this post was submitted on 27 Jun 2026
27 points (100.0% liked)
WomensStuff
1215 readers
366 users here now
Women only trans inclusive This is an inclusive community for all things women. Whether you're here for make up tips, feminism or just friendly chit chat, we've got you covered.
Rules…
- Women only… trans women are women, and transphobic or gender critical talk isn’t allowed. Anyone under the trans umbrella (e.g. non-binary, bigender, agender) is free to decide whether a women's community is a good fit for them.
- Don’t be a dick. No personal attacks, no aggression, play nice.
- Don’t hate on groups, hatefilled talk about groups is not allowed. Ever.
- No governmental politics, so no talk of Trump actions etc. We recommend Feminism@beehaw.org for that, but here is an escape from it.
- New accounts or users with few comments may have their posts removed to prevent spam and bad-faith participation.
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
That's around 9yo though, that's for sure too early.
If she's old enough to be out on the street alone, then she needs to know the risks and how to stay safe. She doesn't need to know graphic details yet, and you don't need to communicate an attitude of fear, just that people who comment on her body or who are too interested in her are not safe to be around.
I was maybe 8 or 9 hanging out in the road in front of my house with a couple other neighborhood girls when a guy in a car started repeatedly driving back and forth and slowing down. Maybe he was looking for an address or maybe he was creeping on us, but we knew not to stick around and find out, so we vacated ASAP.
I knew by that age to ignore catcalls and at all costs to avoid men who catcalled me or commented on my body. I didn't know exactly why until I was a little older but I knew it wasn't safe and I knew there was physical danger to myself involved.
It's so gross. Ok yeah maybe now is the time.
Yeah, I’d tack onto to this add that I have had similar experiences around that age. While I never got a parental talk about this specifically, I always had stranger danger drilled into me. The context of what was happening made more sense when I got a little older and seemed to just be an accepted thing that happened among my peers at the time.
It felt really common and not a lot could be done about it as a kid and joking about the creepy old man on the bus or street was really all we could do.
Granted, I am from a large city which has its own risks, but I imagine a familiar, trusting small town has its own flavor of problems. The most important part is your kid feeling comfortable talking to you, having the support needed to emotionally process the events when they occur, and being unafraid to speak up if they have to.
Good luck.
It’s not, I’ve had several talks with my kid about this through their life so far and they’re around that age.
They need to know that not every adult is safe. That there are adults that want to hurt them. This is the truth regardless of gender.
Internet safety is a big one. Also teaching what to do if someone tries to pick them up, if someone wants to know more about them or if they feel uncomfortable, etc.
I talk about how different groups of people are sometimes treated differently in our society. This includes how women are treated. What slurs are and why they’re harmful.
It’s all part of a larger conversation about the truths of our world. At 9 years old, they probably have already picked up on some of this. Maybe start with asking what they perceive about this already if anything?
Oh yeah we've talked about adults and safety and how groups of people are treated differently and all that. I'm specifically talking about street harassment and creeps.
It’s all related in my opinion. I’d extend from those conversations about unsafe adults and talk about street harassment.
In my experience, not too early. I think that's when my mom talked to me about it.
Side note: men (if your reading this), you got to speak up when the guy next to you misbehaves. It's bonkers to let it happen in front of you and do nothing.
Not at all. It's an updated stranger danger lesson.
That was around the age I was when just outside my house when a car cat called me so. Not too early to experience it. So gotta explain it very early.
Awful and almost worse when you're just outside your safe space, your home.
It's not too early to experience it, it's not too early to inform them about it. It's a tough topic, but a necessary one, unfortunately.
Ok yeah, sounds like I should start approaching this.
I have talked about it with my 6 year old but that's because she already had another kid do the Im mean because I like you so it was a part of that.