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Girls for Gender Equity, a not-for-profit organisation based in New York City, work to empower youth, fight sexual harassment and address gender violence. Sara Clarke reviews their guide for young people – and those working with them – on exactly what is sexual harassment, and what needs to be done about it

Hey, Shorty! is an account from a group called Girls for Gender Equity, (GGE), who work to “encourage communities to remove barriers and create opportunities for girls and women to live self-determined lives” through “education, organising and physical fitness”. The book left me feeling optimistic and energised; their project has already accomplished so much.

However, it isn’t really a how-to of activism. The cover promises “A Guide to Combating Sexual Harassment and Violence in Schools and on the Streets” but I’m not sure if I would describe it as a guide.

It certainly isn’t prescriptive and there are few rules or guidelines laid out. In the entire book there are only three ‘rules’ for group activism – but they are more observations and are hardly bullet-pointed and highlighted. However, amongst the anecdotes and the narrative of their successes and failures, there are a few black pages with white text which explain a law in detail or describe clearly what constitutes sexual harassment.

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