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For the men: we do it to confirm they made it home without being raped or worse. We also send our locations so our friends can report our last known whereabouts if we don’t return. We are taught to do this by parents, teachers, and mentors. It is common. bostonglobe.com/metro/2019/03/…
We’re also taught to never let an attacker take us to a second location because they are likely going to kill us and we may never be found.
We’re taught to gauge eyeballs, use our elbows and stomp on feet to escape.
We’re taught to yell FIRE instead of HELP because the former is more likely to bring the latter.
We’re taught to never leave our drinks unattended and if we feel dizzy or sleepy tell the bartender or anyone who will listen.
We’re taught to vary our schedules if we live alone and avoid first floor apartments.
We’re taught to scratch and bite an attacker to leave a mark and capture his DNA in case we die.
We’re taught not to take a shower before going to the police station or the hospital if we are raped, and to bring a second set of clothes if we can so we don’t go home in a gown.
We’re taught to carry our keys like iron claws, as protection and so we don’t have to stop in front of our car when we get there.
We’re taught that failure to do these things means we are at least partially to blame.
I knew all this by the time I was twelve.
