A small group of women and girls on a walking tour in Wollongong were so frightened as they were allegedly surrounded and harassed in broad daylight that they called police for help.
They were just about to start a history tour to find out more about the women who shaped the Illawarra when a group of 20 teenagers on e-bikes rode straight for them.
The women and their daughters who had gathered at Flagstaff Hill were then allegedly harassed and yelled at by the teenage boys, who were about 13 years old, Dr Zoe Condliffe from She's A Crowd said.
The tour is run by She Shapes History and ever since they started in Wollongong in December 2025, founder Sita Sargeant said they have been the subject of hate.
What happened, on the morning of Sunday, May 24, was the "worst incident we've ever experienced on one of our tours" Dr Condliffe said.
"They surrounded the group and started asking if they could join the tour," she said,
"When the women moved away, the boys followed. They mocked them, they harassed them, someone in the tour eventually called the police.
A NSW police spokeswoman said officers were called and when they arrived the teens had dispersed and were unable to be found.
She Shapes History was founded in 2021 to showcase the history of women that often goes uncelebrated, Ms Sargeant said.
Dr Condliffe said a group of women and girls "gathering in their city to learn about their history should not feel like a radical thing to do".
In April 2026, the company took to social media to call out the "hate" the Wollongong tour had been receiving.
"Every single Saturday and Sunday morning, we run a two-hour walking tour sharing the stories of the incredible women who have made Wollongong what it is," the post said.
"In response to sharing those stories and loudly saying that women have shaped history, we regularly get emails, DMs, and comments from people complaining and telling us to stop. Bad news for them is that we don't plan on stopping the tours anytime soon."
On Wednesday, May 27, Dr Condliffe said the behaviour the women and girls experienced on Sunday was not uncommon.
"Sadly, this is not at all an uncommon experience," she said.
"Every day, women in cities all around the world are made to feel unsafe and like they don't belong."
The researcher, data activist and storyteller who is a gender equity leader, said the history tours are not only about celebrating the history of women, but also shedding light on what being a woman is like today.
"We also ask very important questions - who gets remembered? Who gets to move from A to B freely? Who gets to feel safe, welcome, and visible in public life? Who still gets told you don't belong here," Dr Condliffe said.
"That's why this conversation matters now more than ever, because history is not behind us.
"We tell stories of women who were bold, who took up space in art, in politics, in sport and in the streets, even when they were told 'you don't belong here'."
On Sunday, Dr Condliffe said history felt very present.
"This situation is far from what we want our tours to look like, but it's made us more determined than ever to keep walking, keep talking, keep telling the truth, keep taking up space," she said.
