''Hey baby!''

Typically, the vehicle slows to a crawl, matching the speed of the girl or woman walking a few feet away on the sidewalk. Then come the words:

``Get in my car, you look too good to walk."

``Hey, pssst, hey!"

``Smile for me. Show me your pretty face. Can I get your number?"

(Obscenities, vulgar suggestions.)

``Bring that back here. Mmm, mmm good."

``HEY BABY!"

Ask a man about ``street harassment" and he might mention the homeless guy shaking a change cup near his workplace.

Ask a woman, and the response probably takes a different form, often with tales of men yelling remarks like those above, all reported on Boston streets. Or worse, you may hear stories of men who hiss, grunt, whistle, grope, and stalk.

In this summer in which news from the street has been dominated by deadly shootings, harassment is a crime below the radar. It doesn't rate its own category when law enforcement stats are reported. You don't hear about it much when politicians and clergymen step to the microphone.

But while there is no body count for street harassment, the harsh reality has left some women with fears about their personal safety. And the prevalence of the problem has prompted action from three area sources:

A local teen empowerment group has launched a stepped-up campaign to raise awareness of the issue.

A local chapter of the nationwide Holla Back women's anti harassment group has formed.

The Boston contingent of the National Organization of Men Against Sexism has joined in the cause.

As early as 8 years old, girls start hearing men yell suggestive things at them, say the teen organizers of the Hyde Square Task Force. Located in a storefront on Centre Street in a corner of JP recently identified by Boston police as a hot spot for shootings, the nonprofit group focuses on community issues like harassment on the streets and in the schools.

``Why are these men even looking at us?" says Gabi Leyton-Nolan , 14, of Roslindale. ``They have daughters or granddaughters our age."

Speaking recently at one of the regular meetings of the task force, Leyton-Nolan joined with a dozen peers to talk about how fed up they are with street harassment.

``If you don't like it and you don't want it, then it is harassment," she says .

When she waits for the bus or the T, Leyton-Nolan says she hears slurs and propositions. When she ignores them, she says, the taunts quickly turn to aggressive insults.

That's when the fear sets in, she says, as it's hard to know whether physical actions might follow such verbal barrages.

``You don't know if it is a compliment -- or if it is wrong at first," says Kendra Larz , 16, of JP.

Beyond fear, that kind of uncertainty also fuels anger -- at the very idea it may not be safe to walk down Centre Street or other parts of the city without an accompanying male.

One of two males in the task force, Victor Martinez , 15, of JP, says he sometimes tells guys to back off when they are saying ``too much."

Maanav Thakore , 26, the teens' task force organizer, feels that such harassment and headline-grabbing incidents of street violence are directly related.

Harassment, he says, ``isn't about sex. It is about power." Its victims, he continues, ``feel like `I'm not safe alone' or `I always have to watch my back' or `I can't wear what I want' or `I have to be cold to people' and always have an iPod on."

There are side effects to incessant harassment, he says, when students start putting the blame on themselves and can't focus on their schoolwork.

``Walking down the street, they are just a piece of meat," he says.

Last August, the group held a street event with skits and began passing out cards with pleas for respect from men.

This summer, the task force has begun producing large signs from the cards. The message on the front of each, in English and Spanish: ``Please treat me with Respect." On the back: a definition of street harassment. Local businesses have displayed the placards, Thakore says. Also, the group has started working with officials to update sex education curriculum in the schools, as well as change the way reports of harassment are handled.

The group's efforts have not gone unnoticed. Two Boston women, inspired in part by a news account of the task force, formed a Boston community blog in June to share their stories of street harassment. Holla Back Boston cofounders Michelle Riblett and Brittany Shoot advise women to use their cellphone cameras to document harassers. The blog is modeled after the Holla Back NYC blog project launched in October 2005, one of a loosely linked, international network.

``With one cellphone picture, it magnifies and travels all over the world," says Riblett, 24, of the Back Bay.

Asked about the possibility that some of the photos and stories that make it online might level unjust accusations, she says, ``We are more concerned about the thousands of women that get harassed every day."

