COLUMN: Playing It Safe

From Charlotte Druckman's "Playing It Safe," Fall '94 There are certain issues that you cannot sugar coat. When one mother has already tripped on a parking pole at the end of Locust Walk, another has brought up that "nasty little shooting incident," and meanwhile, loud inebriated crowds of people are swaggering to the football game, our scenic route cannot remove one pressing thought from the minds of our visitors: Campus Safety. From WaWa being held up at gunpoint to the pepper spray fiasco and other such sordid tales, this pristine collegiate setting in the heart of West Philadelphia poses many dangers to its students. As a tour guide, I find it very difficult to answer the inevitable "Do you feel safe here?" in a high-spirited, diplomatic fashion that will convey to my tourists that I do feel safe. This is because I simply do not. There appears to be a general consensus that we feel relatively secure walking around campus during the day. However, I remember one morning last year when someone attempted to mug my hallmate on Locust Walk. I also recall a hall meeting that ended with our R.A. reminding us to keep our doors locked, even when we were in our rooms, because a non-Penn student had successfully gained entrance into the Quad and was letting himself into people's rooms. "Don't worry," my R.A. said. "He won't attack you, or touch you or anything. He just wants to take your stuff." Of course, now we get to worry about middle-aged men cavorting naked in our bathrooms, but that's another story. What makes these incidents so disturbing is that they are taking place on what is officially defined as campus, and are occurring in broad daylight. That means that whatever existing measures are being taken to maintain safety are not sufficient, and this does not even cover what goes on off-campus or after dark. One Friday night, I shared a cab home with my friend. She lives on 40th and Spruce, I live on 39th and Locust. We figured that if the taxi dropped us at 39th and Spruce it would be a fair compromise. But my friend said she would have to wait until someone she knew could walk her home, because she was terrified to go alone. I couldn't believe it could be that horrible to walk such a short distance, so big shot, yours truly, said she would do it. Walking past the large group of unfamiliar drunk people who eyed us as we passed, I began to feel uneasy, and once I made eye-contact with one of the marauders who had stationed himself at my friend's stoop, I panicked: "You'd better call Penn Escort," I told her, "Because there is no way I'm walking back through that by myself." I realize that this is all happening in an area technically deemed "off campus." However, not only is this area populated by Penn students, it is only a few yards away from "campus". It is not right that students should feel so jeopardized in their own community. The school should at least provide a sense of security for those students who are compelled to live or visit off campus. Incidentally, for those who are asking why I'm complaining since I was able to pick up the phone and call Penn Escort, this transport service is not the knight in shining armor that it's cracked up to be. At 11:30 p.m., I called and asked if I could be picked up at 40th and Spruce and taken to 38th and Walnut. The dispatcher informed me that since 38th and Walnut is considered an on-campus location, I could only be dropped off by the high rises and walk. I complained that I did not want to walk by myself and was advised to call the ambulatory escort service. I asked the reason for this illogical policy, and the dispatcher told me, "We're trying to promote walking on campus, so we won't drop off on campus." Some advice: If you're trying to promote walking on campus, maybe you should make campus a safe place on which to walk. Instead of stationing a policeman outside of Houston Hall on a Friday night, where students don't hang out, put policemen on areas like 40th and Spruce or on Locust Walk (and bike-busters do not count towards legitimate safety, because while they are cracking down on bikers, other people are stealing bikes -- and chairs.) Coming from Manhattan, I consider myself relatively street smart, and I try to apply the same caution here that I would use at home. As one of my friends said, "Well, you'd never walk in Central Park alone." But a college campus is a far cry from Central Park, or at least it should be. I was not sure if my paranoias about safety were particular to women or if they affected everyone on campus, but, now that I know guys carry Mace, I realize that this problem is universal. Instead of putting money into new garages or lounges in the Penn Club, the school should focus on making the Penn vicinity a safer environment. As my tour ends, I hope the visitors haven't perceived the criminal potential surrounding them. I know that this is one of the issues that causes applicants to be wary, and I'm sure many a parent loses sleep stressing over their child's safety at a city school. I guess they could always go to Ithaca, but, then again, Cornell has the highest suicide rate. Suicide or Murder: hey, pick your poison! Charlotte Druckman is a sophomore English major from New York City. Putting It Bluntly appears alternate Tuesdays.