#whenyouworkinamuseum

This is a personal story, but it's one that I know has been mirrored by many at the museum I work. I work in the client service department of a national museum in my country so I'm always in contact with visitors. There is way too much harassment going on in public spaces. 

So visitors feel entitled to the artifacts at your museum because:

They think they own them (because taxes, political affiliation,  religious ties, historical or cultural reasons, etc.). They feel they can touch, break, play, remove, (etc.) the objects.

When you get in "their way" they become abusive, either verbally or physically. We all have our stories of being yelled at, pushed, insulted, followed, threatened.

However for me the worse is having to deal with visitors who act like they own "ME". I despise being belittled and harassed because someone feels superior to me.

This weekend some guy though it would be funny to make me uncomfortable by making loud sexually suggestive comments at me and coming extremely close to me.

When I told my story my coworkers were appalled, but someone said: Boys will be boys. That shattered me for a moment, until someone stepped up and replied: Actually, no, boys can sometimes be jackasses and I'm sorry. They offered me support and ideas on how to react. My colleagues offered me the security that I needed.