With a rise in assaults and robberies on DU’s campus, many people, especially women, wonder if they are safe walking home at night.
From the Pioneer Pervert to robberies at knifepoint, the questions arise: How can we become more aware of our surroundings? How can we educate the student body, especially our female Pioneers? Last year, a vastly different campus atmosphere, combined with a youthful freshman mentality, helped me feel safe and secure when walking home at night. This year, though, following the exposure of several threatening instances, I have begun to reconsider my safety on the streets of Denver’s campus. Have I been naCB/ve for continuing to walk home alone even though I knew I could be in danger?
Although I had read each of the crime report emails that came out after an incident, I still felt relatively safe when walking back to my house a few blocks off of campus. It was not until one of my own friends, who lives in my house, was the victim of an assault that I started to really reconsider the safety of women on campus.
Walking home alone is not as much of an issue for the women that live on campus, but the women that live off campus are at a much higher risk during their commute home. My friend was attacked a block from where we live. The street we live on is surrounded by a residential neighborhood with families, as well as DU professors, and if students are in danger, then these families are, too.
One important thing people on campus, especially women, need to think about is that we go to a small private school where the majority of the people are from out of town. Not everyone is familiar with the areas of Denver and the truth is we are often overly optimistic in judging the intentions of strangers on the street. After a few drinks, it is not smart for women to walk home alone, no matter the circumstances. What can DU do to better secure campus and ease the recent worries caused by the influx in crime? One is awareness for female students on campus. DU offers resources like an educational program to ensure that female students know what to do if they get into an uncomfortable situation. Although walking home in danger can be inevitable on any college campus, women will at least have the tools to help them.
Case in point: Campus Safety offers a program Rape Aggression Defense (R.A.D.) that teaches women self-defense tactics and techniques. It is a three-day, 12 hour certification class held in the Evans Building on campus for $25. While R.A.D. is a great resource for students, it is not 100 percent certain that female students will attend these classes and so it is necessary to have another resource at no cost.
There should be a program during Freshman Orientation that familiarizes students with the areas surrounding our campus and to ensure that they understand the precautions they need to take when walking home alone.
Although Campus Safety officers patrol 24 hours a day, they cannot always be there to protect us and, if we are caught in a situation alone, we should at least know how to defend ourselves.
Ensuring a safe trip home is a crucial component in the university’s responsibility to keep its female students out of harm’s way.
