‘If I feel really scared, I pretend I’m on the phone’ – 91% of women don’t feel safe walking at night

The topic of women’s safety has been on everyone’s mind over the last few months as crime rates increase across the globe

When we asked our Her Instagram followers if they felt safe at night, a resounding 91% of votes were for 'no'.

So, we took to the streets of Dublin to ask women how they are feeling about their safety in Dublin and farther afield and the measures they’re taking to make themselves feel safer on the streets - day or night.

When our social content creators, Jody and Triona, asked one woman if she feels safe these days, she told them: “Not really, there's a few dodgy areas in Dublin, maybe going down like O'Connell Street really late, But I always try to do that with friends."

Another woman said she hasn't felt the same: “I've never really felt like super unsafe here in general once we're in a group.”

A third added: “Yeah, but like not so much alone, I hear a lot of Dubliners say that Dublin has gotten a lot more hostile, which I get, I've been coming here all my life, but I think Dublin is way safer than most American metropolitan areas.”

Another woman said: “I feel safer in Dublin compared to other cities I've been to, but, I mean, I wouldn't walk around Dublin.”

“I get scared that you'd be approached or you hear, like sometimes lads shouting things at night that don't make you feel so safe. 

“Even when you are in a group, I feel safe a lot of the time. Until then, suddenly something will happen. You're like, Oh, God, you forget that you're not just invincible.”

Another passerby told Her.ie: “I usually get a taxi, to be honest. Like I probably just wouldn't walk around by myself only at times when it's out of necessity. 

“And I'd always be like, Oh, I'm here. If I'm on the bus, like just texting constantly, anywhere in the world, like you've got to be careful.”

In terms of what women are doing to make themselves feel safer, day or night, one woman said: "Sometimes I'll put my keys kind of like in my fist.

“If I feel really scared, I pretend I'm on the phone. Even if I'm not, I will always walk to the other side of the road and I always make sure I'm on the light and not in dark places."

Another said: “I would take the dog.”

A third said: “I try never to walk home alone in the dark with my headphones on.”

“I Make sure I've got my phone on,” another told us.

“I have a tracker on my phone for family members,” a fifth woman said.

Finally, another woman told Her: “I try to take a taxi home at the end of a long night if I can not spare the cost.”

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