(669) 221-6251: The new number every woman needs to add to her phone.
If you have ever had to deal with sketchy or creepy guys hitting on you on the street or at the bar, the next time they ask for your digits, give them this number instead. For those in Toronto, there's even a 647 area code-specific number (647-496-0921).
A Tumblr page called Feminist Phone Intervention has set up six fake phone numbers (with more being added all the time) women can use to get out of those unwanted situations where men can't take "no" for an answer. The group has been able to lead each fake number to an automated quote from feminist writer bell hooks.
So, instead of going to your voice mail, your "suitor" may hear or see a text with something along the lines of, "Sometimes people try to destroy you, precisely because they recognize your power — not because they don’t see it, but because they see it and they don’t want it to exist, a quote by bell hooks."
Each quote is generated in a computer-automated voice, so not only will it give the person on the other end of the line a bit of a scare, but hopefully, it will also send them the right message — to leave you alone.
The site's anonymous creator says the page and its movement (which now has thousands of fans) came as a response to California shooter Elliot Rodger's murderous shooting spree in May, according to CTV. Rodger posted several YouTube videos and Facebook messages talking about being rejected and exhibiting severe hatred toward women before killing six people and himself last month.
According to the hotline's site, sometimes it is easier and safer to give someone a fake phone number than directly rejecting an aggressive person, adding that women are constantly threatened and punished for rejecting men.
Currently, there are numbers set up for Toronto, Chicago, London, New York, Tel Aviv and Monterrey, Mexico. They are working on new number options and additional languages.
What do you think of this idea? Let us know in the comments below:
If you have ever had to deal with sketchy or creepy guys hitting on you on the street or at the bar, the next time they ask for your digits, give them this number instead. For those in Toronto, there's even a 647 area code-specific number (647-496-0921).
A Tumblr page called Feminist Phone Intervention has set up six fake phone numbers (with more being added all the time) women can use to get out of those unwanted situations where men can't take "no" for an answer. The group has been able to lead each fake number to an automated quote from feminist writer bell hooks.
So, instead of going to your voice mail, your "suitor" may hear or see a text with something along the lines of, "Sometimes people try to destroy you, precisely because they recognize your power — not because they don’t see it, but because they see it and they don’t want it to exist, a quote by bell hooks."
Each quote is generated in a computer-automated voice, so not only will it give the person on the other end of the line a bit of a scare, but hopefully, it will also send them the right message — to leave you alone.
The site's anonymous creator says the page and its movement (which now has thousands of fans) came as a response to California shooter Elliot Rodger's murderous shooting spree in May, according to CTV. Rodger posted several YouTube videos and Facebook messages talking about being rejected and exhibiting severe hatred toward women before killing six people and himself last month.
According to the hotline's site, sometimes it is easier and safer to give someone a fake phone number than directly rejecting an aggressive person, adding that women are constantly threatened and punished for rejecting men.
Currently, there are numbers set up for Toronto, Chicago, London, New York, Tel Aviv and Monterrey, Mexico. They are working on new number options and additional languages.
What do you think of this idea? Let us know in the comments below: