When we are alone on the train or on the street late at night, especially if we are (maybe just a little) impaired in any way, we are pretty cautious. We turn off our music and just generally try to be aware of our surroundings without being afraid of them. That being said, we've found in recent years that the very best defense against would-be attackers is a ponytail directly on top of the head. We believe that this hairstyle, when combined with a menacing scowl aimed at nothing in particular, is a powerful deterrant against anyone who might want to hurt us, or, for that matter, innocently ask us the time.
We realize that this particular outward display of harmless insanity is not everyone's cup of tea (some people, for example, might not have hair that is long enough to put into a ponytail). With the recent sexual assault in Lakeview snapping a lot of people to attention, people have been looking for new ways to try to keep safe while walking alone. One popular trend is having someone "walk you home" — that is, chat with you on your cell phone until you are safely inside.
According to this article, the Chicago Police Department is behind the "cell phone buddy" idea. The most important point, though, is that the contact be brief, that way the person knows where you are but you are yacking away without noticing what's going on around you.
We're not really behind the idea of talking on cell phones being a safe way to get around if you're alone, mainly because we know how vigilant people are when they try to multitask on their phones while doing other activities. There have to be other ways to give yourself some peace of mind if you're worried other than pressing a phone to your ear — but what? Do any of you have a good way to keep calm and safe when you walk alone?
Image via memory.loc.gov.
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I would have to think that just the action of the intended victim talking to someone, having that phone out, would make the attacker think twice about whether going after that person was a good idea.
But maybe the PD needs to add a "walk me home" line, like 411 and 911 or 311, designed to have a dispatcher on the other line with you. It could even be a "paid call" service, like Onstar or something, that would call out police if you used a code word ... dunno but there are people out there who could figure this out. I'd pay $5 a call if I knew the police would come if there was a problem.
I don't know. Being on the phone is distracting. I'd rather be paying attention to who/what's around me.
one word: beerfarts.
You can talk on the phone and still be aware of your surroundings, if you are on the phone for this reason. Its not the best defense, but I still think it is a good idea. I had my Dad stay on the phone with me as I walked home from the train (with my luggage) Sunday night. At least if anything did happen to me while I was on the phone, someone would know exactly when and where I disappeared and be able to contact the police right away.
you're not calling someone to get engrossed in a conversation, but just so that someone else knows you got home ok. you're still being vigilant about your surroundings....
My neighborhood isn't especially safe at night (though it could be far worse), despite only being a mile north of Wrigley Field (Montrose & Clark, with Latin Kings on one side and Conservative Vice Lords on the other). In fact, my girlfriend's car which was parked behind my condo was shot six times from only a few feet away from a .44 the night of Cinco de Mayo. That being said, I'm usually not too worried because:
A) I'm a guy.
B) When I'm impaired due to excess alcohol intake, I usually cab it.
C) I usually only walk around late at night when I'm walking my dog, and he's a pit bull.
Needless to say, I don't let my girfriend or her 6-year old daughter walk around the neighborhood late at night without me.
beerfarts will keep everyone at a safe distance from you while you're walking home alone. they will also keep you warm.
I suppose peeing your pants might do as well
is there any way to prevent men from attacking women, or is it a sickness without a cure? i've been worried about getting mugged when i've been out walking late at night, but never worried about being raped. i know guys get raped, but i don't know too many guys who walk around at any time, day or night, in fear that they will be raped. we have it pretty easy. i wouldn't want to be a girl.
again, any possible way to create a society where women are safe? maybe we should be more outraged when news stories like this pop up. instead it's just "same 'ol, same 'ol" and a lot of people probably think it's the victims fault. I use to not blame the victim, but focus on how they should have been smarter. in light of our society, maybe she wasn't being wise, but these women did nothing wrong (that i know of, other than living in lakeview).
