FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 8, 2012

For more information, contact:
Chai Shenoy, cofounder
chai@collectiveactiondc.org

DC METRO STATIONS ROLL OUT ANTI-HARASSMENT PSAs IN RESPONSE TO CAMPAIGN BY COLLECTIVE ACTION FOR SAFE SPACES (CASS)

Over the past two weeks, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority (WMATA) has rolled out an Anti‐Harassment Public Service Announcement (PSA) Campaign featuring 40 advertisements at 28 metro stations across the DMV region.

“I’m Not The One Who Should Be Ashamed,” reads one advertisement. “Rub Against Me and I’ll Expose You,” reads another. The three ads, which are featured in English and Spanish depending on station, list a newly established email address and website for metro‐goers to report to Metro Transit Police any incidences of sexual harassment or sexual assault experienced or witnessed on a train, station, bus or bus stop. The ads come in response to a months‐long campaign spearheaded by the D.C. grassroots group, Collective Action for Safe Spaces (CASS). In February, CASS testified before the D.C. City Council urging WMATA to adopt an anti‐harassment public relations campaign, implement a better tracking system for harassment, and establish improved employee training on sexual harassment response and prevention.

According to statistics collected by CASS, 30% of incidents of sexual harassment which occurred in D.C. over the past three years took place near or within a Metro transit center.

The Anti‐Harassment PSA Campaign, which aims to help WMATA officials identify trends and prevent future crime marks the first time that Metro Transit Police are tracking incidents of verbal sexual assault. “The ads are a great first step in acknowledging that we, WMATA customers, will not tolerate these types of crimes,” said Chai Shenoy, co‐founder of CASS. WMATA’s Anti‐Harassment PSA Campaign can be found at the following metro locations:

1.    Addison Road Metro
2.    Ballston Metro
3.    Benning Road Metro
4.    Benning Road Metro – Spanish
5.    Capitol Heights  Metro
6.    Cheverly Metro
7.    Cheverly Metro – Spanish
8.    Clarendon Metro
9.    Cleveland Park Metro
10.    DuPont Circle Metro
11.    Eisenhower Metro – Spanish
12.    Eisenhower Metro
13.    Foggy Bottom Metro – Spanish
14.    Forest Glenn Metro
15.    Forest Glenn Metro
16.    Fort Totten Metro – Spanish
17.    Fort Totten Metro
18.    Franconia‐Springfield Metro
19.    Franconia‐Springfield Metro – Spanish
20.    Georgia Avenue Petworth Metro
21.    Glenmont Metro
22.    Glenmont Metro – Spanish
23.    Grosvenor Metro
24.    Huntington Metro
25.    Judiciary Square Metro – Spanish
26.    Landover Metro
27.    Landover Metro
28.    L’Enfant Plaza Metro – Spanish
29.    New Carrollton Metro
30.    Potomac Avenue Metro
31.    Potomac Avenue Metro – Spanish
32.    Prince Georges Plaza Metro
33.    Prince Georges Plaza Metro – Spanish
34.    Takoma Metro
35.    Van Dorn Metro – Spanish
36.    Van Ness 006 Metro
37.    Van Ness  008 Metro
38.    Waterfront 006 Metro – Spanish39.    Waterfront 007 Metro
40.    Wheaton 014 Metro

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ABOUT COLLECTIVE ACTION FOR STREET HARASSMENT
Founded in 2009, Collective Action for Safe Spaces (CASS) is a grassroots organization that aims to empower the DC Metro area to build a community free from public sexual harassment and assault through such methods as online activism, public policy and advocacy, community workshops, and innovative direct services.