WOMEN's SAFETY at NIGHT: Leila Farina Supervisors

WOMEN’S SAFETY AT NIGHT: Insights into the perception of safety and travel decision making of women from Brussels and Recife.

Leila Farina

Supervisors: Anna Plyushteva & Kobe Boussauw

Master thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Urban Studies (VUB) and Master of Science in Geography, general orientation, track ‘Urban Studies’ (ULB)

Date of submission: 12 August 2019

“So while I can enjoy the fact that dressing more androgynous is somehow beneficial, I also wonder if I am a traitor to myself. It makes so much more sense to me to live in a world where being a woman is a powerful thing; a world where women don't need to camouflage their genders just so they can walk around at night. I don't want to disappear. I want to be seen”. (Arzia Tivany Wargadiredja)

Acknowledgments

Initially, I thank my thesis’ supervisors, Anna Plyushteva and Kobe Boussauw, for their patience, encouragement and shared knowledge. I also would like to thank the MUS team for their guidance and flexibility during the two years of study and my classmates for sharing good and bad moments, following the same journey.

As well, I thank Karbon' architecture et urbanisme team, for showing interest in my research and for the flexibility given, which made it possible to write the present thesis during my internship period there.

I dedicate an especial thanks to all the women who participated in this study, by answering the questionnaires and to all the friends who shared it with their social network, especially Besnik Gjonpalaj, Zeynep Balci, Rabia Uslu and Bleri Lleshi.

Also, I would like to thank all the women who volunteered and agreed to be interviewed for this work, devoting their time to help my research. All the constructive comments were also very appreciated, thanks to all that commented on my research, always aiming to bring improvements and new inspirations.

Thanks a lot to my roommates, Romane Mahieu and Alessia Italiano, which offered a valuable help during the whole thesis period. For always offering their moral support, for sharing my research and for the French translating guidance, I thank both.

I also would like to thank once again my wonderful partner, Besnik Gjonpalaj, for all the kindness, help, given comments, encouragement and love shared throughout this process.

Finally, I thank my dear parents and brother, Jane, Gustavo and Mateus, for always being by my side, supporting and helping me at all times. Thanks for all dedication and love, without them concluding this Master’s degree would not be possible.

Table of contents

List of figures ...... 6 List of tables ...... 6 List of graphs ...... 6 Abstract ...... 8

1. INTRODUCTION ...... 9 1.1. Prologue ...... 10 1.2. Hypotheses and Research question ...... 12 1.3. Methodological procedures...... 14 2. CONTEXTUALISING THE PROBLEM ...... 16 2.1. The urban night ...... 17 2.2. Fear of crime ...... 20 2.3. Crime and built environment...... 22 2.4. Women and perception of safety ...... 25 2.5. Transport and safety issues ...... 28 3. CITIES AND PEOPLE ...... 32 3.1. Why comparing the two cities ...... 33 3.2. Recife ...... 34 3.3. Brussels ...... 38 3.4. Target groups ...... 41 3.4.1. Questionnaires ...... 41 3.4.2. Semi structured interviews ...... 45 4. WOMEN’S PERCEPTION OF SAFETY AT NIGHT: A COMPARATIVE APPROACH ...... 47 4.1. Night habits...... 48 4.2. Neighbourhoods ...... 49 4.3. Safety impressions: the relation to previous negative incidents ...... 57 4.3.1. Previous events and social forces ...... 57 4.3.2. Fear affecting night habits ...... 61 4.4. Public environment: physical and social aspects ...... 63 4.5. Mobility choices at night and perception of safety ...... 69

4.5.1. Mobility habits at night ...... 69 4.5.2. Relevant factors influencing mobility decision at night ...... 71 4.5.3. Feelings when travelling at night ...... 73 4.5.4. Women’s-only transportations...... 77 4.6. Feeling safer at night ...... 80 4.6.1. Personal strategies ...... 80 4.6.2. Suggested measures ...... 83 5. CONCLUSION ...... 88 6. BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES ...... 92 7. APPENDIX ...... 100

List of figures

Figure 1 Recife (in purple) and Brussels (in blue), maps in the same scale ...... 34 Figure 2 Locating Recife on the map ...... 34 Figure 3 Locating Brussels on the map ...... 38 Figure 4 SafetiPin in New Delhi ...... 51 Figure 5 Maps of Recife and Brussels identifying the neighbourhoods that women commonly go and the ones they would avoid at night ...... 56 Figure 6 Women’s wagon in Recife ...... 78 Figure 7 Women’s wagon in Tokyo ...... 78

List of tables

Table 1 Number of crimes and offences reported in Recife in 2015 and 2016 ...... 38 Table 2 Number of crimes and offences reported in Brussels Capital Region in 2017 ...... 41 Table 3 Neighbourhoods women commonly go out at night ...... 52 Table 4 Neighbourhoods women would avoid at night ...... 54 Table 5 Elements influencing perception of safety in Recife and in Brussels ...... 63 Table 6 Choice of transportation in Recife ...... 69 Table 7 Choice of transportation in Brussels ...... 70 Table 8 Women’s feelings in diverse transit situations in Recife and in Brussels ...... 74 List of graphs

Graph 1 Age range of participants from Recife and Brussels ...... 42 Graph 2 Nationalities of participants from Brussels ...... 43 Graph 3 Ethnicity of participants from Recife ...... 44 Graph 4 Education of participants from Recife and Brussels ...... 44 Graph 5 Civil statuses of participants from Recife and Brussels ...... 45 Graph 6 Night habits in Recife ...... 48

Graph 7 Night habits in Brussels ...... 48 Graph 8 Reasons women go out in Recife ...... 49 Graph 9 Reasons women go out in Brussels ...... 49 Graph 10 How safe women feel in Recife at night...... 50 Graph 11 How safe women feel in Brussels at night ...... 50 Graph 12 Incidents in Recife ...... 57 Graph 13 Incidents in Brussels ...... 57 Graph 14 Fear affecting habits in Recife ...... 61 Graph 15 Fear affecting habits in Brussels ...... 61 Graph 16 Very relevant factors in women’s mobility choice at night in Recife and in Brussels...... 72 Graph 17 Recife vs. Brussels: opinion on public transport carriages/sections exclusively for women ...... 77 Graph 18 Recife vs. Brussels: women’s perception of safety related to female drivers ...... 79

Abstract

Starting from the point that the urban night has traditionally been an environment from which women are not welcome, the present work analyses how the notion of fear can influence mobility choices during the night and how these perceptions may vary according to very distinct geographic and sociocultural contexts, by comparing two cities, Brussels and Recife. In response, the aim of this study is also to identify which factors answer to female safety concerns, by looking at how women react to certain attributes in the urban night environment. In other words, the study examines how physical, social and psychological factors can affect the perception of safety and mobility of women at night and provides insights into the impact of feeling unsafe in the contexts of Brussels and Recife. With the aim to obtain a greater number of possible responders, but also to obtain details that meet the subjectivity of the investigated object, a mixed methods research was chosen. For that purpose, an application of a questionnaire and more in deep interviews were conducted with women from both cities. After collecting and analysing data, the results showed that fear of crime can limit women's access to the urban environments at night. However, there are different levels of impact that vary not only by conditions of geographical location, but also due to psychological factors, such as personal traits. According to the findings, elements impacting on women’s perception of safety from both cities are the same, but presented in different circumstances and influencing in distinct levels. These results are also in line with previous literature, which helps to reinforce existing theories. Most of the responders in Recife, 89%, considered fear of crime as a very relevant factor when choosing their mean of transportation at night. In contrast, in Brussels, only 44.8% said that fear of crime is a very relevant element influencing on their mobility choice. In both cities, despite the fact that perceptions of safety can differ, women tend to adopt similar strategies in order to feel safer at night.

Keywords: urban night, women, perception of safety, fear of crime, mobility choices.

1. Introduction

1.1. Prologue

The night-time city has traditionally been a space from which women are not welcome. A place where the female presence is often questioned, especially when they are alone. This has influenced the perception of women’s safety at night and restricts their right to the city1 (Col.lectiu Punt 6, 2016). In this sense, feeling unsafe can be the fruit of a complex process: it is both the consequence of actual aggression towards women which are often not included in statistics (as they are not reported to the police), and the result of an incorporation of a supposed vulnerability specific to women (Gilow, 2015).

