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Kidnapping survivor Amanda Berry has teamed up with U.S. Marshals to find over 50 missing children

The life of Amanda Berry is an amazing story of someone bravely turning tragedy into triumph. Berry was kidnapped in Cleveland, Ohio by Ariel Castro in 2003, right before her 17th birthday. She was taken after a job interview at a local Burger King.

Authorities originally thought she had run away until a few days later when Castro called her mother saying she’ll be “coming home in a couple of days.”

Those couple of days turned into 10 years.

In 2013, she bravely helped two other women and Berry’s own six-year-old daughter escape. Her daughter was born in captivity.

Now, Berry has taken the pain she endured living in subhuman conditions and used it as inspiration to help rescue other kidnapping victims. In February 2017, she joined the Fox 8 Cleveland news team as an advocate for missing people.


Berry told Good Morning America that working to find missing individuals was a way for her to find her voice.

“In the beginning, I was so scared to do anything,” she said. “I was really scared to leave the house and you know, being noticed. But now I just feel like I take it more as a blessing that I am on this side and that I am blessed enough to be able to help and I can finally use my voice for good.”


Amanda Berry`s 3-year anniversary at FOX 8

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Her segment “Missing with Amanda Berry” has helped save countless missing individuals. “It’s invaluable, it really is. I don’t know if she really realizes the impact she does. I can’t tell you the amount of calls and tips I’ve got from your segments,” Cleveland Police detective Kevin Callahan told Berry on her third anniversary with the station.

Recently, Berry partnered with U.S. Marshals to help rescue missing children through Operation Safety Net. Working with state and local partners, Amanda has helped rescue 57 missing and endangered children between the ages of 13 and 18 in the northern Ohio area.

The success of the effort led to the creation of a permanent squad in the area.

“One of the biggest reasons Operation Safety net was a success was Amanda Berry,” U.S. Marshal for the Northern District of Ohio Pete Elliott told Good Morning America. “She is a great example for Cleveland, Ohio, where you fight and you never quit and that’s what she does. We’re doing this all over the country and we’re gonna try to bring back every single kid that we can, together with Amanda Berry.”

Berry credits her mother for her dedication to her work. Her mother was a tireless advocate for her while she was held captive; unfortunately, she died in 2006 and was never able to see her daughter return home safely.

“I push every day more and more for my mother. She fought so hard for me while I was gone, and I think now, I’m trying to finish kind of what she started for the missing,” Berry said. “In the beginning, there was nobody to call, there wasn’t someone there to help you print your missing posters of your child. So you know, a lot has changed since 2003 and I’m just glad that I can be here and continue my mom’s work.”

Berry’s story is amazing, but far from being completely told. She’s had so much success in such a short time helping rescue missing people that there’s no telling how much of an impact she’ll make on the lives of others going forward. But there’s a beautiful thing we can be sure of at this point, through her dedication to finding others, she’s been able to find herself. Which is miraculous given the trauma she’s had to overcome to get to this place.

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Armie Hammer’s Wife Reportedly Filed For Divorce After She Received A ‘Raunchy Text Message’ From Him Meant For Another Woman

Following Armie Hammer‘s very public fall from grace that culminated in being dropped by his agent and publicists after a series of online allegations accused him of sending disturbing graphic messages to women, Vanity Fair has published a lengthy dive into Hammer’s wealthy, ‘Succession’-esque family, which has been plagued by scandal going all the way back to 1919. The feature also sheds new light on the circumstances leading up to Hammer’s divorce from Elizabeth Chambers, and his seemingly unhinged behavior thereafter. The situation went south during the early months of the pandemic when Hammer had trouble living in close quarters with his wife and kids on the Cayman Islands. He fled to the U.S., and reportedly detonated his marriage before he even got off the plane.

When Armie touched down in the U.S., he mistakenly sent a raunchy text message meant for someone else to his estranged spouse. Elizabeth filed for divorce shortly after.

According to Vanity Fair, the errant text message wasn’t an isolated incident. Chambers was aware of Hammer having previous affairs, including shortly after their son’s birth (How very Trumpian!), and the two had been in counseling together. However, Hammer reportedly began leaning into a very bizarre hobby:

Several years back Armie introduced Elizabeth to shibari, a Japanese bondage art form in which people are tied up in intricate patterns. Elizabeth tried to be supportive of the new interest, which Armie allegedly indulged by buying mannequins and inventing elaborate knots. Elizabeth even tried to find a lucrative spin on the obsession: “She suggested he write a book about a hobby called Why Knot?” laughed the friend.

