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It’s a movement against the subtle street harassment when guys tell a girl to smile or “Honey, why you look so sad?” I physically hate it when anyone (male or female) does this to me on the street, and it happens ALL THE TIME.
The other day I was walking to the subway and a guy threw a “Hey pretty girl, you need to turn that frown upside down.” I didn’t acknowledge it, and I had my sunglasses on so he couldn’t see the total death stare I was giving him. I was SO mad. I wasn’t smiling for a number of reasons, none of which were this dude’s business.
If you want to make me smile by hollering at me on the street, how about you say hello? Or tell me to have a nice day? Or genuinely compliment me instead of demanding I do something for you? You don’t see me yelling at random guys to smile or telling them they’re too cute to look sad. UGH.
Sorry, but it’s just not my thing to walk down the street spewing rainbows and butterflies out of my mouth. I don’t frolic around with a grin on my face because I have a lot more on my mind than the guy commanding me to smile.
So here are 10 reasons why I’m probably not vomming sparkles:
1. I haven’t had my coffee yet, therefore the world is dead to me.
2. I’m walking to/from the subway, the most dreadful place ever.
3. I just went through a breakup, and I’m not over it yet.
4. I’m really tired.
5. I had a terrible day for reasons I would not like to share with a total stranger.
6. I’m hungry.
7. I’m thinking about a huge project I have to finish at work or school.
8. My shoes are uncomfortable, and my feet are killing me.
9. I’m currently in a fight with a friend, and I’m not happy about it.
10. I don’t want to look like a total doofus who walks around showing everyone all 32 of my teeth.
I’m a happy person, but I don’t need to broadcast my smile when I’m walking about minding my own business. If I’m not smiling, it doesn’t mean I’m not happy. I just don’t feel like it.
Have you had a random stranger tell you to smile? How did you handle it? Were you upset? Tell me in the comments!
And apparently this is how guys determine if we’re good in bed
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When guys do this, (and its been pretty often) it immediately makes me feel awkward because, while I was probably in a just fine and happy mood, is my “normal” face a scowl?
loads of people say that I don’t smile, my crush even calls me miserable girl. I? just don’t like smiling all the time but I will when I want to
I wrote a speech for my social studies class against street harassment. It opened my 8th grade classmates minds to a real issue.
I totally agree with this. The same thing happens to me all the time. I don’t feel like I need to smile all the time to promote my happiness.
Maybe people are just trying to be NICE so you DO have a better day. I found this post pretty negative and rude. Yes, you may not be in the greatest mood, but don’t take it out on the people around you especially people who don’t know you. I get this all the time, too, but it makes you feel better to let go of your ANGER an replace it with HAPPINESS. My grandma thinks I’m rude and not friendly when I don’t say ‘hi’ or smile when I walk into a room even if I just rolled out of bed…I’d rather be perceived as a friendly person than some negative, miserable mopey person. Just a thought.
Here’s the thing, you want people to be exactly like you. “Replace your anger with happiness!” Hooray! I don’t smile, in fact I have a pretty great “Don’t fuck with me” face that I wear when I’m walking around. But guess what? I have an amazing life with a great relationship and am generally very happy inside my head. I just don’t feel the need to let anyone else know what I’m feeling or invite them into my personal space. People like you are concerned with how you are perceived (ie: “i’d rather be perceived as a friendly person than some negative…..) My self-esteem doesn’t come from other people, their acknowledgement, or their perception of me. My high, happy, and positive self-esteem comes from me.
this is a really cool post, to acknowledge that woman and girls are allowed to have their thoughts and stuff while walking down the street, like when you buy something at a shop and dont smile, people always ask you whats wrong, its like nothing but now i am angry.
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HAHAHA this is awesome. “the world is dead to me”
I live in Venezuela (South america) and street harassment here is horrible. Every time a girl/woman walks down the street she gets harassed and it is terrible and annoying. The police is sometimes even worst than strangers… The sad part about this is that the only thing I can do is ignore them, because if I give them a bad look or reply something, things just get worst. In the worst case, they get violent. Most girls of my age are already used to it, and think it’s normal, but I just can’t accept something like this.