Many studies focus on women's perception of fear (Valentine, 1989; Koskela, 1997; Koskela and Pain, 2000). At night, this perception is also shaped by the social and cultural elements transmitted to them, pointing out that women are in constant danger or are potential victims of sexual assault. Moreover, cases of violence against females that happened in urban everyday environments make this perception of insecurity grows. The sense of a lack of safety is a factor that limits women’s right to the city and it is also caused by physical aspects of the environment, such as the monofunctional nature of some urban public spaces and the lack of visibility in these areas, for example ( Col.lectiu Punt 6, 2016).

The triad of public space, violence and fear is not a recent issue, for some time now the relation between them has been an object of interest in various areas of knowledge, such as geography, sociology, psychology and urbanism (Siqueira, 2015). In this latter field, for example, the effects of violence and fear in urban space have valuable contributions from scholars such as Jane Jacobs (2000) and Oscar Newman (1972), who have repercussions on the academy and professional practice of many architects and urban planners. On the gender issue, geographers such as Gill Valentine (1989) and Rachel Pain (2000) bring important reflections on women's fear in public space.

The perception of safety by women in the public space at night highly affects their mobility in the city. Therefore, it is consider that the fear and safety perceptions condition mobility:

1 The right to the city is an idea and slogan that was first proposed by Henri Lefebvre in his 1968 book Le Droit à la ville. Lefebvre summarizes ideas as a "demand for renewed and transformed access to urban life" (Henri Lefebvre, 1968)

walking to public transportation, in the transit infrastructures (bus stops, metro access, wait times), as well as in the interior of public transportation. For women, mobility cannot be dissociated from a feeling which strongly influences their use of the public space (Gillow, 2015).

As mentioned before, women’s fear of crime in public space has been the focus of considerable research; however, the perception of fear on transit environments has received less attention. According to Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink (2009), gender is one of the most significant factors related to anxiety and fear about victimisation in transit environments. In general, when compared to men, female passengers may feel more vulnerable, particularly when travelling alone or at night, even if they are not being targeted for crime at a higher rate. Still, the numbers show that they use public transit more than men (Yavuz & Welch, 2010).

Besides gender, another aspect that should be considered to measure the perception of safety and the transport decision making is the geographical location where it takes place. For that purpose, it is valid to analyse how the notion of fear can influence mobility choices during the night and how these perceptions may vary according to very distinct geographic, sociocultural and historical contexts. Starting from a personal contestation about notions and perceptions of fear at night between cities of different realities, this research compare two cities located in different continents, Brussels and Recife. Both cities have more than 1 million inhabitants2 and have countless issues typical of big urban areas. The first is a global north city and the capital of Europe and the second, one of the most important capitals from the northeast of Brazil.

2 Recife’s estimated population in 2018: 1.637.834 people. Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). Recife, 2018. https://cidades.ibge.gov.br/brasil/pe/recife (Accessed 10 January 2019) Brussels’ estimated population in 2018: 1.198.726 people. Brussels institute for statistics and analysis (BISA), 2018. http://statistics.brussels/themes/population/population#.XD0aMFVKjIU (Accessed 10 January 2019)

1.2. Hypotheses and Research question

In this context, some hypotheses were formulated: 1. Fear of crime can limit women's access to the urban environments at night.

2. The experience of women's fear in the public space and travel choice is influenced by the relationship between the physical and social aspects of their location.

3. Women's perception of safety at night is not homogeneous; it can vary according to geographical location.

In order to answer and confirm or not these hypotheses the following research question was raised:

What influence the perception of safety and travel decision making of women in the cities of Brussels and Recife at night?

As it is clear, the research question seeks to understand the factors that influence on the perception and behaviour of travel decision making of women at night in two different geographical contexts. More specifically, how the circumstances of the urban night shape the perception of safety and how they are experienced in these particular cities. In response, the aim of this study is also to identify which specific factors answer to female safety concerns, by looking at how women react to certain attributes in the urban night environment. In other words, the study will examine how physical, social and psychological factors can affect the perception of safety and mobility of women at night and provide some insights into the impact of feeling unsafe in Brussels and Recife. This study also invites one to reflect on the connection between this perception and the female social identity, in the framework of the urban night. The main question also raises some secondary questions, such as:

1. How the geographical location influence on the perception of safety at night?

2. Are the reasons for feeling unsafe in Recife the same in Brussels?

3. How the fear influences the travel decision making at night in both cities?

The present research comes to fill a gap in the urban night studies field, especially when it comes to compare the perceptions of safety from the two different geographical contexts, in that case, from Europe and Latin America. By comparing Recife and Brussels new insights can be offer, differing from previous studies that are mainly based on European and North American experiences, as it is the case of the literature on public space and the built environment.

There are a great number of studies related to gender, especially perception of safety by women, during day and night (Valentine, 1989; Pain, 2001; Koskela and Pain, 2000). Moreover, studies related to night are more focused on behaviour influenced by alcohol consumption (Eldridge and Roberts, 2008; Crawford and Flint, 2009), urban lighting (Boyce et al. 2000; Knight, 2010; Edensor, 2013), night-time economy (Bianchini, 1995; Shaw, 2014; Gwiadzinski, 2015) and urban policies (Hollands, 1995; Liempt, 2013), but there are few works that relate at the same time the perception of safety with night, mobility choices and gender. Insights from Brussels and travel decision making of women related to safety are provided by the work of Gillow (2015) and in the case of Recife a study conducted by Siqueira (2015) analyses how fear limits the experience of women in the public space of the city.

As well, in the Brazilian context, the studies are mainly focused on perception of fear and the built environment (Caldeira, 2003; Santos Jr. and Halley, 2018) but also on mobility choices and safety (Larrañaga et al., 2016; Silva and Silva, 2017), as an example, relating walkability with urban violence (Siqueira, 2015; Santos et. al, 2016). Still in Brazil, Tavares (2012) and Calió (1997) reflect on the difficulty of inclusion of the women on the processes of urban planning. But, in the same country, when analysing the topic urban night, the majority of research found is related to lighting or night-time tourism.

Acknowledging the factors that make women feel more vulnerable in public space can be extremely important to identify safety strategies that could effectively address fear of crime. As a result, the awareness of these personal perceptions may help policy-makers in adopting and implementing public safety strategies that could effectively reduce women’s fear of crime in public space, especially at night, when this particular feeling is increased. Moreover, this research has the purpose to empower women by giving them voice; as well encourage their presence in the public space, especially at night. By identifying the elements that limit female

presence at night it is possible to work on actions that can help women to feel more confident and demystify some ideas of supposed vulnerability that are incorporated in our society.

1.3. Methodological procedures

Based on the research question, the perception of safety and its role on the travel decision making during the night is the main issue to be investigated. In this way, with the purpose of gathering the data needed for the further analysis, the study is conducted in phases. The first part consists on the review of literature, in order to establish an understanding of the topic and to provide context for the research.

In that sense, the study involves a review of the published literature on the urban night (Bianchini, 1995; Williams, 2008; Liempt, Aalst, and Schwanen, 2014), fear of crime (Vanderveen, 2006; Dammert &Tobar, 2018), the relationship of the built environment to perceptions of safety and situational crime prevention (Jacobs, 1961; Newman, 1973; Wilson and Kelling, 1982), gendered fear of crime in public spaces (Valentine, 1989; Stanko, 1990; Pain, 2001; Knox & Pinch, 2013) and safety in transit spaces (Schulz and Gilbert, 1996; Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009; Yavuz and Welch, 2010). This specific choice of topics for the literature review has the purpose to support the analysis and provide a basis for conducting the other steps of the research.

The second phase of the study consists on explaining the empirical cases and presenting the target groups. An application of a questionnaire and more in deep interviews are conducted with women from Brussels and Recife. With the aim to obtain a greater number of possible responders, but also to obtain details that meet the subjectivity of the investigated object, a mixed methods research was chosen.

In order to identify the elements that can affect the perception of safety during the night in public spaces, the first questionnaire consists in a closed and open-ended questions structured based on the concepts previous seen in the literature review. In that sense, the participants are asked questions related to how do they feel at night and what influence their perception of safety and travel decision making.

