Is it possible to create an online environment where women actually feel safe from sexual harassment?
This question is at the heart of debates surrounding the Online Safety Bill. Suggestions include imposing harsher penalties for those posting illegal content and putting the onus on tech companies to address illegal content. Sounds good, but sadly, it doesn't stop creeps commenting on the colour of your genitals – yep, really.
In the last week or so, certain men have been patting themselves on the back for coming up with a sneaky way of objectifying and sexualising women's bodies on TikTok. Instead of commenting directly with misogynistic language on women's videos, which could be reported for hate speech, they simply post a colour code. If you then look up this code on Google's colour picker, it will inevitably respond to a pink/brown shade meant to represent the colour of the women's genitalia. Genius, right?
The new laws designed for greater internet safety are set to be approved by the House of Commons.
The “code” has quickly been cracked, with several people calling it out on Twitter. The model Wisdom Kaye tweeted, “I don't like speaking about stuff but this is so sick. To make it worse men on tt do this to girls who are underage as well....like how sick are you to publicly sexualize a minor online and think it's okay.”
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Another Twitter user replied to this tweet, pointing out “This isn’t normal behavior at all and the craziest part is that they probably don’t know (or care) that this constitutes as online sexual harassment.”
Although this harassment mainly occurs on TikTok, it reflects a virulent strain of misogyny that many women experience in their day-to-day lives. Sharon Gaffka, a campaigner for the Online Safety bill, told GLAMOUR, "My own experience came from being the first non-caucasian partner an ex had ever had. He was ‘surprised’ by the colour of my labia, which had come from conversations with his friends about the colour of genitalia, especially in Asian women.
“As a result, my ex assumed mine would be ‘grey’. They found that type of conversation amusing, which made it evident that these conversations had been about previous partners, showing zero respect for any partner.”
She adds, "This trend is detrimental as many vagina-owning people are already conscious of its appearance, especially with the rise of adult content and glamorisation of labiaplasty. Discussing a women’s genitalia with anyone is horrible, but for me, the underage aspect comes from hyper sexualisation of young women.”
Sharon Gaffka shares her story.
So what can you do if men are guessing the colour of your genitalia online? GLAMOUR spoke to Ruth Peters, a criminal defence lawyer and director at Olliers Solicitors, who advised that while this behaviour constitutes sexual harassment, sexual harassment is not a criminal offence.
However, she adds, "It may be classed as an offence of Harassment, “A person must not pursue a course of conduct—
(a)which amounts to harassment of another, and (b)which he knows or ought to know amounts to harassment of the other.”
Would this type of online sexual harassment be stopped by introducing the Online Safety bill? Well, according to Ruth, “No.” She explains, "The bill does not appear to address this type of communication, though it possibly could be considered a harmful communication in the bill.
“Under current law, it may be considered an offence under section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act if indecent or grossly offensive in nature.”
Finally, is there any legal recourse available if this happens to you? Ruth explains, "You could report to the police as a malicious communication: “If done with the intent to cause distress or anxiety to the recipient or to any other person to whom he intends that it or its contents or nature should be communicated.”
Glamour UK has reached out to TikTok for comment.
For more from Glamour UK's Lucy Morgan, follow her on Instagram @lucyalexxandra.
