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Emily Atack urges government to make ‘damaging’ catcalling a ‘public health issue’-Stella Akinwumi-Entertainment – Metro
‘People can tut and roll their eyes when they hear things like that.’
The star will be presenting a new documentary about sexual harrasment (Picture: PA)
Emily Atack has stressed the importance of catcalling having serious consequences.
The 33-year-old British actress rose to fame after starring as Charlotte Hinchcliffe on the E4 comedy series The Inbetweeners.
Atack, who has previously spoken about how she was forced to call the police after receiving rape threats, will now front a new BBC documentary, Emily Atack: Asking For It.
In the feature-length, the star explores how ‘something so grotesque, aggressive, malicious and violent’ as sexual harassment has evolved and how it could be tackled through education.
She also explained that this form of street harassment can evolve into something way more sinister.’
She said: ‘I think bringing things in like making catcalling a public health issue are important. People can tut and roll their eyes when they hear things like that, but I can now understand the importance of that kind of thing.’
Emily will be addressing her personal experiences (Picture: WireImage)
Emily aims to explore how sexual harassment can be tackled in education (Picture: PA)
In the special, Atack will also attempt to speak to some of the men who send her explicit content on social media.
The I’m A Celebrity star who has 1.8 million followers on Instagram, previously spoke to The Sun on Sunday in April and said she is subjected to ‘relentless and disgusting’ rape threats online that have led her to call the police and ‘question her entire existence at times’.
At the time Atack said she has had to move home four times in the wake of targeted abuse, telling the newspaper: ‘They knew where I lived, said what they were going to do to me, even my family.
‘I got the police involved.’
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Atack has previously campaigned against cyberflashing, where individuals send unsolicited explicit images online, and spoke about the seriousness of the issue in Parliament in February.
In March last year, the UK Government announced that cyberflashing would become a new criminal offence with perpetrators facing up to two years behind bars.
Emily Atack: Asking For It? airs on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer at 9pm on January 31.
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Victim Support offers support to survivors of rape and sexual abuse. You can contact them on 0333 300 6389.
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