The different results are considered and analysed according to the geographical location, observing how participants from both cities react differently (or not) to the elements and situations proposed in the questionnaire. The next phase after the questionnaire consists in the conduction of semi structured interviews, taken face-to-face. This part has the intent to gather more intimate and detailed information, after some level of trust is already established.

After collecting data, the final step is the analysis and comparison of the results. The answers are the main tool to identify the aspects that make women have fear, including spatial and social elements. The results are also useful to understand how the differences of contexts shape the perception of fear and safety during the night and how it affects the choices of mobility. Although it is not be the focus of the present research, the results can be also useful for the authorities that regulate the urban night in order to better address the needs of public security from the female perspective in both localities.

2. Contextualising the problem

This chapter consists in a review of the existing literature that will support the research. In order to contextualise the problem that the research question seeks to answer, this chapter is divided into five subtopics: 1. the urban night; 2. Fear of crime; 3. Crime and built environment; 4. Women and perception of safety; and 5. Transport and safety issues. Each section seeks to explore in general the most relevant studies on the subject in question. In this sense, these themes are explored and interconnected constructing a reasoning that will help to provide arguments to reinforce or not the results of the following analysis.

Beginning with the urban night, this subtopic explores the concepts of the night and brings some insights into the introduction of night-time economy and the need for new urban regulations. Immediately afterwards, the concept of fear of crime is introduced, starting from the assumption that it increases at night, explaining how it can limit the use of public spaces and affect the quality of life. Then, with the aim of mitigating fear of crime, the next section explores crime prevention strategies through environment design in a critical way. In the following subtopic, the notion of gender is introduced in order to address the women’s perception of safety, which is the focus of the present research. Finally, the last section deals with transportation and security and how this topic relates to female’s needs and the urban night.

2.1. The urban night

As Robert Williams (2008) has emphasized in his studies, ‘the night is much more than the absence of daylight, it is a moment when a variety of practices and emotions gain traction within a particular space-time that induce a special atmosphere, associated with particular activities, experiences and possibilities’. As well, it is a time that has always been seen as poetic but also threatening. However, as it is highlighted by Roberts and Eldridge (2009), these contrast narratives of fear and pleasure about the night are superficial, since there are different nuances to be considered. In their research, the authors defend that ‘the late-night city is a diverse and complex ‘time-space’, where competing interests and desires can rub up against one another, or seemingly exist side-by-side’(Roberts & Eldridge, 2009).

As the darkness comes it brings together the night spaces. But how is it possible to define night spaces? What is the difference between places and spaces? According to Williams (2008), night is a natural phenomenon, night spaces are not. Places are constituted and identified mainly by physical characteristics, while spaces include the introduction of social values, human relations with the physical environment and with themselves, where factors such as darkness can influence the mood and people’s behaviours. Night spaces are socially constructed and do not exist without ‘human practices and the attendant social relationships that seek to appropriate, even control, the darkness in its myriad human uses and meanings’ (Williams 2008).

Another aspect of the night discussed by Williams (2008) is the difference of social rhythms between day and night. According to him, the city after dark continues to be ‘approached and appropriated’ in contrasting ways to the city in the day-time. While daily cycles involve places that are part of our routines: home, work, and the paths between those places. The night rhythms are more unpredictable, having the darkness a decisive influence, promoting various opportunities for transgressions, since it provides opportunities to avoid being seen. As well, the darkness at night facilitates counter-hegemonic practices by marginalized groups (Williams 2008).

In recent decades, several studies about the urban night have been conducted, especially in the past few years (Liempt, Aalst, and Schwanen, 2014). Cities have become more proactive

in stimulating the local economy, by making particular inner city areas sites of consumption and pleasure during the night. The creation of a vibrant night-time economy (NTE) has been an important strategy of municipal authorities to improve a city’s attractiveness and liveability, especially after 6pm (Roberts and Eldridge, 2012).

According to Shaw (2014), the field of ‘night-time economy studies’ arose in the mid-1990s, with Hollands’ 1995 paper “Friday Night, Saturday Night”, being a reference for the beginning of this area of study. Since then, the urban night has been analysed from different perspectives and points of view. A study conducted by Liempt, Aalst and Schwanen (2014) identified four important focal points of research that have been developed in the night time context: the evolution of the night-time economy; the changing of the meanings and experiences of urban darkness; the intensification of regulation; and the dynamics in practices of going out.

Especially in the UK, the strategy of the ‘24-hour city’ was a direct response to the rapid growth in out-of-town activities impelled by suburbanisation (Heath, 1997). The main intention of this action was to attract visitors back into the city at night-time, based on experiences in continental European cities which have developed cultural policies to revitalise their urban nightlife (Bianchini, 1995). Seen from the point of view of the development of cultural life, the night-time calendar in some cities from the global north is often made fuller by public authority initiatives, such as ‘’Night of the Arts” in Helsinki, “Night of the museums” in Munich, “White Nights” in St Petersburg, Paris, Rome, Brussels, Montreal and Naples and the “European Night of Science” in Berlin (Gwiadzinski, 2015). These events are believed to stimulate the development of the evening economy, supposed to contribute to urban regeneration and local economic growth.

In that context, the stimulation of the night-time economy brings new demands for specific urban regulation and policies. The urban darkness has been negatively framed when it comes to perception of safety, where the feeling of vulnerability increases and can be attributed to both physical and social factors (Collectiu Punt 6, 2016). Debates about urban illumination (Edensor, 2013) and the increase of public street-lighting have been fundamental to new approaches towards the urban night with the intention to promote law and order (Liempt, Aalst and Schwanen, 2014). Also, bringing light to places of darkness where fear and crime

are presumed to be common is still considered a widely shared solution as lighting tends to reduce the fear that crime incites (Pain et al., cit. in Liempt, Aalst and Schwanen, 2014).

Roberts and Eldridge (2009) also highlight that when it comes to the night time there is the concern to endorse some measures of security in other to mitigate the fear of crime, very related to drinking, vandalism and disorder but as well with lighting and built environment. Over the past two decades, discourses of policing, disorder, alcohol and anti-social behaviour have come to represent an important position in the regulation of night spaces. In the context of the NTE, this has resulted in the introduction of new forms of surveillance and preventative safety measures, such as technologically advanced CCTV systems and identity scanners used at nightclubs (Liempt, Aalst and Schwanen, 2014). Nightlife areas with bars and clubs are often emotionally charged spaces offering many chances for the transgression of social norms that are taken for granted during the day. It is therefore not remarkable that certain forms of violent crime, criminal damage and antisocial behaviour are concentrated in and around nightlife areas (Liempt, Aalst and Schwanen, 2014).

Another issue caused by the intensity of night commercial activities is how it affects the quality of life of the residents living in its vicinity. A study develop by Ngesan and Karim (2012) in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur, brings results on how the night commercial activities such as pubs, bars, night clubs, night markets and restaurants had affected the quality of life of residents in the aspects of comfort, convenience and safety.

Despite the fact that students are a growing and dominant group in nightlife areas (Chatterton and Hollands, 2002) and mostly consume the night time for leisure purposes, the urban night is also composed of other facets and frequented by other users, such as the night workers. When it comes to night-time city planning, the focus is mainly on part of a small segment of life at night, reproducing a romantic view of the night-time public as consumers of entertainment (Col.lectiu Punt 6, 2016). This focus fails to recognise that night-time is also a time of work, affecting in a negative way the everyday lives of night workers, especially when it comes to issues related to fear of crime.

As seen, the stimulation of night-time economy practices have also called attention to issues related to safety and violence, especially related to the built environment, insufficient

lighting, the lack of policing and the presence of ‘undesired others’ (Brands, Schwanen and Aalst, 2013). As previous empirical studies have shown, the presence of certain environmental and social factors can be associated with greater fear of crime, as is going to be discussed next.

2.2. Fear of crime Although the fear of crime is not specific to the night time it is when it gets dark that it increases. The concept of fear of crime has been related to risk perception, worry, concern, fear of victimization and so on (Vanderveen, 2006). Also, it can be interpreted in diverse ways and analyzed in the light of different perspectives. Fear of crime can reflect an individual construct that is based on personality traits and emotions or it can be a product of historical events and social forces (Vanderveen, 2006).

