In this episode, Toshi sat down with Issy from Our Streets Now to talk about why showing Adolescence in schools isn’t a good idea – as well as some alternatives. 

Our Streets Now is a UK based organisation that is looking to end public sexual harassment. It was founded in 2019 by two teenage sisters, sharing how they experienced the world as young women. They spoke about feeling afraid walking home at night. About being harassed in their school uniform. About how their lives were restricted by the fear of public sexual harassment. And about how this was an everyday reality for millions of women, girls and people of marginalised genders up and down the country. 

They began a petition to make public sexual harassment (PSH) a criminal offence. Within 100 days, that petition had over 100,000 signatures. It now sits at almost half a million. It caught the attention of local media, then national media, then policymakers at the heart of government. And, in 2023, the five year campaign to make PSH a crime was a success. 

Timestamps 

00:00 – Intro 

00:55 – What is Our Streets Now and what do they do? 

03:20 – All about the workshops run by Our Streets Now about sexual harassment 

07:06 – How different genders respond differently to these workshops 

10:23 – How to get students involved in difficult conversations about sexual harassment  

13:43 – What do young people want to know?  

18:40 – How we are all part of the problem 

25:24: The ‘little and often’ approach – and why it’s so useful 

26:54 – Should Adolescence be shown in schools as a learning resource?  

31:14 – The alternative to showing Adolescence in schools 

34:25 – How can parents and carers support these conversations?  

37:41 – Issy's message to young people  

39:13 – Where to find out more about Our Streets Now 

40:50 – Conclusion  

Find out more about Our Streets Now: https://www.ourstreetsnow.org/ 

Our Streets Now support: https://www.ourstreetsnow.org/support 

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