To find this poster in a train station wrong?

[megadude]

Hi Mumsnetters,

I'd be interested to read your opinions about this poster. I don't want to say right now what I think about it, as I'd like to know how you'd interpret it.

TIA,
Megadude

Just a small point, but not all of the women are white in this poster. Also, I suspect the poster is only showing us young women as this poster may be about more than bag snatching. I do agree that posters work well when a message can be conveyed without assuming that everyone can read what is written on the poster.

That post was in response to Alpacamythings btw.

Oh and with regards to wheelchair users not being in the poster, imagine if they dared to put up a poster showing someone in a wheelchair, with the message "Take extra care" just like in this poster. I think that would come across a tad offensive to wheelchair users.

Itsme - I've just come on this thread to read through the debate to start drafting an email. I'm still deciding what to include as there's a fine balance between explaining why I'm emailing them about this poster, and sending them a mini dissertation. I'm hoping to get my points across in the nicest and most concise way.

Sally and Alpaca, 90% of rapists are known to the victim so how does this poster help? The people most likely to assaulted in the street are men, how does this poster help them? With only 15% of sexual crimes being reported and when they are only 6% lead to a conviction surely that points to the fact that we are incredibly ineffectual when it comes to dealing with sexual assaults and it is something our society doesn't understand.

The poster is a very traditional wimmin beware poster that will do nothing to help me when I am travelling around on my own.

It doesn't help anyone but it supports the idea that victims are responsible for
the crimes committed against them.

mega I would ask them to explain what the poster means, and who it is aimed at.

Yeah that's the tricky part Lumpy, as my case in in two parts - ascertaining what the poster's designed message is, and the problem I have with it if indeed it is about women being attacked and raped.

At first glance, this poster does look a general safety message, but this thread put across some brilliant points as to why it is suggesting something else.

Interesting that feminists are expected to just take any crap that's thrown at them, and the minute they offer any form of protest they are being "dismissive" or "arsey"

How am I supposed to respond to the accusation that I would let young women come to harm because I don't like the wording of a poster? "Oh, yes. What a good point you make! Thank you for pointing that out to me"

I focussed on that one because it was what I said- and you used it as an example of "arsy" responses without saying what it was in response to. My comment was positively measured in comparison to the awful accusation made.

Why won't you accept that the vast majority of even remotely unpleasant comments made on this thread have been by those thinking the poster is absolutely fine and anyone objecting to it is talking "extreme feminist claptrap"? Why perpetuate the myth that feminists are aggressive, dismissive and all the other things we are called by cherry picking? Why not be more even handed in your request for reasoned, polite debate?

How, but the way, do you think I should have responded?

Sally and Alpaca, 90% of rapists are known to the victim so how does this poster help?

This poster won't help them. It's not intended to. It's not aimed at women with their partners/ relatives. As you can see from the picture it is aimed at women out and about.

There is a much bigger problem of women raped by known men. It's a huge problem and it needs to be sorted. But no single poster can deal with every variety of rapist and victim.

If this poster is noticed and acted upon by 10% of potential victims then it's doing a good job.

LumpySpacedPrincess Whilst statistics are extremely useful by saying 90% of victims know their attacker, what about the 10% who don't?

Just look at the women reported to have been attacked by migrants in Germany recently. I hope all sections of German society, but especially women are being advised to be cautious, keep safe, and not put themselves in vulnerable situations. And I hope that they don't delay/cancel any such posters because it can't be agreed who should be portrayed in the campaign.

The women attacked in Cologne weren't on their own. There were hundreds of people there.

A very vague keep safe women doesn't help the ten percent either, it just means that women have to bear responsibility when they haven't followed the posters advise.

There is a case in Ireland at the moment where the rapists has had his sentence lowered as, on reflection, the judge feels the rape didn't involve too much violence.

All this poster does is subtly prop up rape culture.

In Cologne it was large groups of women, together, in a big group!!! How on earth is that "putting themselves in a vulnerable situation!"

You have done it, right there, shifted blame onto the women who were attacked!

How would following the advice on this poster have helped the women attached in Cologne?

I could honestly weep that you are using Cologne as an example and you are hoping that they have a poster campaign. These women were in large groups, or were following all the rules but were attacked by over 1000 men! The attacks were then covered up for days.

The mentality exists that whenever a woman is assaulted there is always "something" she could have done, fought harder, worn different clothes, followed the rules. Then, even if you do follow the rules it is somehow still your fault.

If this poster is noticed and acted upon by 10% of potential victims then it's doing a good job.

It will be noticed by potential rapists and allow them to justify their actions.

It will be noticed by future jurors and when they end up on a rape case they will think "well, she didn't follow the rules."

It will be noticed by me when I make my way around the country on my own because I have to work and cannot take my posse with me everytime I go out.

"How would following the advice on this poster have helped the women attached in Cologne?"

I would love to hear the response to this too. Large groups of women, stuck together, still assaulted.

"If this poster is noticed and acted upon by 10% of potential victims then it's doing a good job."

Except that isn't how it would work! You can't believe that it would go like that, surely?

It's the every day person going about their business who sees it, absorbs it, internalises it and then is called for jury duty on a rape trial.

Sorry Lumpy I'm too slow, cross posted with your far better post.

Yes, waiting too, would love to hear how the poster, and future poster campaigns, would have helped to ward off 1000 drunk misogynists.