Subway: Dirty Deeds On The Rise

Two-thirds of people responding to a recent online survey say they have been sexually harassed on the subway, but only 4 percent reported it to authorities. And this just after we learned that our transit system is [so darn clean].

Over the last month, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer conducted a [study of subway sexual harassment],the accompanying report, “Hidden in Plain Sight,” was released today. Those polled were 67.2 percent female and 32.3 percent male, and findings include that 70 percent of the incidents—defined as unwelcome sexual advances or conduct—occurred [during rush hour](http://www.nysun.com/article/59213), and that 96 percent of riders do not report crimes they witness (because, we guess, people don’t consider flashing to be what “see something, say something” refers to).

“There’s this credo in New York that what happens underground, stays underground,” Stringer said. “You should not have to take a staircase out of a subway after having been harassed or assaulted, and feel that no one was there to help you underground.”

Deputy Police Commissioner Paul Browne pointed out that cops have [arrested 119 people] suspected of engaging in sexual abuse and lewdness on the subways this year, at a time when crime in the transit system is at a record low. Nevertheless, Stringer is calling for greater police presence underground to prevent that number from rising.

Photo courtesy of [cerulean5000 on Flickr]