Egyptian Women Reveal When They Were Sexually Harassed for the First Time

Dealing with unwanted attention, humiliating comments, and invasive touches from strangers has become a second nature to most Egyptian women. Most people have come to believe that sexual harassment of women in Egypt usually starts after a certain age; when little girls start becoming 'women'. But the fact is most Egyptian women experience harassment at a much earlier age, at which they are not equipped to fight back or even understand what's being done to them. Those little abused girls grow up to become women harshly trained to mistrust society and dodge potential danger, which they see in each and every man in sight anywhere they go.

Over the past few days, a hashtag, where Egyptian women reveal the age and stories of when they first got sexually harassed, went viral on Egypt's social media. Most users were shocked to learn the naked truth about sexual harassment in Egypt, which, in this case, should just be called what it is, child molestation and abuse.

Here are some tweets from the hashtag, which literally translates to #TheFirstTimeIGotHarassedIWas.

#أول_محاولة_تحرش_كان_عمري
أول تحرش لفظى كنت 13 سنة "يعنى طفلة" وأول تحرش باللمس كنت 15 سنة "لسة طفلة" وتتوالیٰ التحرشات والناس بتتفرج عادى😒

— To2a BaDr L Din..😌 (@_KoTii_) April 5, 2017

"The first verbal harassment was at 13, and the first time I got physically harassed I was 15, just a child. From then on the harassment continued while people just watch"

#اول_محاوله_تحرش_كان_عمري   كنت  10سنين وكان بتاع خرده

— رشا السيد (@ZHlwdg28PrcFTlG) April 5, 2017

"I was 10, and he sold scrap"

#اول_محاولة_تحرش_كان_عمري يمكن كنت ساعتها  4 او 5 سنين بالكتير من واحد نعرفوا كنا رايحين البحر وكان شايلني انا واخويا

— داليا🌞 (@daliashams1) April 5, 2017

"I was 4 or 5 at most, and it was from someone we know. We were going to the beach and he was carrying me and my brother when he did it"

#اول_محاوله_تحرش_كان_عمري
ممكن ١٠سنوات وكان الشيخ اللي بيحفظني قرآن في المسجد

— ★ملكوت★ (@DrAliaaMahmoud) April 5, 2017

"I was 10 and he was the Sheikh teaching me Q'uran at the mosque"

#اول_محاوله_تحرش_كان_عمري  14سنه كنت رايحه الدرس اتحرش بيا شاب كبير و لما حاولت ادافع عن نفسي ضربني في الشارع قدام الناس و محدش  دافع عني

— Da sa (@dalia_saaid) April 5, 2017

"I was 14, heading to a lecture when an older guy harassed me. When I tried to defend myself he beat me up in the street in sight of everyone, no one defended me"

#أول_محاولة_تحرش_كان_عمري
مش فاكرة اول مرة بس فاكرة أبشع مرة وانا عندي 9 سنين في الحرم المكي (الكعبة ) من راجل قد جدي

— Ash (@enas_nader) April 5, 2017

"I don't remember the first time but I remember the worst. I was 9 and it was in Mecca from a man that could be as old as my grandfather"

Photo: AlJazeera/Bauomy