Ditch the Fake Digits and Give Guys This Number Instead
Automated messages from the Feminist Phone Intervention line.
— -- Picture this: You’re at a bar minding your own business and watching the World Cup when a random guy or girl decides to ask you where you’re from. And what you’re drinking. And if you want another one.
It’s no secret that this is when women often resort to giving out fake phone numbers. Now you can make that number 669-221-6251 and give an unwanted suitor a digital dose of wisdom.
Yikes! The Scary Things Women Say That Send Men Running
People who text the Feminist Phone Intervention line will get an automatically-generated text with a quote from bell hooks, the pen name of feminist author and activist Gloria Jean Watkins.
If you call the number, which traces to California, you’ll get a similar message. There's a link for donations on the hotline's Tumblr page -- part of the cash goes toward paying the phone bill, and the rest will benefit The National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health. The organization said it was aware of the phone line but did not start the project.
"I was really thrilled for the support but we had nothing to do with it," executive director Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas said. "I think it's genius."
We texted the number to say hello and got these responses:
“Whenever domination is present, love is lacking.”
“Sometimes, people try to destroy you, precisely because they recognize your power. Not because they do not see it, but because they see it and they do not want it to exist.”
“If any female feels she needs anything beyond herself to legitimate and validate her existence, she is already giving away her power to be self-defining, her agency.”
Words of wisdom? Sure. But we're not convinced these texts convey the real message: I'm just not that into you.
Related Stories
ABC News Live