It is not a surprise how even in the school setting, students deal with preying—serving a new religion in the mind of perverting minds of professors. Written in the history pages, displayed in the museums, carved in our souls, are each fair share in the realm of harassment—but, how distressing could it be that beyond the comfort of our homes, and the promising surrounding of our universities, wolves are lurking and on the loose. Quite a reality in the world we live in but should not be the norm no matter how inviting it is to be indifferent.
It has been ages, yet nothing seemed to change with how people deal with predators. Series and numerous laws passed, yet safe space is far-fetched and basically being neglected by most people who had grown numb to the cruelty of not the world, but the people in it. A trigger to the trauma to everyone who experienced it but are forced to keep it together as what is at stake is more just a story, but the fear of getting judged by the dickens infiltrating the system.
What is way amusing is how schools continued with their primitive approach—teaching students how to behave, yet, it seems like values subjects, which are labeled as a basic one, are not basic at all. Lessons taught were not fully and truly learned and applied in real life situations. Maybe we are all caught up with all these ‘going with the flow’, ‘syncing’ with how others cope and do it, that we often neglect one real issue that is very prominent and alarming in the school setting—dealing with constant fear of getting harassed and being exposed to it no matter how hard you avoid it. When nowhere is safe anymore, where do you go?
Growing up in a conservative place where people tell you what to wear is frustrating. It is absurd how you cannot freely express yourself just because it did not meet society’s standard. Dwelling on it, people even think that clothes is one of factors why there are sexually exploited individuals. Filipinos should know that Philippine school uniform’s design is conservative and putting the blame on it with the harassment and cat-calling cases is downright ridiculous.
In 2009, a baseline study on violence against children in public schools was conducted in nine provinces, including Manila. According to the findings of this study, 36.5 percent of Grade 4 to 6 respondents and 42.9 percent of High School respondents experienced verbal harassment; 12.0 percent of Grades 1 to 6 students and 17.6 percent of High School students were inappropriately touched, and 2.4 percent of High School students were forced to have sex.
In the study, most of the perpetrators were peers. In addition, there is a grooming case of a student in Ateneo de Manila University, she was manipulated by a professor where he used her mental distress to get close to her. She thinks it was normal as she was wrapped up in an adult confidant, she thought that the professor was the only one who could understand her.
It also seemed like the RA 7877 were in vain, the act declaring sexual harassment unlawful in the employment, education, or training environment, and for other purposes as sexual harassment which comes in different ways like physical, verbal, cyber and more keeps on happening all over the country— to anyone, anytime and anywhere. This happening caused some students to drop out, experience anxiety, and even attempt suicide.
There is a second-year student from Polytechnic University of the Philippines – Manila, Anne, not her real name, who is a victim of sexual harassment. According to her story, it gives her trauma because she keeps on experiencing it from elementary up to college, either physically or verbally. She came to the point where she did not want to go outside and even attempted suicide so that he won’t hear male voices as it reminds her the trauma and how she was abused.
“Being a victim of sexual harassment has left a deep wound in my heart. My trauma weakens my emotional and psychological strength, making me feel helpless and incapable of overcoming it. But I choose to be strong every day, and I still believe that one day, someone will stand beside me to get the justice that I deserve.” — Anne
If this tragedy continues, everything will collapse, the school's reputation will be tainted, but most importantly, how is it with the preyed individual? What are lost just because people cannot act like a civilized living person away from the perverting perspective?
School should intensify its rules and regulations and the curriculum for sex education to make people, especially students understand that this kind of act is highly prohibited, improper, and unethical. Government should be strict and fair on giving punishment and justice to every predecessor and victims. Sex discussion has been a taboo for a long time resulting to ignorance that leads to such event whereas it should not be. Indeed, a rotting crop reaped from what was sowed, or worse, left unattended. This topic is not something to be laughed about for victims would not be ashamed and afraid to speak up. Consent must be asked, not forced.
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