As it is pointed by Baur (2007), the vulnerability hypothesis suggests that fear of crime is a product of an individual’s perception of vulnerability to victimisation. From the emotional point of view, fear of crime can be seen a product of each individual’s experiences, memories, and relations to space (Koskela, cit. in Yavuz and Welch, 2010), a response of dread or anxiety to crime or symbols that a person associates with danger and risk. In that sense, feeling unsafe, which is at the origin of this behaviour, is therefore denounced as a purely psychological process. The justification of this behaviour which is apparently 'irrational' or felt to be exaggerated is considered by some to be a personal character trait (Gilow, 2015).

From the societal perspective, fear of crime is defined by Pain (2001) as the variety of emotional and practical responses that individuals and communities use to mitigate risk of crime. The scholar frames fear of crime as a social problem, emphasizing the negative impacts of people’s fear of crime on their daily lives, leading to reduced quality of life (Pain, 2001). For Truman (2005), fear of crime is a social problem that can lead to activity restriction and increased security costs. It can be influenced by a multitude of social, demographic, and lifestyle variables. Moreover, fear of crime can be also an instrument of social control and a political symbol (Vanderveen, 2006).

In that context, the media has a big influence on shape people’s perception of crime, this last one turning to be very difficult to be measured, since fear of crime does not represent actual crime rates. The gap between victimization and fear and the different directions of their magnitudes are important paradoxes that have not been totally explained in the literature (Collins, 2016). It is a complex reality: levels of fear of crime can be higher in countries with lower levels of crime and vice versa (Dammert & Tobar, 2018). Media also plays a role in framing public space as dangerous by disproportionately reporting and publicizing violent crimes that occur in certain areas (Valentine, 2001). Especially from the perspective of women’s fear of crime, several movies, television news and newspapers bring the image of the feminine as fragile and how vulnerable they are in the public space, notably in relation to sexist crimes (Siqueira, 2015).

In fact, not just women’s but many people’s lives have been affected by fear of crime rather than crime itself (Bannister and Fyfe, 2001). Previous studies have identified various behavioural consequences of fear of crime, such as avoiding places that are perceived to be dangerous, not going out at night and not travelling alone in certain areas (Yavuz and Welch, 2010). In the Latin American context, a continent with high levels of violence and crime, it is difficult to imagine the urban life without fear of crime. It highly affects political agendas, being policies to address fear of crime one of the priorities (Dammert & Tobar, 2018). The fear of crime affects the quality of life of many citizens, who abandoned public spaces and trap themselves inside.

Urban research has shown that territorial fragmentation and segregation in Latin America are processes enhanced by the rhetoric of fear. Also, increasing abandoning of public spaces is a process that can be traced to high perceptions of fear (Dammert & Tobar, 2018). Using Recife (Brazil) as an example, the image of the dangerous city is a product of the individual imaginary and of the collective, but also of a concrete reality. For that reason, it is common that people avoid public spaces as much as possible, choosing to use private cars rather than public transport, or shopping in malls rather than do it on the street shops. Consequently, these

habits result in fewer ‘eyes on the street’3 (Jacobs, 1961), reinforcing the perception of fear of crime in public spaces.

In order to identify safety strategies that could effectively address fear of crime, it is first necessary to pay more attention to the factors that make individuals feel more vulnerable to crime in public space. Recognition of these differences may help policy-makers in adopting and implementing public safety strategies that could effectively reduce both men’s and women’s fear of crime in public space (Yavuz and Welch, 2010). One of the strategies used by many urban planners and authorities is the Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED), as seen next.

2.3. Crime and built environment As previous research highlight, design features not only contribute to actual crime, but also to the public’s perception of safety (Schulz and Gilbert, 1996). Empirical studies have also shown that the presence of certain environmental factors in a public location is, in general, associated with greater fear. These include darkness, desolation, lack of opportunities for informal surveillance (by the general public or the residents of surrounding establishments), lack of maintenance, and poor environmental quality (Valentine, 1990). People tend to be mostly fearful in places where they do not have a clear line of sight of their surroundings; where there are many corners or other objects behind which someone can hide; and where they may feel trapped with no possibilities of escape (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009).

In that context, effective design can reduce crime and fear by creating defensible spaces that establishes the feeling of ownership, and offer opportunities for natural surveillance (Loukaitou-Sideris, 1999). The concept of natural surveillance is strongly emphasized in the Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) literature as one of the key elements in reducing both crime and the fear of crime. One of the most important

3 In her 1961 book “The Death and Life of Great American Cities” Jacobs develops the “Eyes on the Street” theory. Her theory advocates the use of high-density mixed-use communities, which are areas with residential and commercial uses, to stimulate street traffic. Jacobs argues that increased street traffic, day and night, not only help communities flourish socially and economically, but also acts as self policing which deters criminal and anti-social behavior.

contributors to the field of CPTED has been Oscar Newman (1972), who developed four main principles to reduce crime through conscious design.

In their research, Reynald and Elffers (2009) analyze Newman’s theory and how it has been developed since its inception. They also criticize aspects of the theory that need to be adapt in order to understand more factors that contribute for the creation of defensible places. Newman’s defensible space concept refers to the systematic way in which the physical design of urban residential environments can be manipulated in order to create spaces or places that are less vulnerable to crime by providing residents with more opportunities to control their space, eliminating physical characteristics that attract offenders (Reynald and Elffers, 2009). According to Newman (1972), the three environmental elements that contribute to a more secure environment are territorial definition (asserting ownership), natural surveillance (‘eyes on the street’) and image/milieu (well maintenance of the space) - all of which rely heavily on environmental design in order to function effectively as crime prevention tools.

Until the current days many of Newman’s concepts are still applied. Several examples can be observed in Brussels, especially in the new residential buildings around the canal area, some of them securitized. In these new buildings we can identify a pattern of natural surveillance and territorial definition, strongly emphasized in the Crime Prevention through Environmental Design literature as key elements in reducing both crime and the fear of crime (Newman, 1972). However, although the defensible space theory was empirically tested reaching some positive results in lowering the incidence of crime, there were still critics concerning it. The main critic consists on the neglect of basic social, psychological and behavioral processes as important mechanisms in the creation of defensible space (Reynald and Elffers, 2009). The theory was very criticized for having simplistic behavioral assumptions, since even when the space is designed to be architecturally safe it can still be made unsafe as a result of an unstable social climate.

Although Newman’s theory also explores the social factors that influence the defensive spaces, such as the engagement of the residents, he was questioned for not giving much light on the social and psychological processes that shape territorial functioning (Reynald and Elffers, 2009). He also defended that the more accessible a space is, the greater the opportunity for outsiders to utilize the area; the more outsiders who use the space, bigger

the chance for victimization, affecting negatively the natural surveillance provided by residents (Newman, 1972). On the other hand, there are some theorists that disagree with that assumption. For instance, street accessibility can be a tool to reinforce natural surveillance, as the mere presence of strangers acts as a natural ‘police’ mechanism (Jacobs, 1961).

While Newman’s defensible space concepts treat outsiders as potential offenders, Jacobs (1961) conceived strangers as potential guardians. For Jacobs, the natural surveillance is provided not only internally by residents but also externally by all users of space. For this reason, she argued against the segregation of spaces into mono functional areas. Instead, she called for diverse land usage, with a mix of residential, commercial, entertainment and institutional uses as a means of attracting a continuous flow of people at different times of the day (Reynald and Elffers, 2009). She defends that the constant flow of ‘strangers’ provides consistent surveillance of a space:

“Once a street is well equipped to handle strangers, once it has both a good, effective demarcation between private and public spaces and has a basic supply of activity and eyes, the more strangers the merrier. Strangers become an enormous asset on the street on which I live, and the spurs off it, particularly at night when safety assets are most needed”. Jacobs, J. (1961).

Street safety is promoted by sidewalks clearly marking a public/private separation, and by spontaneous protection with the eyes of both pedestrians and those watching the continual flow of pedestrians from buildings. That way, sidewalks contribute to building trust among neighbors over time. Moreover, storekeepers enhance the social structure of sidewalk life gaining the function of ‘guardians’ if present in sufficient numbers.

