From a Woman’s Perspective

A simple decision that is beneficial for the majority of people can be a difficult decision for women. Women have to think twice before they decide to go on a walk alone, especially after dark. The sense of vulnerability when it comes to walking alone is a defining sentiment in a woman’s life. In a recent statistical analysis about personal safety, all respondents reported feeling unsafe walking during the night. However, the feeling of unsafety when walking alone in a park was significantly higher for women than for men. More specifically, when it comes to walking alone in a park after dark, four out of five women reported feeling highly unsafe, while only two out of five men share the same experience.Perceptions of personal safety and experiences of harassment in Great Britain The feeling is shared between women when it comes to the way they feel while walking alone in a park after dark.

As women, we have to stay alert and defensive, which is a fundamental response to our daily experiences. Before even deciding to go out, we need to prepare by taking different measures, such as informing our friends, roommates, or family of our location. We keep our phones close and our headphones on as shields against uninvited, but very possible, confrontations with strangers or catcalling. We need to consider walking in areas that are busy with people, instead of isolated locations. Women have also reported feeling safer walking with their dogs because it makes them feel more protected. We have to rely on mechanisms that will protect us from someone following us, driving next to us, or talking to us without our consent. We find refuge in buses and in local stores, or we try to make ourselves as unapproachable as possible. The fear of being threatened, attacked, harassed, or of anything that can harm us because we are considered weak due to our gender, is a feeling that every woman has to accept in life - a feeling that does not seem to go away. Walking alone in the dark as a woman has become such a risk that we feel brave when we do, which is not something we should have to feel. So, walking in the park as a woman is not a routine. It is not something we can do impulsively, it is not considered a break from reality or a boost of positivity, but it is a decision that we have to think twice about before we make it. Taking a walk as a woman is a burden of our reality, that we wish we did not have to carry.