Female Rabbis Speak Out About 'Pervasive' Harassment

yo'ma

Wed, Dec 27 2017, 6:57 am

amother wrote:

Do you work? Has any man suggested kissing you when you were working? What about not working but walking down the streets carrying your precious child? You’d find that complimentary?

It all has to do with the way you look at things. Who has the power in this specific situation? The Rabbi. If it was the opposite, a male Rabbi and female congregant, would you feel the same way? Either the Rabbi would laugh it off and take it as a compliment or rebuke the congregant. That's the Rabbis job, to teach and guide the congregation IMO. This is coming from someone who is not really part of any community. I could see my grandfather having said something like that. He would only mean it as a compliment and have no interest in the Rabbi. The man didn't try to kiss her, only said it and from the sound of it, he wouldn't have either.

As far as walking down the street and someone saying something, yes, I would find it complimentary. That's most likely how they mean it. It's just words and if that's it, that's it. I would also ignore them, keep walking, and forget about it because it means nothing to me.