Powerful PSA Shows It's Up To Us To Stop Sexual Harassment And Assault

We’ve been trained since childhood to keep things to ourselves. We’ve been taught not to “tattle” on others, not to “be a snitch” and to mind our own business.

These lessons can be useful, but when it comes to situations that involve the well-being of others, minding our own business can be dangerous -- even deadly.

That’s the message the Ontario, Canada, government hopes to communicate with its new sexual harassment PSA, #WhoWillYouHelp.

The ad depicts several instances of sexual harassment -- everything from unwanted touching at work to spreading intimate pictures at school -- and how they could have been stopped if only an onlooker had stood up and said something.

In the middle of the minute-long commercial, the ad’s narrator reads,

When you do nothing, you’re helping him. But when you do something, you help her.

The commercial ends with the question, #WhoWillYouHelp?

It’s a powerful reminder that sometimes, ignoring wrongful acts is just as harmful as committing them. We have a responsibility to watch out for others and to speak out when something is wrong -- even if it means being “a snitch.”

Because when it comes down to someone’s life, wouldn’t you rather be a tattletale than the person who did nothing?

You can see the powerful ad up top, and learn more about the campaign here.