Hammer’s obsession with knots, particularly tying up mannequins, resurfaced on the secret Instagram account that he started shortly after his divorce. Under the handle @el_destructo_86, Hammer shared a photo of a tied-up mannequin and wrote in the caption, “If quarantine doesn’t start moving more quickly I’m going to f*ck this thing.”

While reiterating that the online allegations against Hammer have not been corroborated, Vanity Fair spoke to Hammer’s former lover who has accused the actor of not respecting BDSM consent boundaries. The feature also draws parallels between Hammer and his father who went through a very public and scandal-ridden divorce involving drugs, women, and tattoos just like his son.

While Chambers did not comment for the profile, she issued her public support for Hammer’s alleged victims in early February. “Heartbreak aside, I am listening, and will continue to listen and educate myself on these delicate matters,” Chambers wrote on Instagram. “I didn’t realize how much I didn’t know. I support any victim of assault or abuse and urge anyone who has experienced this pain to seek the help she or he needs to heal.”

(Via Vanity Fair)

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Trump’s Whisky Tariffs Have Been Suspended — Here’s What That Means For You

The world of whisk(e)y can be a messy business. Federal (and local) regulations, taxes, and tariffs can have a pretty big effect on the price of your bottle of bourbon, scotch, or Irish whiskey before it ever hits shelves. This has been made even clearer over the past few years, because of ex-President Donald Trump’s trade wars. But drinkers definitely got some good news on that front this week, when the new U.S. administration and the U.K. government jointly decided to suspend trade tariffs on Scotch whisky imports to the U.S. (along with cheese and wool).

As of March 8th, all tariffs will be reduced to zero for a four-month “show of good faith” while trade deals between the two nations are renegotiated. So how did we get to this point, where trade negotiations are dominating whisky news? Back in 2019, the U.S. decided to put a 25 percent tariff on food and drink imports (amongst other imports) from the EU/U.K. as a tactic to move along the seemingly never-ending Boeing/Airbus trade war which started 16 years ago.

Over the 16 months that the tariffs were in play, they applied to every bottle sent over the Atlantic from Scotland. Naturally, the Scotch industry suffered. A lot. The Scotch Whisky Association said in a statement last month that the industry has lost 35 percent of its export business, creating a $635,000,000 loss for the overall industry in Scotland.

That’s pretty goddamn steep. Especially for an industry that has nothing to do with aviation.

As a matter of retaliation, the U.K. and the EU levied tariffs on U.S. booze. That, in turn, caused imports of American spirits (bourbon particularly) to decline by 53 percent, hurting the industry to the tune of over $70,000,000 over a two year span. Those tariffs have not been lifted by the U.K. or EU in return. In fact, tariffs on U.S. spirits heading to the EU are set to rise to a whopping 50 percent in June of this year. At which point the U.S. is set to levy a 25 percent tariff on all brandy and wine coming in from France and Germany.

Obviously, when you’re dealing with geopolitics, things get messy in a hurry. But in the end, there’s a human cost to all this. It’s the workers at these distilleries who are losing their jobs.

Getty Image

So what does this mean for you? Nothing… yet. While the tariff freeze went into effect last week (it was backdated to March 4th, 2021), you are unlikely to see any change in price right away. The bottles on the shelf now pretty much all came over with that 25 percent tariff on top. It’s not magically going away.

Moreover, and let’s be real here, whisk(e)y retailers are not exactly known for their egalitarian pricing on bottles of booze. We may, however, see some change in prices come during the holiday season as shelves are restocked in anticipation of a huge shopping quarter. That’s a big “if,” of course, depending on whether this four-month tariff suspension actually lasts that long.

To be sure that there wasn’t any immediate change, we checked prices from last week’s scotch roundup (published before the tariff was suspended) against prices for those same bottles today. There is no change. Still, whisk(e)y aficionados can rest assured that scotch distilleries are racing to get their expressions into the country ASAP — they fully understand that lower sticker prices make buying decisions easier.

If you’re eyeing special bottles, it’s fair to anticipate marginally cheaper scotch later in the year. At the very least, importers are going to be buying more of it and pushing it on retailers. Even if the tariffs come back, there will be a small window at some point that can be exploited by collectors and anyone trying to stock their bar carts.

Until then, we’re going to keep using the cheap stuff for our highballs!

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Dove is challenging beauty standards by banning the world ‘normal’ from all of its products

How many TV ads have you seen pitching shampoo “for normal to oily hair” or lotion “for normal skin”? Probably more than you can count. The problem is when it comes to beauty products, the term “normal” has always seemed to be code for “white.”

For decades, this white-normative labeling has sent a subtle, but damaging message to people of color by casting them as abnormal. It also reinforces notions of white supremacy by heralding white people as the measuring stick for all humanity.

That’s why Unilever, the London-based company that owns Dove, Vaseline, Axe, and Sunsilk beauty products is banning the term from their products and advertising. The move comes after the company conducted a 10,000-person study across nine countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and South Africa.


via Unilever

According to a Unilever press release the poll found that “More than half of people (56%) think that the beauty and personal care industry can make people feel excluded.”

It also revealed that “Seven in ten people agree that using the word ‘normal’ on product packaging and advertising has a negative impact.”

“The decision to remove ‘normal’ is one of many steps that we are taking to challenge narrow beauty ideals, as we work towards helping to end discrimination and advocating for a more inclusive vision of beauty,” Unilever said in its release. “It comes as global research into people’s experiences of the beauty industry reveals that using ‘normal’ to describe hair or skin makes most people feel excluded.”

The announcement was accompanied by a video that explains how many of the norms we’ve been conditioned to accept — especially those surrounding masculinity, beauty, health, animal rights, pollution, and sexuality — are really quite the opposite.

“We won’t accept a world where any of this is normal,” the ads says.

The company wants to reposition its messaging so it focuses on what the product does rather than who it’s for.

“Unilever has made the most progress with hair products, where ‘normal’ was removed or repositioned and replaced it with descriptions that highlight the benefit of the product,” a company representative told The Washington Post. “We want to communicate what a product does — not who it is for — without the manufactured description of ‘normal.’ For example, we’ll explain that a product will replenish moisture or help to meet specific needs.”

A company representative says Unilever has over 200 products with the word “normal” on the label. It has already started the removal process and hopes to be completed by March 2022.

Ateh Jewel, an advisory board member of the British Beauty Council, told The New York Times the changes were “completely necessary” after the Black Lives Matter demonstrations last year.

“Saying the word ‘normal’ has been used to set you apart,” Jewel said. “I am normal. My dark skin is normal. My juicy West African curvy body is normal. Everything about me is normal.”

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Discussing The Sopranos Fat-Acceptance Episode With PattyMo On Pod Yourself A Gun 404


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Johnny Sack Loves His Curvy Wife

As a teenager, Johnny Sack was often teased by his friends for his attraction to girls on the thicker side, ones who were shorter and curvier, girls that the average (basic) stunad might refer to as “chubby” or even “fat.” Then, as he became a made man and started to educate himself on issues such as feminism and how the mafia marginalizes women by portraying a very narrow and very specific standard of beauty (thin, tall, no 90lb moles on their ass), he realized Ralphie Cifaretto needed to die. Hear all about it on the latest episode of Pod Yourself A Gun. Matt and Vince are joined by Patrick Monahan from the What A Time To Be Alive podcast to discuss season 4 episode 4 of the Sopranos, “The Weight.”

We are officially at the halfway point, folks. This is episode 43 of 86, and as discussed on the podcast, maybe a low point for the series. Still a watch-worthy episode with a great Furio shirt and the introduction of some hitmen who have a real elderly McPoyles vibe, but as Patrick points out, it’s the closest the Sopranos comes to making a Frasier-style farce where everyone is saved by their own grace. It doesn’t make sense for these sociopaths. For these reasons, the episode receives the lowest grade the podcast has ever handed out – a solid B+.

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‘Fast Foodies’ Is A Cooking Competition That Keeps Things Fun And Authentic In All The Right Ways

Some cooking shows are all about the stress of turning out 200 plates for food personalities, prestigious chefs, and diners like our own Vince Mancini. Others see beloved chefs enter a culinary Thunderdome to cook under high-pressure time constraints. It’s rare to get a cooking competition that’s simply about having fun.

That’s why truTV’s Fast Foodies, which airs Thursdays at 10:30 eastern (and streams on Hulu), feels like a breath of fresh air. A win isn’t going to make some upstart chef’s career or get them a corporate catering gig. The show’s highest ambition is for you to say, “That looks tasty! And everyone is having so much fun!”

Because sometimes that’s enough. Also, getting an audience to say that is a higher bar than you might think. And Fast Foodies is great at clearing it.

