Some traditional cultures believe that taking a picture of a person can capture their soul. Looking at our culture these days, I couldn’t say they are wrong. But at least we have a say in when and where our picture gets taken. Right? Wrong.
When you go out, do you expect your image to grace the lens of a stranger? Women, do you strap on your bikini and head to the beach knowing that an array of men you don’t know will be taking pictures of you? When you look in the mirror before you leave your house, do you inspect your face and body and wonder how you will be portrayed through a stranger’s camera? If not, you’d better start, because apparently, this is a thing. Now, I’m not talking about situations where people record something for the greater good, I’m speaking here of photo-stalking random women at the beach, at concerts, at the mall for God’s sake.
Some of you might argue that, hey, you’re in a public place… no expectation of privacy. Yeah, I get it. But I imagine that the thought of a stranger taking our picture without our consent is horrifying for most of us. Despite the public nature of the location, it’s an invasion of privacy that is just downright creepy.
In this age of camera phones and social media, it can be uncomfortable to be in a crowded public space. One never knows who is recording what. I watched a spectacular young woman on YouTube confront two older men on a beach in Florida. Florida, amirite? She caught the men taking pictures of random women in bikinis, then outed them in front of the crowd. She swiped through his photos, yelling at him to delete the images of women he didn’t know, to which he quickly complied. I think we all owe this brave young woman a round of applause!
Unfortunately, this is not a new experience, creepy men thinking they have the right to take a photo of whomever they choose. In fact, my ex used to do this very thing, especially at concerts. He and his friends would secretly take pictures of the girls there and then pass them around. Now, my ex and his friends weren’t teenagers, someone so riddled with hormones they couldn’t think their way out of a paper bag. I’m talking about grown-ass men in their 40s. Secretly taking photos of attractive young women they did not know.
I once invited my ex’s cousin to a community music festival my ex went to every year. Of course, my ex got angry with me… something he did quite often, but in this case, I couldn’t figure it out at first. I thought he liked this cousin. Then, I realized, this cousin and his gosh darn ethical ways would inhibit my ex’s photo-stalking of young girls. I will confess that upon finding some of these photos and realizing they had been shared, I spoke with the wife of the guy who was on the other end of that text message thread. She wasn’t happy. When word got back to him, my ex, the gaslighter extraordinaire, berated me, telling me that I had embarrassed myself and that the wife thought I was pitiful for being offended. Because everyone takes photos of young girls at concerts, then passes them around to their friends with comments about the young girls’ bodies. Everybody does it. And everybody knows that everyone does it. Apparently, I was the only one who didn’t know. Apparently, I was the only one who would take offense or get angry at such a thing. Hey, if gaslighting were a college major, my ex would have graduated with honors. I mean, he’s my ex for a reason.
Maybe taking pictures of random young girls is common. Perhaps sharing photos with your friends of unsuspecting women out on the town or bikini-clad at the beach, or, you know, simply trying to enjoy a freakin’ neighborhood concert, is something that does occur often. But you know what? It doesn’t change the fact that it’s not okay. IT. IS. NOT. OKAY. The men taking these pictures are not typical men (and if they are, then I’ll swear off the gender for good). They are disgusting, perverted, privacy-invading creeps. There, I said it. And I’m not sorry.
Predatory behavior from men is far too common. Unsolicited catcalls, inappropriate texts, aggressive confrontations and pick-up lines, uncomfortably explicit stories with coworkers; these are the ways that men force their sexual preoccupation into our lives. Many people (primarily men, but I’m sure some women) would argue that it’s not bad behavior. It’s just a case of “boys will be boys.” Newsflash, asshole: boys will be boys is no longer an acceptable excuse for predatory behavior. Period.
I’m telling you men, you’ve gotta get your shit together, and if you want to screech “not all men” then bear the burden of your gender and call out this predatory bullshit.
Musings from a Tangled Mind 
When did it get so hard for people in general, men in particular, to have any sort of common decency?
I think, “This sort of thing didn’t happen when I was a kid,” and my next immediate thought is that we didn’t have cell phone cameras and the internet then. Then you would have had to spend a lot of money to take film photos, get them developed, have copies made, and passing photos around would be time consuming and leave LOTS of evidence around for wives to find. Now, almost zero cost and sharing is instantaneous and much harder to cover up.
Back in the day, there seemed to be at least some sense of shame associated with being a pervert or a pedophile or a sexist pig. Or at least, shame in getting caught. But that ship has sailed.
So we opened Pandora’s box and gave everyone pocket supercomputers with instantaneous communications and access to all of the world’s knowledge, expecting them to be used to enlighten humankind. Instead it just showed that the basest, most vile tendencies would overwhelm so many of us.
And “so many of us” is overwhelmingly male. The half of the species who have subjugating women, starting wars, and generally fucking up the planet for millennia. Who could have seen that coming?
For every man who’s curing disease or feeding the masses or inventing something to make life better for everyone, there are thousands who are just cockroaches stuffed into a human suit, not worth the air they use. If we don’t figure out a way to reverse those odds, we’re not going to make it.
I’m with you 100%. It’s just scummy and disgusting men who how have no morals or respect for women. Really hate that. They stalk women and are bottom feeders.