A couple of weeks ago, the Green Party of Québec proposed a provincial law that would make catcalling and street harassment a tickatable offense.
In the case mentioned in this article, the individual making the remarks was found not guilty of a criminal offense despite admitting to making the degrading remarks.
This is yet another example of the need to legislate on this type of sexual harassment. What took place should have been illegal. If the police were able to track down the person who made these remarks and bring him to criminal court they would have been more than capable of handing him a ticket should a provincial law have been in place.
As the title of the article says it is « not always illegal » to yell unsolicited sexual remarks at women in the streets. That needs to change. The time to act is now.
Alex Tyrrell
Leader of the Green Party of Québec