Safe-walk programs attracting more attention since recent crime spree
The University of British Columbia (UBC) is facing a security crisis as it tries to protect its 50,000-odd students from a sex attacker believed to be involved in six assaults since the spring.
The most recent of these attacks occurred Sunday, Nov. 3 at approximately 1:30 a.m. The UBC campus has since upped its police presence to the highest levels in the university’s history. In the latest attack, a young woman was grabbed from behind but managed to escape her assailant by flailing her arms. This incident resembles others that have occurred on campus, leading security officials to believe these are the acts of a single person.
The situation has prompted a search for the offender, with bike-patrol officers and members of the First Response Team being deployed, as well as crime analysts and profilers. The suspect is described by victims as slim, Caucasian, between 5-foot-8 and 6-foot-2, in his mid-to-late-20s, with dark hair and tanned skin. The UBC has also boosted security patrols, distributed whistles, and increased campus lighting.
In an October incident, a 17-year-old girl was attacked and punched in the face but managed to break free as her attacker attempted to drag her into a wooded area.
“These attacks seem to be crimes of opportunity where the suspect is specifically targeting lone females in somewhat secluded areas,” said RCMP Sergeant Peter Thiessen in a news conference last week. “In all situations, the women were assaulted while walking on the campus late into the evening or into the early morning hours.”
The ensuing manhunt for the offender has since subsided and a heightened focus on general security is again the main concern.
Since the news of the latest attack, the demand for Safe-walk program run by the UBC student council has increased substantially. On Halloween eve, there were over 95 calls for safe-walk escorts.
Thiessen is urging women and students to be aware of their surroundings, to walk in pairs or groups, take well-lit paths, and communicate with friends about where they are going and when they should arrive.
These incidences at UBC have also sparked alarm on the University of Guelph campus. “It’s something that is always on my mind” said Asia Barclay, a fourth year U of G student. “The attacks happened in a place that is similar to the University of Guelph with a similar demographic.”
Barclay hopes that this occurrence has an impact on policy and discourse, shifting the shame away from women and placing the focus on addressing rape culture.
U of G SafeWalk Public Relations Coordinator, Cate Drew Zeran, says the program gets, on average, 0 to 3 calls a night, noting they’ve seen an increase in calls this year. The CSA service is dedicated to providing anybody on campus with a safe walk to his or her destination, and is reachable by cell phone, pay phone or any of the numerous blue poles found around campus. They operate from 7:30 p.m. until 2:30 a.m.
Zeran wishes more students took advantage of the service.
“A lot of people don’t know who we are or don’t understand what we do,” she says. “There’s no shame in protecting yourself…we’re here to make people feel safe.”