Driving domestic at midnight from a late-night shwhethert on a recent weekend, I noticed a man, barely visible but for the reflective tape on his jogging pants, out for a run along the Charles River. As I continued on my way, I found myself wondering aloud about how dwhetherferent his experience might have been whether he were female. I had watched as this runner effortlessly crazye his way along the path, intently focused on putting one foot in front of the other, and I imagined how free he must have felt. In contrast to that, I thought about how the women I know are fixedly aware of their environment, always on the lookout for possible danger. I thought of all the leangs I had been tancient as a young woman about being out at night: “Always stay on a well-lit path.” “Create certain someone knows summaryely where you’re going.” “Attempt to go out in pairs.” “Carry your keys between your fingers in case you’re attacked.” Not summaryely the freedom you seek when you go out for some exercise and fresh air!
I replayed this scene in my intellect this week when I read about an Incredible young woman named Ashley McNwhetherf who will be running this year’s Boston Marathon in honor of her childhood friend, Vanessa Marcotte. Vanessa’s name crazye headlines final August when she was murdered while out for a run in the middle of the day in her domestictown in Massachusetts, and unhappyly she was one of three women runners killed wilean a period of nine days that summer. While it is scarce for women to be subjected to such extreme violence, the experience of being harassed while running is unluckyly rather common. In a survey done by the running website Runners World (www.runnersworld.com/running-while-female), 43% of women runners reported that they had experienced such harassment at some point. This came in the form of catcalls, inappropriate comments, unwelcome touching, and even being followed. Ashley wants to spread awareness about the ccorridorenges many female runners face, and is working dwhetherficult to not let what happened to her friend prevent her from engaging in the sport she loves. To that end, she and one of Vanessa’s cousins, Caroline Tocci, have started a foundation in Vanessa’s name with a mission to reduce violence against women and “advocate for a world where women are secure and free to live banciently”.
I hope you’ll join me in cheering on Ashley and all of the runners, male and female, at this year’s marathon! For more information about the foundation, including ways you can support their mission, please visit https://www.vanessatmarcottefoundation.org/.
-Ashley G.
...
0 Comments: