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Nowhere near enough is being done for women’s safety in the night-time economy, according to an academic study. Women do not feel safe and free to engage equally with men in the night-time economy because of sexual harassment, or unwanted sexual intrusions (USI).
A study was commissioned by Shout-Up! – a campaign to tackle sexual harassment in the night-time economy, which offers training to pub and club staff (as in Torbay recently), and certificates venues. At Northumbria University Dr Ruth Lewis, of the Department of Social Sciences, and Dr Amanda McBride looked at women’s emotional responses to sexual harassment. Their full paper is published on Sage Journals.
Dr Lewis said: “Women’s emotional responses to USI have rarely been researched but can provide us with a deeper understanding of the social dynamics of power and status. What was clear from our respondents was that women’s fear – the predominant emotion suggested by 44 per cent of respondents who expressed an emotion – indicates a shared sense that they anticipate further harm when encountering USIs, which leads them to modify their behaviour and engage in ‘safety work’, restricting their freedom to engage equally in the night-time economy.”
Intrusions are considered commonplace on a night out, Shout-Up! project manager Dawn Bowman of Rape Crisis Tyneside and Northumberland said. She added: “They’re often portrayed and accepted as an inevitable part of going out – brushed off as ‘banter’ or ‘just a laugh’. But our research repeatedly finds that the consequence of this is harming women and making them think twice about going to certain bars, pubs and clubs.”
As for the definition of unwanted sexual intrusions (USI), the academics stress its unwanted nature, whether cat-calls and wolf whistles, staring, barring someone’s way or groping. The second most prevalent feeling offered by 23pc of respondents was anger, followed by shame (12pc), the study stated.
Dr McBride said: “Shame and stigma go hand-in-hand to police women’s behaviour and have always been a fundamental aspect of the maintenance of men’s violence. Traditionally, women have been held responsible for their own victimisation, and have been advised to adjust their own behaviour to avoid harassment and violence, but this research suggests the tide is beginning to turn.
“These responses show there is a contemporary shift towards reframing USI as an injustice and holding those who sexually intrude to account. There has therefore never been a greater opportunity to improve the UK’s social responses to USI in the night-time economy, and to work together to prevent it, so everyone can enjoy themselves – safely and equally.”
Local polling by Shout-Up! earlier this year showed most, 75pc of women in Devon and 78pc of women in Tyne and Wear had experienced sexual harassment on a night out. As for what’s needed for women to engage equally with men in the night-time economy, the study states:
– women should not be left to respond to USI alone because their own emotional reactions, and their assessment of the risk of exacerbated violence, mean they are not free to respond as they might wish. Venues must create environments where women can get help quickly;
– staff working in the night-time (bar and door staff for example) should be trained to understand USI, how it manifests and its impacts so that they can be alert to USI and confident about how to respond to it. This training should include consideration of the range and complexity of women’s emotional responses to USI; and
– venues should be expected to meet agreed standards around safety from USI as they would for other health and safety-led initiatives and should be expected to publicly demonstrate their commitment to a zero-tolerance approach.
See also the Shout-Up! blog. Dawn Bowman says: “We must stop making women responsible for not only avoiding situations in which they could be harassed but then also dealing with the consequences of harassment after the fact, so Shout-Up! addresses one part of that.
“Venues have a responsibility; we wouldn’t accept a venue that didn’t meet fire safety regulations and nor should we accept venues ignoring the personal safety of its patrons. Shout-Up! trains venue staff to make spaces safer and tackle harassment swiftly and decisively. We know that women will stay longer and spend more in venues in which they feel safe, so there isn’t just a moral obligation here; there’s a direct financial benefit to our towns and cities if everyone is safe.”