When it comes to the night, Jacobs (1961) underlined that people felt frightened when they were alone in dark places, particularly when they could not be observed by those they trusted and when they felt they could easily be trapped by those they did not trust (Schulz and Gilbert, 1996). In that sense, ‘better lighting, emergency phone systems, more and better directional signs, and the closing off of dead-end passages in which riders could become lost, or trapped by assailants, are today built-in features of new systems and should receive high

priority when old systems undertake renovations’ (Schulz and Gilbert, 1996). Jacobs’ descriptions of dark city streets and the fear they engender are exactly what subway riders report feeling on deserted station platforms, in deserted trains, and in large stations overrun with panhandlers, drunks, and homeless people (Schulz and Gilbert, 1996). Consequently, when characteristics promote visibility, such as lighted and open spaces, people are less likely to feel fearful of crime and more likely to use public areas after dark (Loewen et al., cit. in Yavuz and Welch, 2010).

In summary, as previously shown, Jane Jacobs (1961), Oscar Newman (1972) and their followers provided a rich discussion on Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) and the increased sense of security, consequently reducing fear of crime. In general, besides the environmental characteristics of space, these authors relate the sensation of insecurity to the manner of use of the public space: presence of surveillance (formal or informal4), activities, maintenance and flow of people in space. However, it is limited when the women’s viewpoint is considered. According to Siqueira (2015), countries such as Canada and Sweden have already adopt CPTED strategies especially focused on the female public, addressing to women’s needs in reducing fear of crime. In Brazil, there are few initiatives aimed at empowering women, enabling them to identify spatial characteristics that make places dangerous through security audits and focus group techniques in order to dialogue with the public authorities in the search for physical interventions (Siqueira, 2015).

However, although CPTED strategies have shown positive results to mitigate crime and fear of crime, as seen previously it is also important to raise the question: would only environmental characteristics have sufficient elements to respond to women's fear in the public space?

2.4. Women and perception of safety

When speaking of women, no reference is made to the biological being, but to the understanding of society about what it is to be feminine: gender. In other words, it is considered here not biological gender, but rather gender as a social identity. For Calió (1997)

4 It is understood by formal the surveillance by the police or private security professionals. The informal or natural surveillance, as Jane Jacobs (1961) called it, refers to the vigilance of people in a given space.

the genre ‘concerns the socially constructed dimension of the feminine and the masculine. That is, the set of rules according to which societies have transformed the difference of biological conditions into true social norms’.

In a society where the urban spaces tend to be dominated by masculine heterosexual norms it is widely acknowledged that this system of power relations has universally worked to the advantage of men. Women are surrounded by patriarchy heterosexual values and male dominant environments (Knox & Pinch, 2013). In that context, behavioural expectations related to gender are socially constructed, many times expressed by appearance and dress code. While women are pressured to have the perfect body and is represented by western societies in publicity, movies and social media in a sexualized way, it is a paradox that they are expected to act in a less feminine or to have a more masculinised form of identity in order to be respected or avoid undesirable men’s approach. Although women tend to feel more fearful, it is also important to consider that the perception of safety is not only related to gender but other kinds of diversity: class, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, physical capacity and so on (Knox & Pinch, 2013).

As results from previous empirical research confirm, women tend to have a greater fear of crime than men (Pain, 2001; Yavuz and Welch, 2010). Gill Valentine (1989) and Rachel Pain (2000) relate fear to some social and cultural issues. In her work on ‘The geography of women's fear’, Valentine (1989) proposes an association between the fear of women in public space and the feeling of physical vulnerability to men, especially in relation to sexist violence. For the author, this association of male violence in certain environmental contexts is a product of the lived experience and the secondary information about the environmental characteristics of a certain place or locality. For Pain (2000), social relations that operate in particular spaces and places are more linked to the fear of crime than the particular physical character of the environment.

Valentine (1989) argues that environmental characteristics do not seem to be one of the main reasons for women's fear in public space, rather, cultural aspects, for example, of how fear reproduces traditional notions about the role of women and places considered suitable for them in cities. According to the author, since they are young, women are presented these limits through "norms" that build and strengthen these limits. Transmitted by parents and

established by society, the safe space for women is the private space, the home, different from the boys who are presented in their early ages to the public world.

This is one of the reasons that many women avoid using the public space. As studies have shown, women’s fear of public space limits their freedom and enjoyment of public life and restricts their ability to benefit from opportunities and convenience (Loukaitou-Sideris, 2005). The idea of physical vulnerability, the intimidating presence that some men adopt, and sexist crime are important points that influence women's use of public space. In that sense, ‘feeling unsafe results also from the way women perceive the presence of men, particularly in the context of anonymity specific to an urban environment, as well as the social relationship between them’ (Gilow, 2015). Pain (2000) further deepens the question by stating that fear is not the same for all women. Issues such as age, income and ethnicity differentiate the intensity of fear and consequently the way of using women's public space (Siqueira, 2015).

As the literature highlights, women’s perception of fear is shaped by the social and cultural elements transmitted to them, in this case, reinforcing the idea that they are in constant danger or are potential victims of sexual assault (Knox & Pinch, 2013). Research has indicated that women’s susceptibility to sexual assault and frequent experiences of various forms of harassment make them feel more vulnerable and thus perceive risk more often than men and be more sensitive to perceived risk in their environments (Pain, cit. in Yavuz and Welch, 2010). In her work about the feeling of safety in the streets of Lima, Peru, Ivonne Macassi (2005) asserts that any type of violence suffered by a woman affects every one of them as they are exposed to this type of aggression belonging to the same gender. In this context, the situation of tension grows and fear affects even those who have not suffered violence. As a result, this information produces stigmatized spaces in the city, commonly parks, parking lots, open areas and city centres (Siqueira, 2015).

Although women tend to experience higher levels of fear of crime than men, previous research have shown that perceived risk of crime is not directly related to actual risk of victimization (Pain, 2001). This has come to be known as the gender paradox of fear, because while women, on average, report experiencing more fear of crime than men, the actual victimization rates for men have often been found to be higher than those for women (Pain, 2001). Numerous explanations have been put forward by scholars to explain the gender

paradox of fear. The physical vulnerability hypothesis, supported by some research findings, suggests that the greater fear of crime in women results from their perceived vulnerability, which could be a result of frequent experiences of various forms of harassment as well as the socially constructed idea that women are less able to defend themselves from attack than men (Pain, 2001).

While the fear of rape and serious violence from men may lie in the back of many women’s minds, feminists also argue that the fear is caused by an existing “continuity” of violence against women, which includes intimidation, groping, sexual comments and harassment, threats, and other nuisance crimes with sexual undertones, which some women may encounter in public settings, including buses and trains (Stanko 1990). Consequently, these are aspects that affect not only how women perceive the public spaces but also influence their choices of travelling in the city, especially at night.

2.5. Transport and safety issues As previously seen, women’s fear of crime and public space has been the focus of considerable research. On the other hand, transit environments have received less attention. When it comes to travel decision making, one important point to consider is that, as previous researches pointed, it is also at night that the choices of mobility are more influenced by the perception of fear and concerns about personal safety (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009). The built environment can be also a factor of decision in that case. For instance, specific routes where nobody walks, bus stops, railway platforms and mobility infrastructures in general considered as ‘unsafe’ are avoided or just used during daytime. Walking to public transportation, the experience inside the modes and choices such as bicycling are assumed to be more unsafe at night, especially by women (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009). In that case, as empirical studies have shown, they often prefer to drive or take taxis rather than walk or use public transit because of fear of being harassed or victimized (Stanko, 1990).

According to research on this topic, fear of crime is among the most important reasons why people choose not to use public transit (Yavuz and Welch, 2010). A study conducted by in Los Angeles found that the majority of car owners who responded to a survey would use public

buses if they perceived them as clean and safe (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009). Desolation and general lack of people and activity in a transportation setting contribute to anxiety and the fear that no one will be there to help if a crime occurs. The absence of visible staff and other passengers on station platforms and train wagons also contributes to concerns about safety. (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009)

Another factor that affects the perceived safety of passengers is the lack of attention to the security of public areas of the transportation system. For that reason, passengers are typically more fearful during their journeys to and from the stop or station and during their wait for the transport than when they are on the transit vehicle (Loukaitou-Sideris, 1999). A possible explanation for the lack of investment in security by transit agencies is the greater difficulty and cost of securing open areas, associated with the fact that these responsibilities also belong to the city’s larger public realm (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009).

