Socio-political complexity of sexual harrasment

Treating as soio-politically complex and as culturally ingrained an issue as sexual harrasment to modalities of law is a reductive approach. Law can deal with abuse of power when the power has legal loci and can be legally defined. The harrasment--sexual and emotional and financial--is because of centuries of an imbalanced system of patriarchy and not because of some violation of a law. Of-course laws can correct some of the socio-political and cultural evils of patriarchy but there always is a limit to what can be corrected through law.

For instance take harrasment on streets. Almost every woman is verbally abused and predominant majority of women are sexually harrassed (through groping and such) but can that be proved in a court of law? Can a woman go to court and say that she was groped? Where is the evidence? "Bring two eye-witnesses, bring video recording..." will be the hillaruous replies. Should the victims of street harrasment be not heard then? See around yourself, isn't sexual harrasment of women not happening? See, the number of instances of sexual harrasment you have witnessed and ignored and/or participated in and see the number of cases reported and made public. If you have some empathy and honesty you will come to the conclusion that the ratio of harrasment to reporting is like a thousand to one.

How that can be solved? Simple, through listening to women and giving their voice credibility when they expose the ignominable beings amidst us. It is a political, social and cultural issue and we have to solve this issue through change in social attitudes and shift in culture.