If I were ever in a situation where either alone or with some friends, I came across a woman getting raped, my first instinct would be to beat the living shit out of the attacker--I'm talking about stomping the piece of shit into the ground until he was no longer moving. At what point might I get into trouble? At what point might it be considered excessive force? How hard would the cops/courts come down on you in the event that you foiled or interrupted a rape? I wonder...
ride a bike! i haven't seen any stats on this one, but i'm guessing a rapist would opt for the girl walking from the train to her apartment rather than the one speeding past him. even if a guy did try to assault a girl on a bike, she'd have her lock handy to bash his head in with.
pepper spray. it's not much, but it's all i got, short of a psychotic break. i feel more confident in that than a rape whistle or alarm. one attacker was thwarted with it last week.. if the unthinkable happened to me, i'd hope to get the same jump on the guy.
It freaks me out that the one attempted assault was on my old street. (West Briar)
I think it is very important, especially with sexual assault, that we not blame the victim. Ye Olde "she was asking for it because she was wearing a short skirt and out late" just does not fly. And while I do not think anyone should get a medal for walking around defenseless in the dead of night, that still doesn't make it the victims fault that someone else chose to commit a crime. If that individual hadn't been there, someone else probably would have been, or it would have happend later, or earlier, or three blocks over. The criminal is the person we need to blame.
Vigilante-ism. we have to form a roving band of citizens who will protect our neighborhoods. obviously police aren't doing the job, and they can't be everywhere at once. So when you see some asshole on a girl late at night in an alley, beat the fuck out of him. the word will spread and people will stop raping.
that'll work, right?
i had a professor who said he spoke in latin to prevent himself from getting mugged. those earpiece phone things make you look crazy--so acting psycho is one possible way to safety.
What about using the controversial taser?
I am such a scaredy-cat anyways - like I jump at the first sign of someone suddenly coming towards me, so I wonder how acute my senses will be to actually defend myself in a situation, even though I may have mace or other kinds of protection. I think it's a totally different story when you are in the middle of it all. Would I freeze or would my adrenaline help me escape out of the situation?
that acting crazy thing doesn't really make sense. homeless and the mentally ill are abused more than your average citizen...
I guess I need to brush up on my safetly information. The last time I went to a CAPS meeting, I was told that often attackers will go for a pony tail, because it gives them something to grab on to and pull you somewhere. And I was warned to be aware when walking along, and that meant not on the phone.
Good call on the bike, you can also take a longer safer route on a bike (if there is one) and you'll still get there faster than walking.
When I used to teach self defense classes (actually, I didn't so much teaching as getting kicked in the balls and thrown around by the head instructor) we taught that being on the phone is distracting, shows the predator you're not paying attention, and doesn't do any good. Even if you're on the phone and you tell the person on the other line that you're about to be attacked, that person is very likely not going to be around by the time the situation has ended. Unless you're talking to someone a block away, you're not doing much good.
Walking with a bottle of pepper spray *actually in your hand* is going to do you a lot more good.
see, for me, being on a bike wouldn't help, they could get me while I was locking it up.
I *always* make it a point to talk on the phone or have the phone *in my hand* if I am walking after dark. I don't ever walk with my head in the clouds, I walk knowing what's going on around me at all times. I never wear my iPod anymore.
Then again, I'm not a petite girlie girl. I've never been messed with, but the idea scares the crap outta me. I could probably hold my own, but I hope I never have to try.
I actually fear more for my sister, who is tiny, and am really thankful she no longer lives alone, and also no longer lives in Lakeview... this seems to happen in Lakeview every couple of years, doesn't it?
I'd have to say that talking on the phone makes a person more vulnerable.
Dru Sjodin's abduction is a good case in point. She was on her phone while she was abducted, and it didn't lead anyone to her in time.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dru_Sjodin
I think the most important thing is to walk with others whenever possible and stay alert.