The show stars Top Chef alums Kristen Kish, Jeremy Ford, and Justin Sutherland. While Kish is basically the host, all three work together to keep the vibe extremely chill while also acting as competitors, recreating iconic fast food dishes. It’s all very bingeable, but in the “watch one more episode on autoplay” way, not the “Oh my god, what happens next???” way.

As for the food itself, we all pretty much know the dishes in play — KFC buckets, sausage breakfast sandwiches, hot dogs... basically the same stuff we cook in our own chef competition series. In the process of highlighting those items, the show manages to explore how fast-food has shaped the eating habits of so many Americans. Then it asks, “What can we do with those flavors that feels a little more natural, cleaner, less-rushed, more high-end, etc.?”

These questions are investigated in two parts — with a segment focused on the three chefs doing a copycat recreation and another that has them reinterpreting the featured flavors for a high-end presentation. The final results are creative, inspiring (for the ambitious home cook), and super easy to imagine. Because face it, we mostly all know what the baseline dishes taste like, providing a solid frame of reference.

Each episode is co-hosted and judged by a different celebrity guest. But it’s all very breezy. Drinks are poured, helping hands are given, the shit is shot, and a winner is crowned. No one gets their feelings hurt.

Fast Foodies / TruTV

That’s not to say that there’s no deeper theme to be taken away here. Without ever seeming like it takes tremendous effort (it shouldn’t!), Fast Foodies does a great job feeling representative of our diverse nation. Everyone making the show obviously cares about unique voices and experiences, and they prove that in the simplest and most straightforward way possible: by reflecting it through the people appearing on screen.

While this sounds like a no-brainer, it’s not some happy accident. When I reached out to Michael Rucker, the Fast Foodies showrunner, he said: “We didn’t want a tired series that felt one-note but something that reflected the real world, the amazing spectrum of voices in the culinary world, and was the type of kitchen that you’d actually want to hang out in.”

That’s obviously not rocket science, but it sure has taken a long time for folks to figure the concept out. Kudos to Fast Foodies for actually doing the damn thing and making the process so much so fun to watch. As a result, the show ends up feeling “American” in the most authentic sense — not in its focus on the fried sandwiches we gorge ourselves on but in how it highlights people of different backgrounds enjoying one another while sharing a meal.

It’s laid-back-yet-engaging and welcoming to all. Not a bad recipe, by any means.

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What’s On Tonight: ‘Cold Case’ Brings Nordic Mystery To AMC, And ‘Genera+ion’ Goes Exploring On HBO Max

Cold Courage (AMC+) — Two Nordic women find themselves drawn together during the investigation of a series of London-set murders. The story’s based upon Finnish journalist Pekka Hiltunen’s bestselling novels and aims to unite the two aforementioned women (a psychologist who favors underdogs and a graphic artist who’s fleeing from her abusive stalker. Together, the two women want to write wrongs that are committed to the powerful, and a charismatic politicians is promising to sort-of Make Great Britain Great Again. This show is dropping three initial episodes with subsequent weekly followups.

Genera+ion: Season 1 (HBO Max) — Get ready for a dark and playful half-hour series that revolves around high school students who are finding their coming-of-age exploration of sexuality complicated by the deeply held beliefs that persist throughout their conservative community. The series stars Chase Sui Wonders, Chloe East, Haley Sanchez, Lukita Maxwell, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Nathanya Alexander, Nava Mau, Uly Schlesinger, Justice Smith, and Martha Plimpton.

The Unicorn (CBS, 9:30pm EST) — It’s colonoscopy time for Wade, Forrest and Ben, and this could either turn into one hell of a bonding experience or something that could break them. On the female side of things, Michelle’s attempting to dodge Meg’s relationship drama.

Clarice (CBS, 10:00pm EST) — The Silence of the Lambs franchise sees Clarice Starling confined by a serial killer who happens to hail from the medical expression. The protagonist will suffer from intense hallucinations, and this sounds utterly terrifying.

Cake (FX, 10:00pm & 10:30pm EST) — Season 4 begins for this assortment of bite-sized shorts, and this year, the diverse array of narratives is anchored by Nine Films About Technology from Peter Huang. Expect a loosely connected set of stories that get darkly comedic and explore human relationships in an era of (arguable) over-connectivity.

The Hustler (ABC, 10:00pm EST) — Host Craig Ferguson stands by while contestants compete for money, and “The Hustler” among them keeps doing his or her secretive and enigmatic thing.

Jimmy Kimmel Live! — Coronaversary Show? Oh boy.