Legally, accosting or annoying someone of the opposite sex could get the offender up to six months of jail time or $200 in fines, according to Chapter 272, section 53 of Massachusetts General Law.

But ``annoying persons" incidents often go under-reported in public places such as the T, says Manuela DeSousa , a Transit Police Department crime analyst.

``More people are apt to report something if they are touched," she says. ``I can see a victim walking away if they are just annoyed."

Still, if an incident does occur while using public transportation, she suggests riders use the police call boxes or report it to a MBTA official or train conductor. And if it happens to you, ``report it as soon as you can," she says.

Boston attorney Wendy Murphy is skeptical of legal remedies for street harassment. ``Since there is no established definition of street harassment, what is flirtation to one person could be harassment to another, similar to sexual harassment cases in the workplace," says Murphy, 45, who teaches a seminar on sexual violence at the New England School of Law. ``Neither side has much hope of using the law to stop the offensive behavior."

Women taking the message to the Internet, into the streets , and into public forums are her first choices before pushing for more government regulation.

Women can seek legal protection in work and academic environments, but harassment on the street or public transportation is a new frontier, says Nan Stein , a senior research scientist at the Wellesley Centers for Women at Wellesley College. She says she developed the first curriculum on sexual harassment in schools in 1979 for the Massachusetts Department of Education.

``I think if it is public transportation . . . then there is a responsibility of both federal and city governments to make you safe," the Cambridge resident says. In Stein's opinion, just saying ``hey baby" -- on the T or on the street -- shouldn't be against the law.

``I don't want speech like that criminalized," she says. ``You are going to run into the First Amendment," which is part of a constant tension in harassment cases .

That lack of clearly defined and established legal guidelines to make the streets safe from harassment is part of what prompts groups ardent about the issue to turn to like-minded souls for help.

When a number of Boston-area women met in Cambridge last month to discuss their personal struggle with lewd shouts and other assaults on their dignity, five members of the National Organization for Men Against Sexism, Boston chapter, were there.

The pro feminist, gay-affirmative, and anti racist group joined the women, forming a circle at the Democracy Center on Mt. Auburn Street to trade ideas and stories and engage in role-playing.

They took their dialogue out to a corner of Harvard Square. There they used construction cones to wrap the sort of yellow tape all too familiar from crime scenes -- but covered with handwritten slogans. ``Don't ask me to smile," said one. ``Street harassment must end," proclaimed another, and then: ``Warning: street harassment will not be tolerated -- violators will be photographed."

The square is symbolic of public places where harassment frequently occurs, says Matt Meyer , a member of the men's group. A display like theirs is one way to bring awareness to the problem, he says.

Scott Pherson , a cofounder of the group, says he left the event with a sense of satisfaction that more people are sharing in his outrage about harassment. He says he has confronted men on T platforms and asked them to stop harassing women.

``I get annoyed and I get upset," he says, ``when I see it happening."

Stephanie Conduff can be reached at sconduff@globe.com.

What do you think?

Have you had personal experiences with street harassment? Do you have any ideas for stopping it? City Weekly wants to hear from you. Message us at ciweek@globe.com. Please include your name, a daytime phone number, and your neighborhood or community. Responses may be edited for length and grammar.

Handling harassment

What should you do if you are harassed on the street? Keeping in mind that your safety is the top priority, here are a few tips:

Use strong body language: Look the harasser in the eye, speak in a strong, clear voice.

Name the behavior: For example, say, ``Don't comment on my body. That is harassment."

Do not apologize or ask a question: Don't say, ``Excuse me. . .," ``Would you. . .," ``I'm sorry, but. . .," or ``Please. . ."

Do not get into a dialogue with the harasser: Don't answer any of the harasser's questions or respond to follow-up comments. Simply repeat your statement or leave.

Do not swear or lose your temper: For many harassers, the goal is to get a rise out of you. For them to see you getting angry or upset encourages them.

Source: www.harassment101.com