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Personal safety begins long before a confrontation: notice a change in your environment, keep a possibility of departure and know how to ask for help. This twenty-fourth exercise proposes civilian habits applicable in the street, transport and public places, without transforming each trip into a search for threats.
Watch what changes, without judging people
Before engaging in a passage, identify exits, lighting and places to ask for assistance. An open entrance, a busy business or a reception post can be a fallback point. Look at observable behaviors: a person blocking your way, an intensifying argument, or a dangerous object. The appearance, origin or outfit of a passer-by does not establish his dangerousness.
Book prolonged interactions with your phone where you can stop without disturbing or isolating yourself. If you use headphones, keep your attention compatible with your environment. It is not a question of staying constantly on the alert: some checks at the transitions of the journey are more useful than an exhausting vigilance.
Keep a possibility of departure
If a situation becomes uncomfortable, you can change the sidewalk, return to a busy place or postpone your trip. You don’t have to wait for certainty to take a reasonable precaution. Conversely, a doubt does not justify accusing or following someone.
By vehicle, avoid getting off to respond to a provocation. If you think you are being followed, do not automatically drive to your home: look for an appropriate public place and ask for help. Do not engage in pursuits or manoeuvres to test the other driver.
For a regular trip, prepare an alternative route, a contact and a transport solution. Tell a loved one about important changes when relevant, without publicizing your position at all times.
Set a limit and defuse
A short, understandable sentence is often enough: “I don’t want to argue,” “Let me through,” or “I need help.” Keep your tone as steady as possible and avoid insults, challenges or sudden gestures. If the person insists, focus on distance and exit rather than a demonstration of assurance.
In a public place, ask for specific help: call a staff member or identifiable person and indicate your need. « Can you call for help and stay with me here? » gives a clearer task than a general call to the crowd.
Prepare simple means of reporting
Keep your phone accessible and sufficiently charged. A small lamp can facilitate a return to a poorly lit passage; it is not a protection against aggression. A whistle or personal alarm serves to attract attention, without guaranteeing that someone will be able to intervene.
Do not automatically integrate a knife, aerosol or electrical device into your daily equipment. Their status and shipping conditions vary depending on the country and the object. In Canada, an aerosol designed to be used against people is a prohibited weapon; however, an animal repellent does not become a self-defense product to divert from its use. In France, an authorized acquisition does not automatically allow port in public space.
Exercise without putting yourself in danger
Choose training that teaches avoidance, de-escalation, legal limits, and asking for help. Physical exercises should be supervised and adapted to your condition. No training makes a confrontation predictable or safe.
Exercise of the day : Take a familiar route and identify two places where you could ask for help, a return solution and the contact to be notified. Then fix a single concrete point: phone battery, lighting or transport. Do not stage an assault on public roads.
In case of an immediate threat in Quebec, call 911 as soon as you can do it safely. Describe the location and the facts; follow the instructions of the person taking the call.
To check and deepen
- When and how to use 911
- CBSA - Weapons and devices, including aerosols
- France - Carrying and transporting a weapon to defend oneself
Put this reading into practice
Perform the action as you wish and then check the result. Your follow-up remains specific to this route.
31 days to better prepare; Day 24
Prevent confrontations
Your action: Find places to ask for help and choose a way to leave a tense situation without making it worse.
To check: Help contacts are accessible; no one is responsible for confronting a stranger.
To do