The Scene: 16-year-old girl walking down the street is in a blouse and a nice skirt. There is power in her stride and a faint smile on her face. She feels on top of the world. All of sudden, an adult man whistles and makes a vulgar comment from across the street. She is knocked out of her bliss. She tugs on the hum of her skirt. She is now scared and uncomfortable. The power in her stride is gone and replaced with a quick nervous pace.

This scene has been transformed into more than just an isolated incident. Women of all ages now fear walking alone or being near strange men. It is a tragedy that, as women, we cannot feel comfortable enough in our society to be out alone. I am 16. I have been cat-called and stared at by men since long before now. I am still a child, yet men, both young and old, feel it is okay to stare, whistle, and make comments towards me.

I would never dream of going out alone at night. When my friends and I go out at night we've made it a personal goal to always have at least two guy friends with us. When a group of teenage or young men is walking my direction, I walk to the other side of the path. Growing up we are taught not to be naive and to have our defenses up. Young men should be taught respect and manners. Why do we put in all the work?

Nothing about a man's whistles or comments is attractive. No "damn baby" has ever swept a woman off her feet. It's disgusting. We are not objects. There is no rating system that benefits us based on the amount of whistles we get a day. Cat-calling is not at all rewarding, nor do we enjoy it. NO, it is absolutely not a "compliment". A compliment does not make you fear something bad that's about to happen. A compliment does not make the confidence you had seconds before disappear because it got you noticed too much. A compliment does not make us question whether our outfit choice was in bad taste. Our outfit is not the problem. The disrespect is the problem. It happens everywhere. Even in schools, we have become on alert. If men knew how their calls made us feel, would they stop?

Women are powerful. We are bold. We are strong. Despite any call, we still stand tall as much as we can. We have learned to rise above and take on the world. This lesson has pushed the female population further into greatness. However, it is a lesson that should not have been learned the hard way. Why was this growth through fear instead of encouragement? Instead of only teaching young girls defense, young boys should also be taught respect. Why is their behavior not discussed? Parents and teachers should teach manners. It is morally wrong to say things that degrade others. Why is that any different in this situation? Schools should stop making it seem like girls are the distraction, and start telling boys to mind themselves and focus. Mentors should instill this at a young age. We have an army of powerful women. We need a second army of respectful men. The end to cat-calling should not be a women's movement. It needs the support of everyone.