I used to always take my phone out while walking alone, but while I lived in London my university gave numerous safety sheets about the dangers of doing this. Apparently phone theft and probably the appearance of not being fully aware of your surroundings makes you more of a target, not less.
So I just always am sure to walk quickly and purposefully and always try to appear that I know exactly where I'm going. Even if it means taking slightly longer, I also try to walk along the busiest streets. I try to fake as much confidence as possible, even if I'm absolutely terrified. When I ride the train alone I sit in the first car, with the driver. My friends and I also try to always text or call once we've gotten home safe if leaving another's house.
I take the busiest/best-lit streets home from the train station and if anyone looks at me funny, I take my mace out of my pocket and casually fiddle with it so they can see I'm armed.
I think a good idea would be to lurch down the street slowly with a blank stare just like one of the undead. And wail and moan a bit, with the only audible word being, "Brains..."
There's always the chance the would-be attacker might be so deranged himself that he isn't deterred. But on the other hand, he might just be like, "Holy shit!! Zombie!" and hightail it in the opposite direction...
yes, Guest (I hate the new sign in system), Dru's cell phone, in that instance, didn't help her, other than her boyfriend in Mnpls knew that something was very wrong right away so a search was started earlier than it probably would have been. She was distracted as that -- OK, can't use the word I want to call him here -- came up behind her and grabbed her. However, getting a ping off her cell phone up by Crookston, while not finding her, did help the cops narrow down her killer.
In Dru's case, she was in the parking lot of a mall in the middle of the day. I don't think ANY of us think about the dangers of being in a public parking lot in that situation. Not to mention, it was Grand Forks, were nothing ever happens to anyone. I have never once felt afraid of anyone or anything in North Dakota and would never think twice about walking and talking on my phone any where at any time. It is not the same as walking down a gangway in Lakeview.
http://www.chicagocrime.org/types/criminal_sexual_assault/15/
Check out all the other criminal sexual assaults reported in the past four months, and then please tell me why this incident is receiving more press coverage? It's a horrible crime, but it's also happening all over the city.
It's receiving more press coverage because the assaults are occurring in what is generally considered one of the safer neighborhoods in the city. If sexual assaults and other violent crimes occurred there on a more regular basis, it wouldn't be news. That's just common sense.
It is getting more coverage because the police sent out an actual alert. When that happens, it usually means that there are enough consistencies between the victim and the attacker to show a pattern. A lot of rape cases (from my experience looking at police reports every week for seven years) are date and acquaintance rape -- there aren't as many break- in or stranger attack rapes as you'd think.
Anyone know if you can text message 911?
Currently, you cannot text message 911. But, someone in Chicago is pulling for it. It's a great idea, especially for the hard-of-hearing/ deaf community. More about this on Stone Deaf Pilots.
see, for me, being on a bike wouldn't help, they could get me while I was locking it up.
Huh? If that's the case the somebody would waiting at your place regardless of which method you took home. The idea is that you don't get 'got' on the way home.
Wow don't know how I mangled that post so bad:
Huh? If that's the case then somebody would be waiting at your place regardless of which method you took home. The idea is that you don't get 'got' on the way home. Oh and like many have said, get some pepper spray!
I've been attacked while on my bike before. A guy followed me for several miles in a car, and then jumped out in front of me to make me crash. Luckily, I got away. That being said, a bike is still safer than being on foot, you can escape to a safe place much faster.
RE: talking on the phone -- it's a good technique to avoid weirdos and would-be attackers, but only if you're doing it expressly for that purpose, and maintain complete awareness. I once was followed by some creep on the way home from the train, and as soon as I pulled out my cell and dialed a friend, he immediately changed course.
Two tips for walking in parking lots: walk down the middle, so the creep hiding behind the cars to assault you has farther to go (and you have a few extra seconds to respond); get your keys out before you leave the building and hold them pointy-side out in your hands (better to slash the guys eyes with).
I try to walk in the street away from alleyways and doors and always carry my Pepper Face.