Where Women Feel Unsafe

Earlier this year Plan International carried out a map survey in four German cities to find out where women in Hamburg, Berlin, Cologne and Munich feel safe and unsafe. The survey revealed that nearly all women have felt unsafe when out & about in these cities. 80% of the places identified in the survey were locations where women have felt unsafe.

Among the reasons why locations were identified as unsafe in the survey were poor lighting on streets and in parks. Women also cited feeling unsafe in locations where men use alcohol or drugs in public. Women also reported feeling uncomfortable while waiting for or using public transport. Bars and restaurants were often reported as locations where women felt safe.

The Safer Cities Map is no longer accepting input but it can still be used to see the locations in Hamburg, Berlin, Cologne & Munich identified by women as being unsafe. Select a city from the side menu and you can view all the locations identified in the map survey. Green pins indicate locations which were identified as somewhere a woman felt safe. Red pins are the locations where women said they felt unsafe. If you click on these map pins you can read the comments left by the woman who identified the location.

You can read more analysis of the Plan International survey at Women experience fear, harassment and violence in their cities (in German). The results of the survey are important not just for city planners in the four German cities surveyed. The results identify common city locations where safety needs to be improved, for example areas with poor lighting and isolated public transport stops and routes.

Women in Brazil who have experienced harassment can share their experiences on the Chegu de Fiu Fiu interactive map. Chega de Fiu Fiu is a campaign against sexual harassment. The campaign includes a Chega de Fiu Fiu Google Map which is used to map the most troublesome and dangerous places for women in Brazil.