Harry’s Introduces Workshop on Consent

This past week, popular dance hall Hurricane Harry’s launched a workshop called “Consent While Dancing.” The workshop focused on teaching standard dancing form for dancing with strangers, discussing the kind of tricks that are appropriate to do with a stranger, and how to ask women to dance without being a total creep.

Keynote speaker Lizzie Jackson held a special segment to address the difference between agreeing to dance and agreeing to perform more intimate dance moves. Jackson recommended avoiding tricks like the can opener, which involves separating a woman’s legs, without asking first. “If a lead can’t perform intimate tricks safely without securing their hand on the upper thigh or buttock of their partner, they should avoid it entirely,” Jackson said.

Many regulars have been shocked by the workshop and the information they learned. “I can’t believe that by putting my hand on a lady’s lower back instead of the side of her boob, I will actually have better leading capabilities and avoid being a creep!” said Elton Garcia, class of ’02. It has been reported that many dancers like Garcia feel empowered to learn proper dance form to make their future partners comfortable.

Learning how quietly uncomfortable a woman may be with certain behaviors was eye-opening for many of the attendees. “You know, you hear about these men sexually harassing women and taking advantage of situations and you never think… that could be me,” said Harrison Walters, a long time regular of Hurricane Harry’s.

Since last week’s workshop, freshman girls have reported improvement in the behavior of the middle-aged men who ask them to dance and boasted that there was a decrease in the amount of men who violated their personal space. At the time of writing, workshop attendees were brainstorming ways to objectify women less.

 

— The Dixie Wiccan