The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon — Jennifer Garner, Don Lemon, Adrianne Lenker

The Late Late Show With James Corden — Eddie Murphy, Tiana Major9

Late Night With Seth Meyers — Amy Poehler, Phoebe Bridgers, John Herndon

In case you missed these recent picks:

Mr. Mercedes: Season 3 (Peacock series) — The crime-thriller series that’s based upon Stephen King’s best-selling Bill Hodges Trilogy continues from executive producer David E. Kelley and director Jack Bender. Viewers know that this series brings us a very different Holly Gibney (as portrayed by Justine Lupe) than the one we witnessed on HBO’s The Outsider (as played by Cynthia Erivo), and this season was co-written by Kelley and King. Settle in as the murder of a beloved local author (and American icon) becomes the focus of Hodges, Holly, and Jerome, who find that this case is much more complex than mere cold-blooded killing.

The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run (Paramount+ movie) — Look for Keanu Reeves’ cameo in this irreverent animated adventure, which follows SpongeBob and Patrick, his starfish pal, looking to vindicate Mr. Krabs after he’s been framed for heisting King Neptune’s crown. In doing so, they must leave their Bikini Bottom refuge and make their way to Shell City in a journey that illuminates the power of friendship. In addition to the actual movie goodness, check out our “Rapid Fire” video with rapper 2KBaby as he looks to beat the buzzer in a quiz.

Persona: The Dark Truth Behind Personality Tests (HBO Max documentary) — Personality tests can be insightful, sure, but they can also reflect into doing more harm than good when they’re essentially applied out of context, despite a gut feeling that these things are the object of American obsession.

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Mark Cuban On Porzingis Trade Rumors: ‘There’s No Reason To Panic Or Do Anything’

The Dallas Mavericks were thought by many to be a team in the West that would take a leap forward this season, in large part due to the expectation that third-year star Luka Doncic would vault into being an MVP frontrunner.

However, at the midway point of the season, Dallas is at 19-16, good for 8th in the West and a spot in the play-in, but below expectations for a team that had real hopes of hosting a first round series. The bad news is, a slow start put them behind the 8-ball for playoff positioning, but the good news is that the team is on a hot streak of late, going 10-2 in the last 12 games to climb firmly into the playoff picture in the West. Doncic’s shooting is starting to come back around and he’s posting sensational stat lines every night, and the supporting cast around him is finally healthy and starting to play like expected.

Still, there’s a lingering question of what the ceiling is for this team, and whether the Doncic-Kristaps Porzingis pairing is capable of competing with the very best in the West. Porzingis, who didn’t play until January due to recovery from knee surgery, had some early struggles but has recently found a bit better form and is scoring with better efficiency and contributing to winning. Even so, his name continues to swirl in trade rumors, and on Thursday, Mavs owner Mark Cuban addressed those on First Take, preaching patience and also noting that it’s hard to define much of anything about this team off of a very weird first half of the season.

This is the correct stance to take publicly, and it should always be noted that any official statements from front office personnel about trade rumors should be taken with a massive grain of salt, because almost never will they speak truthfully about trade talks in progress. Still, Cuban’s point about this season being one that, to this point, you can’t overreact to is salient. The Mavs had a COVID outbreak, Porzingis was returning from a knee injury, and very little about the first 20 games for the Mavs was telling of what they can do at full strength. That isn’t to say questioning the Porzingis-Doncic pairing long term doesn’t have some validity, but Dallas can be patient, as he says, in evaluating that pairing and not rushing to make a deal.

On the other side of the coin, should a tremendous deal come across their desk for Porzingis that would possibly raise their ceiling as a contender, they’ll have to consider it, whether they feel they’ve seen the absolute best of that pairing or not. In any case, don’t expect the Mavs to be pushing for a Kristaps trade no matter what at the deadline, but this also can’t be taken as an absolute that a deal can’t or won’t be made.

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Mulatto Is The Latest Rapper To Try Her Hand At A ‘Beat Box’ Freestyle

Every few years, hip-hop produces a song with a beat so compelling that it becomes virtually inescapable as one rapper after another dips into the freestyle pot to deliver their own unique (or not so unique) take on the original. In 2019, that song was Blueface’s “Thotiana,” which spawned multiple remixes, including entries with Cardi B, Nicki Minaj, Soulja Boy and Tyga, and YG. In 2021, it appears that Spotemgottem’s song “BeatBox” has become the ubiquitous juggernaut du jour, as both DaBaby and Deante’ Hitchcock posted freestyles in the past few weeks. Today, another artist threw her hat in the ring: Mulatto.

