Consider this scenario:

I am a female operator sitting in a computer lab in the designated operator's desk. I am typing on the keyboard while my boyfriend is sitting next to me reading a book. A man comes up to the desk to ask the operator a question.

I look up and say, "Hi" and he looks at me, responds with a "Hello", and then turns to my boyfriend and asks him the question. I turn bright red because he felt I was incapable of answering his question because I am a woman.

Now how about this scenario:

I am at a party with a bunch of my friends. A male friend of mine comes up to greet me by patting me on the butt. I am very offended, but I ask him nicely not to continue. He apologizes and tells me he will stop, but he does it three more times that evening, the last one turning into a violent squeeze. Each time I tell him to stop, getting angrier by the minute. I wasn't leading him on in any way. Is it my fault because I was wearing tight jeans? Since I am a woman, am I considered "public property?"

When a man paid another man to come up behind me and lift up the back of my sweatshirt, I felt degraded and dehumanized, as if I was just an object for men to touch and view.

I was convinced that these occurrences were my fault. The first thing I thought of was what I could do to stop them from happening again. I realized, however, that I was wrong: I shouldn't have to change my lifestyle in order to be treated properly.

I know not all men are like the ones I have just described, but it's happened to me too many times to ignore. If you've ever done something like this, stop and think for a minute: how would you feel if someone did something like that to your sister or your girlfriend? It hurts. It hurts the woman, and it hurts women's image of men.

If you want to close the gap between the sexes, please think before you act next time. Think of the consequences of your action, and think of the woman as a person, not an object.