The takeway is that harassment laws restrict what people are saying to you, not what they're saying about you among each other. If the police actually tried to

The takeway is that harassment laws restrict what people are saying to you, not what they're saying about you among each other. If the police actually tried to prosecute them for harassment, the question the courts would be asking is, "could Jane reasonably avoid having to hear it?" Harassment is about being able to not be the recipient of communications you don't want to receive. Calling Jane fat on message boards, twitter, in a bar, etc. would all be fair game. There's more restrictions if Jane is a captive audience. The courts have ruled that certain settings where people can't easily just leave - namely work and school - have greater restrictions. Again, the question the court would be asking is "can Jane reasonably avoid this speech" and it's a much bigger barrier to leave one's workplace than walk out of the bar.