Did women used to enjoy being catcalled?

What a terrifying experience, @Motherofone22 . 💐

I remember liking it when I was 14/15 and struggling with my self esteem & confidence.
Now aged 23 and after going through some unfortunate situations with men (one including a man pulling a knife out and chasing me in Bethnal Green at 2am when I was as 19) … I can safely say I hate any kind of catcalling or attention from men now.
I’d rather they didn’t look at me at all, let alone try and speak to me.

I think a lot of women saw it as a kind of compliment and enjoyed the fact that men found them attractive. Now we would see it differently - women being objectified, male entitlement to invade our space - physical or mental, and comment on our appearance, etc. Connections were not usually made between these two viewpoints in the early days of 2nd wave feminism.

No, it was intimidating and embarrassing, even if I didn't feel immediately threatened. I'm 59 and remember being on edge out on my own as a teenager/20s. I purposely dressed in an androgenous way back then to avoid any attention, which seems sad now looking back. Times are better now thank goodness.

I'm going to suggest that's a less common incident.

Men used to cat call from their cars as we were walking to school Reprehensible

I'm so sorry to hear that.

But its not just women! When we were in New Orleans my DH actually got fined $10 for looking miserable. It was the day after Mardi Gras, but even so...

yes i agree, its doesn't excuse it but might explain it. There has been a post on here today about a young schoolchild (boy) who is a shining star in the football team gang who said he wouldn't join the choir because they are all gay. Smacks to me of confidence issues rather than masculine power....as i said, doesn't excuse it though.

Yes I agree with you. I just posted that I loved it… but I’m looking at it from light hearted memories. I remember being told to cheer up after I’d been raped the weekend before and it was horrific… but just smile for the lads as you say… I really identify with your comment.

Did I enjoy it? Kind of. But only when limited to whistling as a sign of appreciation. Not so sure now, as respect for women seems much lower.

Interestingly, when I used to work as a site engineer on a building site I would get whistled outside the site, but treated equally on site. A couple of guys even asked me what I thought! They would have been mortified at the thought that the whistle might scare a woman.

Ha, I loved it! Sorry 😬

I also got a nasty version of 'cheer up' once in the form of 'do you know you look as miserable as sin?'

I'd just heard an old boyfriend had died.

Never mind, hey? Just keep smiling for the lads.

I can't see how to vote, OP, but if I could I'd have voted YANBU.

I'm 70 and I always hated it, I'd walk way out of my way to avoid building sites and such places.

But I'm of the opinion that the men who do this do it for other men to see & hear. It did occasionally come from a lone bloke but, more often than not, it'd come from a group or one man within a group. So I formed the idea that such men did it to reinforce their heterosexuality to the other men (now, why would they need to do that?). I remember once walking along Fleet Street in London when it was Fleet Street, so still inhabited by the newspapers, and there was a group of men walking in front of me and dressed in the clothing of manual workers. One of them kept very ostentatiously turning around to check out every passing female under the age of about forty. I knew he was doing it for his mates' benefit.

no. It was intimidating as a young woman just going about your day to be leered at by groups of men usually older than you. I was around 11 when it started and I looked older but it was mortifying, frightening and made me feel ashamed that my body would be attracting this attention. It was never enjoyable.

@HeySummerWhereAreYou I'm 65 and have never come across a girl or woman who enjoyed this sort of thing. Every day is a school day.

I'm 46yrs and I still get it all be it a lot less than in my 20s, mainly due to the size of my chest and I absolutely hate it. The endless jokes and attention my boobs get has been a thorn in my side for most of my life.

I think @ObelixtheGaul it's because you're not seen as a person. Why would that man consider anything? I was a young woman with a sad face, instead of being all smiley and giggly, as I should have been.

I know! I am gobsmacked actually. I don't know one single woman in real life who enjoys being catcalled, whistled at, and jeered at. Along with constantly being chatted up and hit on. It's dreary and tedious and constant for many women - and goes (for many women,) from as young as 11 or 12 years old, right up to their 50s!

But yeah, no woman I know has ever enjoyed this shit!

The parallel world of Mumsnet strikes again! 😬

It's an awful thing to say to people, because you don't know what HAS happened. Our posts crossed, but this is exactly why I responded with, 'it already has.'. Terrible for you to have experienced this when you were going through that.

Truthfully I took it as a compliment. Body issues and anxiety around it whenni got whistled it did make me smile inside. Outside.i blushes bright red and scurried away! I'm early 40s

Thank you! I felt so stupid but it was utterly shit. Not the worst kind of harassment I ever experienced, but just so crap.

Well maybe the ones who appreciated it got very few whistles.

I'm in my mid 70s now and no I didn't feel flattered by men whistling or cat calling at me.

I hated it. It was embarrassing, made me incredibly uncomfortable and often felt threatening.

I'm really surprised by the amount of women on here who seemed to be grateful that a bunch of strange men thought it was okay to yell things at them in the street.

I'm so sorry.

LOL!!! 😆

'Yep, it already has - as I have met you you fucking numpty!' (Aimed at the man of course not you @ObelixtheGaul 😄)