Yavuz and Welch (2010) in their paper ‘Addressing fear of crime in public space: Gender differences in reaction to safety measures in train transit’ identify factors affecting positively and negatively the perceived train safety: (1) Appearance of trains and train stations: According to the broken windows theory5, perceptions of insecurity are determined by the ‘messages’ people get from the signs of neighbourhood disorder; (2) Reliable service: basically includes three service attributes—frequent service, on-time service and knowing what time the next train or bus arrives; (3) Security technology: Installation of surveillance equipment is a popular mechanism for deterring crime and reducing fear of crime among transit passengers, because it is believed that crimes will not be committed where they may be easily observed; (4) Personal experiences: For example, those who have been a victim of crime have exposed a higher level of fear towards crime; (5) Age, disability, ethnicity and income: It is typically believed that older men and women feel less safe and therefore have a greater fear of crime than younger people; (6) Ridership frequency, years of ridership and time of travel: Surveys show that individuals feel most vulnerable travelling in environments and on modes of transport that are unfamiliar to them.

5 The broken windows theory is a criminological theory that visible signs of crime, anti-social behavior, and civil disorder create an urban environment that encourages further crime and disorder, including serious crimes (Wilson and Kelling, 1982).

As seen, these factors are a combination of environmental and social aspects. Some of these factors are also highly connected to how people perceive their surroundings, specially the public space. When the same context is considered at night the perceptions of fear tend to vary. Especially during the night, people, mainly women, avoid specific transit routes or bus stops, use them only during daytime, or do not use transit at all if they believe that they may be harassed or victimized when on the bus or train or at the station or stop (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009). Research shows that factors such as darkness, poor lighting and isolation contribute more to women’s fear of crime in their communities, as well as on public transit (Schulz and Gilbert, 1996).

When it comes to differences of perception by gender, equality between men and women in terms of travelling in the city is far from being a reality. One aspect of this imbalance is linked to feeling unsafe, which affects mainly women in particular (Gillow, 2015). In that sense, gender emerges as the most significant factor related to anxiety and fear about victimization in transit environments (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009).

A report developed by Col.lectiu Punt 6 in 2016 called ‘Nocturnas, the everyday life of women nightshift workers in the Barcelona metropolitan area’ highlights how women’s mobility can be paralyzed at night because of fear of violence. Valentine (1990) emphasizes two general categories of spaces as particularly frightening to women: (1) enclosed spaces with limited exit opportunities, such as multi-storey parking structures, underground passages, and subway stations, and (2) anonymous and deserted open spaces such as desolate transit stops.

In order to avoid feeling unsafe, many women adopt strategies when travelling in the cities. One of the examples is choosing specific routes, modes, and transit environments over others to avoid particular transit environments, bus stops and railway platforms, or activities (e.g., walking and bicycling) that are deemed as more unsafe for women. Factors such as the layout of parking areas and the nature of the on-foot sections of the journey between mode of transport and place of destination ultimately drive women to change their routes and look for alternatives to arrive somewhere ( Col.lectiu Punt 6, 2016).

According to Yavuz and Welch (2010) there is a gap in the literature on gender differences related fear of crime on transit when it comes to adequately examine which safety measures

and service attributes could affect men’s and women’s safety concerns differently. Findings of their study indicate that the presence of video cameras is significant for both male and female perceived train safety, but it tends to have a lower positive effect on female passengers (Yavuz and Welch, 2010). That can be explained by the fact that women feel more vulnerable to victimisation when nobody is around and because they tend to be more sceptical that somebody is watching the video camera surveillance (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009).

When it comes to segregated transport schemes, which establish women’s-only services or women’s-only cars on commuter trains and subways, there is still not a consensual opinion. As Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink (2009) highlights women seem to have mixed reactions about it. While in Brazil female transit riders seemed to appreciate them, women in England were concerned that such segregated transport facilities would draw attention to them as targets (Lynch and Atkins cit. in Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009). Despite this discussion one concern is certain: in order to address women specific needs related to the perception of safety it is essential that the transit agencies offer special safety or security programs for them.

3. The cities and the people

This chapter has the aim to present the empirical cases and target groups analysed in this research. Initially, in order to provide context for the further analysis, a brief presentation of Recife and Brussels is given, introducing topics relevant for the purpose of this study. In a second moment, the target groups are presented and aligned with more information about the methodological procedures. This chapter is divided in four subtopics: 1. Why comparing Recife and Brussels; 2. Recife; 3. Brussels and 4. Target groups.

3.1. Why comparing Recife and Brussels

Initially, the specific choice of cities came from a personal interest and specific connections (Brussels, the city I current live in and Recife, my hometown). In that sense, the research topic emerged from my own contestation as a woman about notions and perceptions of safety at night, in the two cities. Moreover, thinking about feasibility and access to information, the personal links with the two cities facilitates the research process.

At a first glance, Recife and Brussels seem to have little in common. The majority of urban research, in fact, compares very similar cities, such as US and European cities. At a pragmatic level, ‘comparisons rely on generating some analytical proximity between two (or more) places to justify thinking about them together’ (Robinson, 2014). However, similar processes shaping urban contexts tend to affect many cities around the world – economic crisis, changes in governance styles, architecture and urban design, for instance.

In that scenario, the present research comes to fill a gap in the urban night studies field, especially when it comes to compare cities from Europe and Latin America. By comparing contexts of Recife and Brussels, two cities with the status of capital city, new insights can be offer, differing from previous studies that are mainly based on European and North American experiences.

Additionally, this comparative approach is also interesting to visualise how the difference of contexts can influence on the studied subject (perception of safety and travel decision making at night), and to what extent it shapes women’s feelings at night. By studying two cases, deeper reflexions are created and new concepts can be strengthened through exploring more than one city, leading to a rich and interesting comparison.

When it comes to compare the night in two different cities it is also important to remark that the concept of night changes according to city, influenced by geographic location and climatic differences. In Recife, during all year, the duration of the night (in this study considered as when it is dark), tend to be the same, starting around 6 pm until 5am; in Brussels the duration of the night changes with the seasons, also gaining different meanings when compared to summer and winter, for example.

Finally, in order to make the visualisation of data easier, two colours were chosen to represent each city. As seen in the map bellow (Figure 1), Recife is represented by purple and Brussels by blue.

Figure 6 Recife (in purple) and Brussels (in blue), maps in the same scale. Source: author’s elaboration

3.2. Recife

Figure 7 Locating Recife on the map. Source: author’s elaboration with Google maps images and Snazzy maps.

Recife is a Brazilian city, capital of the state of Pernambuco, located in the northeast of the country (Figure 2). The city is the state's business and political centre, occupying a prominent position in the regional context. In addition, the municipality is considered the first

gastronomic centre of the northeast, housing also an important medical centre and the largest technological park of the country. a. Demographic data

According to the 2010 Population Census, conducted by the IBGE Foundation - Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, the resident population of Recife was 1.537.704 inhabitants and the estimated population for 2018 was 1.637.834. The area of the territorial unit is equivalent to 217.01 km² and the demographic density of 7.082,32 inhab./km². Moreover, the city is the ninth most populous in the country and its metropolitan region is the seventh in Brazil in population, being the third most densely populated metropolitan area in the country, behind only São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro (IBGE, 2019).

Regarding the distribution of the population by gender, women represent the highest percentage with 53.84%, while men correspond to 46.16%; the age group with the highest percentage was 25 to 29 years old with 9.5% of the total population. (Atlas do Desenvolvimento Humano no Brasil, 2019). According to the same census, 764.884 inhabitants were Multiracial (mulatto) (49.74%), 628.735 whites (40.89%), 125.580 black (8.17%), 15.300 Asian origin (0.99%) and 3.187 indigenous (0.21%). Additionally, taking into account the nationality of the population, 1.534.231 were native Brazilians (99.77%), 2.415 foreigners (0.16%) and 1.057 naturalised Brazilians (0.07%).

