these behaviours anymore.

they in fact won't stop.

and neither will you.

i can recall being nearly petrified, definitely apprehensive whenever encountering men on the street. singularly, in pairs, as groups. it was like wincing whenever you saw an upraised hand. i was into my 30s just about before i ceased.

this isn't about being safe.
never lose your connection to your wits.

i look {if i'm looking} men in the eye when i see them.
i'm willing to smile. don't have to. won't always.
i speak. usually "hello"; it is more formal than a simple "hi".
i can talk while i wait for a second.
i still have means of preoccupation.
i still know exactly what i will gut your throat with should i need to.

some women have always been this way.
i was not.
but for me
this is my world if it's yours.
i'm going to be a part of it.
it's not going to be ignorant men, then young men, then older men, then any man who will preclude me from it.

there is a certain control we can have in our interactions. so therefore i won't ever say the solution is for men to stop speaking -verbally speaking- to us. a hello cannot be allowed to become an affront to male/female interactions. won't accept that.