I live in a progressive pocket & there's not much disrespect generally, but I do get treated with more deference than Black or Hispanic women. Little things like when all the double seats have a passenger in them & the new passengers have to sit by someone, I'm one of the last ones people sit next to. I'm reasonably attractive & I don't smell. I usually have a huge backpack that I sit on my lap, making sure not to extend into the seat next to me. I honestly think it's a class/race thing. Let the white, middle class woman sit in solitude.
Public trans is so interesting. I used to take it all the time when I was in my 20s, but I didn't pay attention to those things back then. Then I was in the car culture for a long time. The past three years I've been back on the bus with a whole different perspective on life & just about everything. 
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