<p>So I’ve lived my whole life in upscale gated communities in suburbia/country…so I have no street smarts. For example, I saw a post here about how it was self-explanatory that listening to an iPod while walking down the street was not smart. I’m guessing that it’s because the music would diminish your sense of surroundings and that iPods are attractive targets for theft??</p>
<p>Anyway, if everyone could make a list of, say, their top 10 most important and basic safety tips and explain why…</p>
<p>P.S.
I’m not one of those ppl who think that Hyde Park is the most dangerous place in the world or anything, and I certainly won’t let safety concerns scare me off (I’ve already deposited) but I’d imagine that it’d be quite a change from the bubble that is my neighborhood (no name dropping, but I live right next to a really famous actor that I’m sure most of you know).</p>
<p>From what I’ve gathered so far (this is half to see if I got it right, and half to help):</p>
<ol>
<li>Walk in groups. Even in daylight. Especially at night. (you’re less likely to get attacked)</li>
<li>Avoid places that look like a murder scene waiting to happen.</li>
<li>Don’t carry an iPod in one hand, a MacBook Pro under your shoulder, a crown on your head while wearing diamond earrings and the most expensive watch on anyone’s wrist for miles.</li>
<li>Don’t look scared, but don’t overdo it and walk like you own the place. (i.e. don’t make yourself look easy or like you NEED to be taken down a notch).</li>
<li>See that group of guys walking down the street at you at 3 AM while you’re alone and drunk? Cross the road and avoid them. For obvious reasons.</li>
<li>Try not to get caught alone and drunk on the street at 3 AM.</li>
<li>Try not to get caught drunk on the street at 3 AM.</li>
<li>Try not to get caught drunk on the street.</li>
<li>Use what the university is giving you. Phones, cars, police… You’re paying for it, don’t be afraid to use it if you’ve got a feeling you might need to.</li>
<li>Don’t jump into the middle of a gang fight. Or any fight. Avoid fights.</li>
</ol>
<p>I don’t know if these are relevant or if there’s anything I’ve missed/shouldn’t have put in, but that’s what ‘street smarts’ means to me. Feel free to correct me xD.</p>
<p>estrat1, I don’t know who you have been talking to, but you are presenting a caricature. The impression created bears no relation to reality.</p>
<p>The only precaution that I would suggest is to avoid walking alone late at night (after 10 or so). I would give the same advice for anyone living in any urban environment.</p>
<p>I think it’s mostly pay attention to your surroundings. Be alert, and be confident. Someone who is not paying attention, and/or looks timid, is inviting people to mess with her. Someone who looks like she knows what she is doing, and is watching out for herself – that isn’t perfect protection against anything, but it’s less of an invitation to mess with her. You know: Whenever you feel afraid, just hold your head erect, and whistle a happy tune, so no one will suspect you’re afraid.</p>
<p>If you feel uncomfortable, use the emergency phones, etc. Don’t be embarrassed about it. Better safe than sorry, and you’ll develop good instincts over time.</p>
<p>There’s no need to avoid walking alone at night completely. My daughter used to walk from Maclean to WHPK at 4 am all the time, and it was tough to get company for that. When I was 20 and living in NYC, a female college friend used to walk across Central Park alone late at night all the time. But walk where you feel like you know the place. And if you can get company, that’s great.</p>
<p>Some women like carrying whistles or little air horns in their pocket. I recommend against pepper spray – assuming you get it out, you are far more likely to hurt yourself than anyone else with it.</p>
<p>Carry your cash and credit cards in a way that’s not easily snatched. Not falling out of your back pocket. I put my purse straps across the chest rather than dangling from my arm. And don’t lose complete control of your valuable belongings–either keep some touch or eye contact–when you’re on buses, in restaurants, or at other public venues. </p>
<p>I think they go over this stuff during O-Week. In fact, I think they may provide whistles.</p>
<p>(Cross posted–there you go: O-Week info sessions.)</p>
<p>Best advice – follow your instincts! If a situation feels unsafe, it might be. Don’t be afraid to come across as overreacting – better safe than sorry. The more experience you have, the better you will be able to judge the situation.</p>
<p>I lived near Columbia at the height of the crack epidemic. Everything looks good to me. The one thing I did then and occasionally do now is have a separate mugger’s wallet. I never needed to use it, though I did have my wallet stolen once and someone tried to pickpocket me another time.</p>
<p>1) Get familiar with public transit, if possible, before you arrive. Both my kids found this gave them confidence to travel in large cities and to develop street smarts. 2) Learn the street grid so you don’t walk into trouble without realizing it. 3) When you arrive, figure out what streets are well-lit, what stores/campus buildings are open late (so you feel comfortable walking into one if you feel you’re being followed). 4) Program your cellphone with the emergency number for campus police and for the ride home service. 5) You’ll get a whistle at Orientation; attach it to your student ID tag. (I carried one in Philadelphia and used it once – my DH was cornered by three thugs after his wallet. We were on a well-lit street coming home from celebrating our 5th anniversary. I blew the whistle, yelled “MOVE IT!” and the guys took off. Robbery averted.)</p>
<p>These are all common-sense things I did when DH and I lived in West Philly while he was a grad student at Penn. Ditto the other suggestions folks have made, esp. about not walking around with your iPod cranked up. It screams, “I’m not paying attention!”</p>
<p>S does not carry all of his ID/cards with him. Student ID, debit card and a small amount of cash are enough. Should he get mugged, it would be a real bear to get every piece of ID replaced. S has never had a problem with crime in Chicago. Most students never will.</p>
<p>Guilty as charged. Once they see you pull out your wallet, they will keep asking for more. DON’T DO IT. Nod politely, say you don’t carry cash with you, and hurry off.</p>
<p>They’re not “beggars”, they’re homeless people. They’re harmless. It’s the people who take your money without asking first that you have to worry about. And I don’t know of anyone who’s had that problem in Hyde Park.</p>
<p>Check out the daily police reports. Most stuff is just property crime, but there are handgun robberies in the area. That can easily turn into an assault or worse. Pay attention to the times and the locations – when you venture outside the “bubble” of UC, bad things become more likely (note, I said more likely, not certain). </p>
<p>Whoa. Whether you mean to or not, you’re overstating it, UKGirl. There’s plenty of area beyond the campus that is perfectly safe, it’s simply urban. There’s no need to obsess about handguns, assaults, or “worse.” For entering students who come from urban areas, any safety precautions will already be second nature. And those from more rural locations will adapt quickly with the tips they get during O-Week.</p>
<p>Apples to apples, in the last 6 months there were 30 robberies in Hyde Park, and 22 in Roscoe Village (a part of the city that just about everyone would consider “nicer”). Five of the Hyde Park robberies involved a gun, and seven of the Roscoe Park robberies. Based on the map, only two of the Hyde Park robberies occurred on the University of Chicago campus, and another four more-or-less nearby. However one defines the area where students generally live and play, the bulk of the crimes were not occurring there.</p>
<p>The University of Chicago is a huge community of around 40,000 students, faculty, and staff, in the middle of a large city. Two or three robberies a month, while not “acceptable”, hardly means that people are living in fear.</p>