Woman Shares 8 Ways To Tell If Someone Has Bad Intentions, Goes Viral

According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, 81% of women and 43% of men in the United States reported experiencing sexual harassment and/or assault in their lifetime. 

Meanwhile, nearly 1 in 4 female undergraduates experienced sexual assault or misconduct at 33 of America’s major universities. 

The CDC states that sexual violence affects millions of people every single year in the US. The fact is that many cases end up not being reported, so any data that researchers talk about only refers to a fraction of the problem.

For example, some survivors might feel embarrassed or outright scared of talking to the authorities, as well as their family and friends. They might be afraid of being judged or stigmatized. Other survivors might have been threatened to stay quiet. 

According to the CDC, sexual violence disproportionally affects women and racial and ethnic minorities. 

The National Domestic Violence Hotline reports that almost half of all women and men in the United States have experienced psychological aggression by an intimate partner.

35.6% of American women and 28.5% of men have experienced sexual assault, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner. Intimate partner violence affects over 12 million people every year. 

Katie opened up about how she first got started with sharing safety tips on the internet. "I started my TikTok account after 20 women had been assaulted in San Francisco and no one was doing anything about it. The police and DA knew who the man was after the 3rd assault, but 23 women in total were assaulted before the man was arrested," she told Bored Panda in an email.

"I figured that if our justice system wasn’t doing anything to protect these women, I could teach them how to protect themselves," she said.

We asked Katie what could be done to make men more self-aware of how toxic their behavior can be, for example, when they react poorly to being told 'no' by women. She said that it's a complicated issue.

"It goes beyond telling a man that their behavior is toxic or not okay. If the men who respond poorly or get mad when a woman says no want to change, they need therapy, because it goes deeper than self-awareness," she explained to Bored Panda.

"Men who don’t respect a woman’s 'no' don’t respect women. They get mad because they don’t actually see women as humans—they see them as objects that exist for men’s satisfaction." Katie suggested two ways that we can start changing this behavior.

"Men need to call other men out on this behavior. A lot of men who believe they are the good guys will let this behavior slide, especially when it comes to their friends. They may apologize on their friend's behalf, but they don’t actually hold their friend accountable, so the behavior doesn’t change," she told Bored Panda.

"When it comes to men they don’t know, I think a lot of men are afraid to say anything. I’ve talked to countless women who have been harassed, and despite being surrounded by men, the only people who come to their aid are other women.

I’m not saying there aren’t any men who would step in—I know men who would—but too many men sit and watch. Men who don’t respect a woman’s 'no' don’t listen to women, but they will listen to other men."

Meanwhile, Katie noted that there's also a need to teach boys how to accept rejection from an early age. What's more, they need to be taught to respect women, as well as to understand that their value as a man doesn't lie with how many women they date or sleep with.

According to Katie, it's usually "pretty obvious" when somebody in public needs help. "One of the best things you can do if a woman is being harassed by a man is call out the other man’s behavior. If you don’t feel safe interfering, you can call 911 on their behalf," she said.

There is, however, a caveat. "If you approach someone and they say they don’t need your help, then listen. Don’t be offended. Just understand that accepting help from a stranger can, unfortunately, put a woman in a dangerous situation.”

Katie has a huge presence on social media, and it’s very likely that you’ve seen at least some of her safety and self-defense tips at some point in your feed. She has a loyal following of 477k internet users on TikTok, as well as 310k fans on Instagram. They’re there for her daily self-defense and safety tips.

According to her bio on Fazer Defense, she is a self-defense instructor, martial artist, as well as a former D1 athlete. Katie started ‘The Self Defense Girl’ project on TikTok and Instagram after a man assaulted nearly two dozen women in San Francisco and had not been arrested yet.

“The police and justice system weren't stopping this man and Katie knew she needed to find a way to teach as many women as possible how to defend themselves. Since then, she has built a community focused on empowering women through self-defense,” her bio reads.

“The scary truth is that you can't always count on cops or a good samaritan being there to help you, we have to be our own first responders!”

Sadly, this is the reality that many people live with. While we want to believe that the authorities will always protect us, you can’t always expect that a police officer will be nearby when you need them the most. Knowing how to protect yourself and your loved ones is a good idea, no matter who you are and where you live.