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Sep 18, 2009

Groping is a no-no, or Win a genuine Tokyo subway poster

Today is the end of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's five-day crackdown on subway gropers. The campaign put uniformed officers on platforms and undercover cops on trains to try to reduce the thousands of incidents of surreptitious groping and photographing - "chikan" - on rush hour trains last year. Cops announced one collar (of a repeat offender) on the first day and nothing since that I can find.
The week started with fanfare - shouting high school girls were on TV waving a banner in a busy station, and the English and Japanese editions of the newspapers all covered the first arrest. It ended quietly, with the attendant at the station near my office taking down this poster after rush hour this morning.

It says "Chikan is a crime. It will mess up your life."

Well. Quite the motto.

We wouldn't want a molester's life messed up, now, would we?

Jerks.

I bet you could do better.

I will mail this genuine Tokyo Police Department subway poster to the person anywhere in the world who comes up with the best alternate anti-groping slogan. Leave your suggestion(s) in the comments. A winner will be chosen in a week - make sure you leave a way for me to contact you. You can even re-imagine the art, if you like. Don't feel locked in by the accusatory female cop. Heck, make your own poster and send me a link, if you're feeling ambitious.

You can keep your prize poster, sell it on e-Bay, give it to a friend for the holidays. It was only on the wall for a week, so it's in pretty good shape, although it does have what the station guy called "a torn corner" and what I prefer to think of as "authenticity."


Note: I actually don't find this funny at all. I get so angry when I think about it that you would probably say, "Sheesh, chill out." Sometimes you have to laugh to keep from kicking someone, you know?

11 comments:

Green Tea & Kimchee said...

Pull my finger!

Green Tea & Kimchee said...

Gropers, you've been fingered!

J said...

We need YOU! To sit or stand nice and neatly and stop being such a nuisance and to make an appointment with your shrink ASAP.

Holly said...

The next person molested could be your mother!

too much?

Unknown said...

Want to get fresh? Grope fruit.
-
Chikan is a crime, leave the fondling to fruit selection.



can you tell i'm hungry?

Unknown said...

You wouldn't grope your mother!
You wouldn't grope your sister!
Don't grope strangers!
And face it, the next girl you grope could be a crossdresser, do you want that mistake in your hands?

Dekooning said...

Touch YOURSELF, not OTHERS!

vika said...

Cop holding scissors, announcing:

GRAB YOUR OWN!

Jamaipanese said...

The operators of this subway line cannot be held responsible for any loss of limbs, broken body parts, missing genitals or death that may result from being a Chikan.

Claytonian said...

Do it at home.

Jk

If you grope on a train
you will find a world of pain
you'll be thrown in the slammer
when the judge bangs his hammer
everything to lose, nothing to gain

Anonymous said...

I wish they would have more campaigns empowering to women- encouraging them not to be victims, stand up for yourselves girls! And if anyone sees anyone doing it, there should be an easy way for them to alert others. It is only once we get past victims "gaman" putting up with the problem that we can even hope for change!
So,
Ladies stand up for yourselves- there is no shame in pointing out someone who touched you. If you don't you're helping him get away with it again!

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