From: uunet!octela!!cathy@ncar.ucar.EDU (Cathy Kearns)
Subject: Re: Women's and men's safety
Newsgroups: soc.feminism
Organization: Octel Communications Inc., Milpitas Ca.
Date: 17 Dec 92 18:21:53 GMT

In article <1gkvapINNar6@agate.berkeley.edu> rhb@world.std.com (Robert H Brueckner) writes:

 <In response to a woman that said she does not feel safe walking
  anywhere at night, while her men friend could.>

>Well, I do think this is awful. It's obvious that women are easy
>targets in this society -- I just watched a segment of 48 hours
>recently in which professional burglars and robbers confessed that,
>when breaking into a hotel room, if they know a man is in there they
>walk away. They call first and if a woman answers they go ahead.
>Women are the easier prey, and no wonder they're afraid. I agree that
>women are imprisoned by this fear (though, having come only recently
>to this group, I hadn't been aware of the extent of the
>imprisonment).
>
>I hate to say it, but this question leaves me completely stumped.
>I'm not saying it couldn't or shouldn't, mind you -- but I'd like to
>hear what sorts of things reasonable people are proposing as
>solutions. I've heard a lot about Take Back the Night, but frankly I
>have been put off by the shrillness emanating from that segment of
>the women's movement, and so haven't listened to what they've been
>saying. You see, I am not a rapist and have never done any harm to
>women, so I don't think people should be shouting at *me* about this.
>But if they want to talk to me, enlist my help, that's something
>different. I think (and hope) most men would feel the same way. And
>that might be a good start, if only a start.

Well, since you asked... Every time a woman is attacked, and then
shoots or beats the hell out of her assailant, it makes big headlines.
That is good.  It gives those possible assailants reason to pause, and
maybe not attack the next woman they see.  When these women are tiny,
the paper plays it up.  That is also good, it gives tiny and normal
size women some confidence that they can attack back, and be
successful.  Interviews with rapists and other criminals have pointed
out that they tend to prey on fearful women more than confident women,
so woman who truely feel confident walking the streets are less likely
to be attacked.  How do we give women the confidence they need?  In
some cases, being able to walk at night, with only women, gives them
this confidence.  Yes, those women only "Take Back the Night" walks.
They don't mean to exclude you, they mean to empower the women
walking, that maybe they can, someday, with confidence, walk alone.
Other confidence building measures...permits to carry real weapons,
and the knowledge to use them... self defense courses...I don't know,
feel free to throw suggestions in here.  The point I am trying to make
is, that as long as we feel we need men to protect us, we won't be
free to walk alone in the dark.  Putting the criminals away will take
away the danger.  But even then, how do we take away the fear?


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