The Important Reason Why Mexico City Installed a “Penis Seat” on their Subway

The news of Mexico City Metro’s new “penis seat” has gone viral—and it’s for all the right reasons. Now more than ever, people are aware of the risk women in Mexico City must assume when they take public transit.

According to research done by the Mexican government, 65 percent of women report they have been groped, catcalled or otherwise harassed on a train or bus.

The capital city has been working to combat this frightening culture of harassment since 2000, when they introduced their controversial women-only carriages. This may have been a positive step, but it’s a band-aid solution that normalizes segregation between men and women. The only real way to solve the problem: teach men that groping is not okay.

Or maybe, you can force them to experience a sliver of the discomfort they impose on women. That’s the idea behind the “penis seat,” the city’s latest campaign stunt against sexual harassment. It features a subway seat moulded to resemble a naked male body—complete with chest, belly-button and flaccid penis.

The sign above the seat signals to riders, “For men only.” And the sign below, according to Harper’s Bazaar, reads, “It’s uncomfortable to sit here but it doesn’t compare with the sexual violence that women suffer in their everyday lives. 9 out of 10 women in Mexico City have been victims of some form of sexual violence.”

Check out riders reactions in the video below.

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