Incidentally, the 2020 XXL Freshman is the one best known for her freestyles, as her ability to rhyme about myriad topics was instrumental to her 2016 victory on the inaugural season of The Rap Game. That skill asserts itself here, as Mulatto acquits herself in a self-confident, boastful freestyle during a photoshoot covering her expeditious come-up in the wake of signing her record deal with RCA at the end of 2019.

Muatto’s made the most of her momentum coming into the new year, appearing on BRS Kash’s bounce record “Kash App,” Rich The Kid’s female-fronted posse cut “Nasty” with Flo Milli and Rubi Rose, and plans her impending name change.

Watch Mulatto’s “BeatBox” freestyle video above.

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Women are sharing the mental checklists they run through to navigate the world. It’s a lot.

One day a few years ago I asked my husband what he thinks about when he goes running. “Depends,” he said. “I might think about work or what I’m going to do that day or just sort of empty my mind, like a meditation.”

“Do you ever think about getting raped on the running trail?” I asked. “Does it ever cross your mind?” It wasn’t a confrontational question, but a curious one.

He looked surprised for a second, then shook his head. “No. Never,” he said.

We sat in silence for a second as the obvious sunk in. When I run alone, I do think about that possibility. I think about it every time. I know every part of the trail that’s obscured from public view, the parts where I run a little faster, where my spatial awareness is heightened. When a man runs behind me or towards me, my radar goes up. It happens automatically. I don’t assume anyone is a rapist, of course, but I’m always mentally prepared for the possibility. After a million stories and a lifetime living in a woman’s body, my instinct to prepare for the worst is as natural as breathing.


My husband experiences almost none of this. The possibility of being attacked and/or raped exists for him, but the risk and the fear is nowhere near the same as it is for me. He can enjoy a solo run, or walk down the street, or leave a building alone without being on guard constantly, whereas the times that I’m able to truly free my mind when I’m moving through the world by myself are few and far between.

The recent disappearance of a woman in the U.K. has prompted women to share the mental safety checklists they go through as they go about daily life, and seeing it all laid out in writing is eye-opening. Some of these things we consciously think about, and some of simply becomes second nature by adulthood. But I don’t know any woman for whom this list doesn’t resonate.

We know that not all men are going to attack us, so there’s no need to #notallmen here. The thing is, we don’t know who might. We don’t know whether the guy walking behind us in the parking lot is a super sweet guy just heading to his car or a predator looking for an opportunity. We don’t even know for sure which men we know might turn out to be a rapist. Most sexual assault is perpetrated by people known to the victim, and we all know women who have been violated by someone they thought they could trust. So not only do we deal with wondering whether a guy on the street is a stroller or a stalker, but we also have to be on alert with the guys we’re hanging out with.

Hypervigilance is the norm for most women and it’s exhausting, even for those of us who haven’t been sexually assaulted. I’m extremely fortunate to have been surrounded by wonderful, quality men throughout most of my life, and I’m thankful for that. But I have known plenty of creeps as well, and if you were to ask me how many women I know who have been raped, the faces of my friends come flooding in fast.

If you’re a man reading this and feeling defensive, please don’t. We know it’s not all men. If you’re a man reading this and wondering what you can do to help, thank you for asking. Here are some things you can do to help women feel safer:

– If you’re walking behind a woman, crossing the street is one way to let her know you’re not purposefully following her

– If you’re walking toward a woman, moving over to the opposite side of the walkway and giving her a wide berth is helpful

– As silly as it might sound, a verbal acknowledgment of your awareness of the situation can be helpful. I’ve had men say something like, “Just want to let you know I’m walking here behind you, but I promise I’m not following you or anything creepy!” and found it comforting.

– If a woman friend asks you to escort her somewhere, don’t make her feel like she’s being silly. Also, don’t assume she’s hitting on you.

– If you see a woman who appears to be uncomfortable with a man in a public place, you can give her a potential “out” by calling to her like you know her. Something like, “Katie! Is that you?” can be enough to let her (and the potentially problematic guy) know that you’ve got your eye on the situation.

– If you’re out in public and a woman comes up and acts like you’re a friend of hers, play along. Sometimes women will do this to get away from a creepy guy.

– Speak up when other men make sexist or inappropriate comments about women. Don’t go along with the culture that allows women to be seen primarily as sexualized objects.

Let’s work on making a world where women don’t have to constantly be on high alert, where we are all free to go out for a walk or a run having our thoughts regularly disrupted by concerns for our safety.