NYC Public Advocate Joins the Fight Against Sexual Assault on the Subway

by Kelsey Schappell | 07/25/2014 | 4:46pm

NYC Public Advocate Joins the Fight Against Sexual Assault on the Subway

Public Advocate Letitia James and a group of anti-sexual violence advocates are calling on the MTA and NYPD to help combat sexual assault on mass transit.
Public Advocate James was handing out flyers with self-defense tips outside the City Hall subway stop in Lower Manhattan, and giving out a few tips of her own. 
 
"I'm urging everyone whenever they're a victim of a sexual assault to yell, to scream, to draw attention to the situation, to take a picture of the perpetrator," said James. 
 
Tracy Hobson, the executive director of the Center for Anti-Violence Education, said her organization wants the city to implement a bystander education program. 
 
"Think how many of us want to do something when we see something happen but we don’t know what to do. This could really educate our entire city about different ways they could help one another,” said Hobson. 
 
Hobson and Public Advocate James are also calling for increased penalties for sexual assault violations and the installation of cameras inside subway cars.
 
Hobson stressed that awareness is crucial when it comes to preventing sexual assault.  
 
"When something does happen to us from someone we know or from a stranger, it's never our fault. With that being said, there’re also ways we can make ourselves safer and different tools that we can use,” she said. 
 
According to the Public Advocate's office, only two-thirds of reported sexual assault cases on mass transit result in arrests. 

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