When it comes to the Municipal Human Development Index (MHDI), calculated considering education, longevity and income indexes, Recife ranks 210th among the 5.565 Brazilian municipalities, with a value of 0.772, considered high6. Also, Recife homes the richest urban agglomeration in the North-Northeast, being the eighth richest in Brazil. As well, the city has the fourteenth largest GDP in the country and the largest GDP per capita (R$ 30.477,73) among the north eastern capitals. However, in relation to social inequalities, according to the 2010 census, 20% of the poorest population held 1.91% of all municipalities’ wealth, while the richest 10% held 56.83% of the total (Atlas do Desenvolvimento Humano no Brasil, 2019).

6 The Municipal Human Development Index (MHDI) ranges from 0 to 1, the closer to 1, the greater the human development.

b. Historical background

Recife is the capital of the state of Pernambuco, and its origin dates from the 16th century, founded in 1537. During the early Portuguese colonization of Brazil, it was the main harbour of the Captaincy of Pernambuco, known for its large scale production of sugar cane. Due to its port characteristic, initially when Recife was still a village, the development of the population was by sailors and fishermen. In the nineteenth century, industrialization gave the initial traces for the current urbanised Recife (IBGE, 2019).

More recently, the dynamic location of commercial, service and industrial activities has undergone profound changes over time. Until the 1970s, the centre was home to major economic and institutional activities. However, with the emergence of a dynamic real estate market directed to the middle classes, some neighbourhoods in the South zone and the North zone have become the focus, which have encouraged the intense high rise constructive densification of these areas. This process meant the migration of the “noble” tertiary sector, which was before located in the central area, to these neighbourhoods. As a result, the central area is now occupied by commercial and tertiary activities directed to the popular segments. c. Climate

Located between Latitude 8º04’03”S and Longitude 34º55'00” W, Recife has a hot and humid tropical climate, characterised by two distinct periods: the first is a dry season, which lasts from September to February (spring-summer) and the second is the rainy season that runs from March to August (autumn-winter). The average annual temperature is 25.5 ° C, with low thermal ranges of 2.8 ° C and abundant rainfall during the year (INMET, 2009).

According to the Köppen and Geiger classification, the climate of Recife belongs to the Am group, typical of tropical regions where the rainfall regime, and the consequent alternation between dry and rainy seasons, is governed by the monsoon. During the year, the average sunshine time is of 2 550 hours and the relative humidity is 80% (INMET, 2009).

d. Transport services

Currently, Recife has a fleet of approximately 2.800 public buses that transport 2 million people daily (Grande Recife, 2019). In addition, the city also has a subway system that operates on 3 railway lines, with a total length of 71 km, covering 4 municipalities, Recife, Jaboatão dos Guararapes, Camaragibe and Cabo de Santo Agostinho, with 37 stations, carrying about 400 thousand passengers / day (CBTU, 2019). As well, the city recently received a new computerised system at its Avenida Caxangá bus terminal. The experimental system consists of the installation of trackers on buses, which through permanent communication with the terminal allows passengers to know the exact time of arrival of vehicles, a system previously not available in the city.

Moreover, Recife has been experiencing a sharp increase in the number of cars in circulation, which has been causing problems related to parking and traffic jams for its inhabitants. According to the March 2015 Detran-PE report, Recife had a fleet of 1.246.107 vehicles. Of these, 43% were registered in other cities of the Recife Metropolitan Region (DETRAN, 2015).

e. Crime

In Recife, one of the most worrying problems at the present time is urban violence. Other factors, such as social exclusion, unemployment and impunity, also contribute to the growth of violence. Using the statistics of violent crime in Pernambuco from 2016, the table below shows some figures from the years 2015 and 2016 (Governo do Estado de Pernambuco, 2016). As it can be seen, there was an overall increase in the number of crimes, with a greater number of offences in almost all categories.

The table also shows that mugging is the crime with more occurrences (29.383 in 2016), followed by domestic violence against women. However, it is also important to take in count that these are only the reported crimes and offences, not the real numbers, since many people do not report the occurrences.

Number of crimes and offences reported in Recife 2015 2016 Assassination / Murder 551 642 Rape 409 428 Domestic violence against women 7.544 8.372 Mugging 22.825 29.383 Car theft 2.713 3.456 Burglary in a company or business 1.881 2.497 Burglary in dwelling 333 425 Theft in a bus 386 535 Motorcycle theft 352 32 Table 3 Number of crimes and offences reported in Recife in 2015 and 2016. Source: author’s elaboration with information provided by Governo do Estado de Pernambuco, 2016.

3.3. Brussels

Brussels is the capital city of Belgium. The Brussels Capital Region, with Flanders and Wallonia, constitutes one of the three Regions of Belgium (Figure 3). In addition, Brussels is the headquarters of the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato), making it the polyglot home of an army of international diplomats and civil servants (BBC, 2018). For the present research, Brussels is considered here on the sphere of the Brussels Capital Region.

Figure 8 Locating Brussels on the map. Source: author’s elaboration with Google maps images and Snazzy maps. a. Demographic data

The Brussels-Capital Region is constituted by 19 municipalities and has a surface area of 162 km² and demographic density of 7.384 inhab./km². In 1st January 2018, the official population of the Brussels-Capital Region totalled 1.119.726 inhabitants, gathering 10.5% of the Belgian population. Related to age, Brussels is the youngest in the country with an average age of

37.5 years old recorded in 2018 (IBSA, 2019). When it comes to gender, 586.625 (48.9%) were men and 612.101 (51.1%) were women in 2018.

Regarding inhabitants’ nationality, the demographic development of Brussels has always been strongly dominated by migration over the past one and half centuries continuing until today (Deboosere et al. 2009). According to BISA, Brussels had officially 182 different nationalities in 2018. Among the higher numbers of foreigners, 15.2% were French, 9.5% Romanian, 8.7% Moroccan and 7.9% Italian. Economically speaking, in 2016 the GDP per capita was €63.790; however, 33% of the population was under poverty risk (IBSA, 2019). b. Historical background

Brussels grew from a small rural settlement on the river Senne to become an important city- region in Europe. Since the end of the Second World War, it has been a major centre for international politics and the home of several international organisations (BBC, 2018). The Brussels-Capital Region was officially formed on 18 June 1989, after a constitutional reform in 1988. It is one of the three federal regions of Belgium, along with Flanders and Wallonia, with two official languages, French and Dutch (be. Brussels, 2019).

In the 19th century, Brussels was marked by an intensive industrialisation. A working class population installed in neighbourhoods located in the lowest parts of the city, in the centre and around the canal, while the higher classes installed in the South-East of the territory. The underlying structure of this spatial segregation according to socio-economic status remains until present days. However, ‘the arrival of new inhabitants, large construction sites within a number of districts, speculation and increasing property prices are slowly changing the composition of the population within some districts’ (Deboosere et al. 2009). c. Climate

Located between Latitude 50°51'1.62"N and Longitude 4°20'55.61"E, Brussels has a temperate climate, classified as Cfb (oceanic climate) according to the Köppen-Geiger climate classification. The proximity to coastal areas influences the area's climate by sending marine air masses from the Atlantic Ocean. Moreover, Brussels has a temperate climate with four seasons spanning the whole year, with averages temperatures varying from 1°C in winter and 23°C in summer (Brussels.info, 2019).

Brussels-Capital has a significant amount of rainfall during the year. On average, there are approximately 200 days of rain per year in the Brussels-Capital Region, one of the highest totals for any European capital. Snowfall is infrequent, averaging 24 days per year. The city also often experiences violent thunderstorms in summer months (IRM, 2019). d. Transport services

The Brussels Intercommunal Transport Company (Société des Transports Intercommunaux de Bruxelles or STIB), is the local public transport operator in Brussels. The company is responsible for the Brussels metro, Brussels trams and Brussels buses, linking with the De Lijn network in Flanders and the TEC network in Wallonia. Founded in 1954, STIB operates 82 lines, including bus, trams and metros. It covers the 19 communes of the Brussels Capital Region and some surface routes extend to the near suburbs in the other regions. In 2018, 417.6 million trips were made, a 4% increase from the previous year, representing an additional of 16.6 million journeys (STIB, 2019). e. Crime

According to statistics provided by BISA, the total number of reported offenses varied from 150.606 in 2015 to 145.493 in 2017, showing a general decrease of crime in the last years. Overall, crime has decreased by almost 20% in Brussels in ten years, according to the first report of Brussels Prevention and Security (BPS). The population in the Region has, at the same time, increased by 15.5% (Le Soir, 2018).

