Upskirting – taking a photo or filming underneath a skirt or dress without consent – has finally become a criminal offence in England and Wales (it was already an offence in Scotland from 2010).
Yet despite this progress, a recent report conducted by British GQ reveals that one in 10 men don’t think upskirting is sexual harassment.
In some ways this isn’t surprising, as men’s entitlement and sexual privilege has in many ways become a cultural “right”.
Take for example the response to women describing their widespread experiences of men’s sexual entitlement (#metoo), it wasn’t long before the #notallmen hashtag appeared – with many men denying and normalising such behaviors.
From video games developed where players (most likely men) can “play” at raping women, to advertisements that sexualize women’s bodies, men’s entitlement to women is just a given.
This is further normalized and legitimized through pornography – which has been described as a “mirror” with men seeing women as sexual objects which exist for their use and pleasure.