowing what to do? puuuhhhllleeeaaasse

its to the point where the men are the ones harrased with bombardment of "men are bad" agendas. im sick of it.

these women and media outlets need to focus on abused kids who cant voice their suffering.

i.must have been born just a little too late, cause im really starting to hate women in todays society.

This door is also opened by an assumption that women might have the same attitude or "desire" as men naturally have. In real life, this is a wrong assumption.

One job I had for awhile had me constantly reminding drunk morons that "She's being nice to you cause that's her job, dumbass!" It's amazing how assumptions can run rabid.

(Don't get me wrong, got nothing against fun drunks, just can't stand the morons.)

BS. Sexual harrassment is so...

Rainy, I agree with you on many points. And I'm sure you would agree that there are some words/things that genuinely cross the line.

In any case, God save the moron that ticks off a Jer-zeeee girl!

But that is my point...cross the line and get it taken care of immediately. all this "it went on for years" is crap. one hugely advertised trucking case a woman claimed the trainer abused her and raped her...but she never told other drivers from her company at truck stops...she never sought safety at the terminal...she even went HOME and got back on that trainers truck. WTF????

But that is my point...cross the line and get it taken care of immediately. all this "it went on for years" is crap. one hugely advertised trucking case a woman claimed the trainer abused her and raped her...but she never told other drivers from her company at truck stops...she never sought safety at the terminal...she even went HOME and got back on that trainers truck. WTF????

Yikes! Ok, that raises some issues for me... I didn't get to watch the episode. And I don't agree with or understand the "it went on for years" theory. If something like that happened she should have been dealing with that immediately. "It went on for years" just makes it harder to deal with anything that did happen and also creates a question of "Did anything really happen?" I would never call her a liar, but waiting all that damn time certainly doesn't help - her or anyone else!

Jeremy says

Sexual harassment is a last resort for predators and cowards!

I have to disagree, there's times sexual harassment particularly in the workplace is a joke that's gone too far, or overheard by someone that it was not intended for. Sexual harassment is a broad term. It includes jokes, and then obviously comments saying you'd do certain things, or complimenting someone's body, etc. Let me give you an example that I'm not exactly too proud of. Let me preface this by saying i do not hate anybody for their beliefs, skin color or sexual orientation. I treat everybody with respect unless you treat me poorly. When I was in training i had a heck of a time remembering where each stop was as I'm making over a dozen to 20 different stops everyday and I hadn't lived here more like a couple months. My trainer and I made jokes that weren't appropriate for work, including when I missed my turn a couple times he would say " you would've remembered to turn if you weren't thinking about my ****". Again, not work appropriate but we both found it hilarious given the weird, immature humor we both have. Well, I took it too far. I found a brochure at a college I delivered to that about men who engage in relations with other men and inside I drew a heart around a section. I slipped it into his truck when I got back to the yard as he was still around, he found it laughed then placed it on someone else's vehicle. He didnt maliciously place it on that vehicle, however that person was offended. That person who received the brochure found it offensive despite having just as twisted humor as we do. We both got called by HR regarding it. Because he was caught on camera placing it there he was sent to the terminal and they were ready to fire him had I not spoken up and admitted my guilt. Neither of . intentions were not out of hate, I was making a (poor judgement) joke that I took too far. I got off lucky with a write up, and was directly told anything else sexual harassment related I'm terminated. It honestly had upset me that I offended somebody, as that was not my goal.

That is still a one time event. it annoys me that the person who complained probably plays video games where hookers get raped and killed and cops get shot...watches HBO shows that are practically porn, then cry "OMG! a picture! im offended by a picture" as if they are a virgin. its hypocritical.

that is completely different from grabbing, touching etc. i mean seriously...a janitor at the USPS stated she was sexually harrased with magazine pics on the mens lockers. Not penthouse or hustler...more like Vogue fashion mags with fully clothed women. and she was in the locker room alone! GMAFB!

some of this crap is just for attention or an attempt to sue.

A postal supervisor once told.me to strip on camera and he would sell tickets to view the monitor to "make a lot of money off of me."

i didnt cry and sue...i went after him face to face and he NEVER pulled that crap with me again.