'NYC Is Not Safe For Us': Women's Viral TikToks Recount Random Punches

NEW YORK CITY — Three young women who were randomly punched in the face by men on Manhattan streets and subway in the span of days recently went to the same place to tell their stories: TikTok.

The trio's videos — and scores of others' in response — went viral and drew thousands of shares. They also inspired New Yorkers to share their own harrowing stories of facing violence seemingly for nothing other than being a woman in public.

"NYC is not safe for us," read the headline for one video.

'This Situation Really Shook Me Up'

The videos highlight not just a sense of danger in New York City, but one that human rights advocates say women face worldwide: violence in public spaces.

Such sexual harassment takes different forms, from catcalls to a physical attacks, said Kathryn Travers, a policy specialist on ending violence against women with UN Women. But, together, they shape the way women navigate the world, she said.

"Because of the everydayness, it becomes invisible in a lot of ways," she said.

In recent weeks alone, random men in New York City have, according to the NYPD:

• Groped and hurled anti-gay remark to woman waiting for a J train, before breaking her nose.
• Choked and punched a woman on the Q train who didn't return conversation.
• Punched a 13-year-old girl in the head while she was on a Bronx bus.

Amid this swirl of violence, 19-year-old Ellio Wagner posted a TikTok video about how a man randomly attacked her.

With a black eye, Wagner recounted how she walked to work early Sept. 8 when a man bee-lined toward her near West 26th Street and Sixth Avenue. Before Wagner could process the threat, he punched her in the face and ran off, she said.

"I wanted to talk about this, because this situation really shook me up," she said. "It was very traumatic and it makes me very scared to be walking around New York alone, which is not something I've really been scared of."

"If you are a woman in New York City, please protect yourself."

@elliowagner just sharing what happened. pls pls pls pls guys in the world we live in today you cant let your guard down and have to treat everyone like a predator unfortunately 💔 NYC is not safe for us. #nyc #manhattan #flatirondistrict #staysafe #selfdefense #assault #protectyourself #fyp #foryou #foryoupage #womensreality #tothegirls #safety ♬ original sound - Ellio

The video evidently struck a chord: it has drawn nearly 19,000 shares and 99,000 "likes."

And, within days, two other women posted TikToks about random assaults they suffered at the hands of men while they had otherwise mundane days in Manhattan.

NYPD officials confirmed to Patch that a 19-year-old — Wagner — and another woman contacted police to report assaults that matched details in two videos.

Police officials actually gave more details about an attack detailed in the second video posted by TikTok user cocobby96.

They said a 27-year-old woman was waiting for an F train in the West Fourth Street station late Sept. 10 when a man punched her in the face and gave her a bloody nose. She was taken to Bellevue Hospital for treatment, while the man ran off and hasn't been found, police said.

In the video posted by cocobby96, which has been shared nearly 2,300 times, she expresses a sense of powerlessness over her own safety.

"I don't know what the hell is happening in the city, why there's so much hate and violence," she said.

@cocobby96
♬ original sound - Cosette Richardson

A third woman in her since-deleted video said that NYPD officers responded to her reported assault by a male shoplifter running from a Lower Manhattan Duane Reade, but they appeared uninterested in watching security video. Police officials said they didn't have any information on that incident.

The three women either didn't return Patch's requests for comment or couldn't be reached.

But their stories drew scores of replies from women who said they also experienced random violence in public at the hands of a man.

"This is happening way TOO often," one wrote.

'It Affects Freedom'

But public harassment and violence is still often overlooked.

As much as it appears to be a prevalent fear for women worldwide, Travers, the UN Women specialist, said experts are still working to collect data.

What is available shows that in the U.S. 66 percent of women surveyed said they experienced some form of sexual harassment in public spaces, a UN Women document shows.

Travers said this harassment ultimately affects women's choices. Ask any woman in your life which way they walk in their neighborhood at night, if they do at all, she said.

"These are all very much guided by what we call a 'sense of safety,' really how safe do you feel in public spaces, which is directly linked to these experiences of sexual harassment that women face all over the world," she said.

"It affects freedom in so many fundamental ways."

The reality of sexual assault, unwelcome sexual remarks, harassment and other forms of violence reduces womens' and girls' freedom of movement and ability to participate in school, work and public life, a UN Women document contends.

But unlike domestic violence and workplace violence, which are now recognized as human rights violations, there are few laws or policies in place to prevent and address public harassment, and worse, against women, the document notes.

Indeed, violence against women in public spaces often isn't recorded as anything but an assault.

Unlike domestic violence, public attacks on women don't fall under their own crime. And, even though they're arguably against a single group, they're seldom charged as a hate crime.

Travers said ultimately there needs to be a big social transformation.

"End up at a place where we collectively have a culture where it's just unaccepted, where we recognize that it's a violation of women's human rights, to live a life free of violence against women," she said.

Patch writer Emily Rahhal contributed to this report.