As seen on the table (table 2), some offenses are more common in urban environments. In 2017, there were a significant number of thefts in or on vehicles (13.130), violent thefts (6.232) and pick pocketing (10.575), the last being the most common offense. It should be also noted that bicycle thefts (3.493) are three times more numerous today than ten years ago in the capital. The facts of drug possession or rowdiness are also more common today or at least more often reported to the police (Le Soir, 2018).

For all offenses, the five most problematic districts are located in the centre: Grand Place, Cureghem, Porte de Hal, Matonge and Brabant. According to the Police officer Laurent Lechat from Brussels police station, the most typical crimes and transgressions occurring at night in

the city are sexual assaults, rapes, fights with injuries and drugs. Since they have limited resources at night and the conflicts are more numerous during this shift, their approach is more preventive than proactive.

Number of crimes and offences reported in Brussels Capital Region in 2017 Assassination / Murder 27 Rape 437 Indecent assault 414 Armed theft 802 Violent theft without arm 6.232 Mugging 3.037 Pick pocketing 10.575 Car theft 1.616 Motorcycle theft 365 Bicycle theft 3.493 Fraud 2.820 Burglary in a company or business 2.555 Burglary in dwelling 7.331 Theft in or on a vehicle 13.130 Table 4 Number of crimes and offences reported in Brussels Capital Region in 2017. Source: author’s elaboration with information from BISA Brussels, 2017

3.4. Target groups

As previously presented, this research is focused on women. That is, not the biological female gender, but women as a social identity. However, what women specifically? Since this study is taking place in Recife and Brussels, women from both cities belong to the target group. As well, as the purpose of the work is focusing on the night, it is compelling to centre the research on women that are experiencing the night in different circumstances and contexts. In order to have a clearer image of the participant’s profile, the information collected in the questionnaires and interviews is detailed next.

3.4.1. Questionnaire

The questionnaire constitutes the first part of the mixed methods chosen for this work. For the purpose of data collecting, participants were presented 16 questions (closed and open- ended) concerning their feelings at night, factors that influence their perception of safety and

travel decision making (appendix 7.1). Additionally, they were also invited to answer some questions to provide their profile information. In total, 397 women responded to the questionnaire, 210 in Recife and 187 in Brussels.

With the aim to obtain a greater number of possible responders, and to overcome the physical distance limitation from Recife, all the questionnaires were distributed online. In this sense, social media, such as WhatsApp and Facebook were valuable tools to propagate the research. In Recife, it was easier to obtain more responses due to a larger network of contacts who shared the survey. In Brussels, the same technique was adopted, but in addition, the questionnaire was also shared in some Facebook groups: Urbanistas Brussels (62 members); International Students @ VUB (6.371 members); Young Feminist Brussels (121 members) and Master Urban Studies Brussels (114 members)7.

Related to languages used, three versions of questionnaires were created and distributed, Portuguese for Recife and English and French for Brussels. For the purpose of this research, all the material collected was translated to English by the author. According to the gathered data, it is possible to identify the participant’s profile focus of this research. An overview of this information is presented next.

Age

Recife Brussels

43,50%

29% 27,10% 25,20%

12,90% 13,80% 9% 10,50% 7,10% 7,10% 5,90% 5,30% 0,50% 2,60%

under 18 19 to 25 26 to 30 31 to 35 36 to 40 41 to 50 above 50

Graph 1 Age range of participants from Recife and Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration

7 Number of members collected on 7 August 2019.

When it comes to age, the majority of women from both cities are between 19 and 30 years old. As seen in the graph (Graph 1), in Brussels, 72.5% of the participants belong to this group; while in Recife this number corresponds to 52.3%. For the purpose of this research these figures are favourable, since that is the age range that according to previous literature is frequent user of the night time.

Nationalities: Brussels 45% Belgian 19% 11% French

6% Spanish 45% 4% Italian 15%

15% from 15 non EU countries 4% 19% from 15 other EU 6% countries 11%

Graph 2 Nationalities of participants from Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration Concerning nationalities, participants from Brussels belong to 34 different countries. These figures are not surprising, since according to the Brussels Institute for Statistics and Analysis (BISA) there are 182 nationalities represented among the inhabitants of Brussels (BISA, 2016). According to the graph (Graph 2), 45% of women participants have Belgian nationality, followed by French (11%), Spanish (6%) and Italian (4%). Other nationalities were also present, but with less number of people. Within the 15% of women that belong to 15 non EU countries, nationalities belonging to North and Latin America, Asia and Africa are present.

Differently from Brussels, in Recife all the participants have the same nationality: Brazilian. However, it is possible to have an overview of ethnical diversity. As seen in the graph (Graph 3), the majority of women participants from Recife are white (63%), which does not represent the actual proportion when compared to the country as a whole: Brazil has only 47.5% classified as white (IBGE, 2010).

Ethnicity: Recife

2% 7% 1% 63% white

27% multiracial (mullato) 27% 7% black

2% Asian origin 63% 1% Indigenous origin

Graph 3 Ethnicity of participants from Recife. Source: author’s elaboration

Related to education, the majority of women from both cities have a well educated background. As it can be seen in the graph (Graph 4), 63.4% of the responders in Brussels have a Master’s degree (concluded or in progress), while in Recife this number dropped to 33.3%. On the other hand, in Recife most of the women consulted said having a Bachelor’s degree (concluded or in progress), against 27.4% in Brussels.

Education

Recife Brussels

63,40% 53,80%

33,30% 27,40%

11,90% 5,30% 4,30% 1%

Master’s degree Bachelor’s degree High school Other graduate

Graph 4 Education of participants from Recife and Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration

Civil status

Recife Brussels

76,30%

61,90%

17,10% 6,40% 8,10% 9,60% 6,20% 6,70% 1% 4,90%

Single, no Married, with Married, no Single, with Other children children children children

Graph 5 Civil statuses of participants from Recife and Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration When it comes to civil status, again the women’s profile from both cities is quite similar. As observed in the graph, (Graph 5) in Recife, 61.9% of the women consulted are single with no children, while in Brussels this number corresponds to 76.3%, constituting the majority of the participants. Related to employment status, in Brussels 54.7% are workers and 44.6% are students. In Recife this data was not collected.

3.4.2. Individual semi structured interviews

Continuing the application of the mixed methods chosen for the present research, the next phase consisted in the conduction of the interviews. The aim of this step was to obtain more in deep information in order to complement the data already collected in the online questionnaires. Due to the subjectivity of the investigated object, it was also essential to include a more qualitative approach to the research, adding a moment for individual semi- structured interviews, which were taken face-to-face.

Since the research investigates women from two different cities, it was a challenge to interview many women in a short space of time in the case of Recife. All the interviews performed there were taken in a period of one month time, December 2018. In different circumstances, in the case of Brussels, the interviews were conducted between April and June 2019. In total, eighteen women were interviewed, ten from Recife and eight from Brussels.

In this context, the selection of participants was carried out to cover a variety of profiles, while maintaining a coherent group to bring a possible similarity between women’s stories. Despite coming from different countries and cultures, all the interviewed women belong to a ‘middle class with good access to education’. When it comes to age, all the women interviewed are included in a range between 20 and 32 years old; most of them are single, with no children and are young professionals or students. In Recife, all of the participants live in the city, where seven were born there and three come from different Brazilian cities. In contrast, in Brussels women also lived in the city but were from different nationalities, including: four Belgians, one French, one English, one Swiss and one Czech.

Related to language, all the interviews were conducted in English (Brussels) or Portuguese (Recife). Before the interviews, all women were introduced to the study in the same way: they were informed of the subject of the research, its purpose (Master’s thesis in urban studies) and the fact that the interviews would be recorded, transcribed and carried out anonymously.

For the interviews, a semi structured script of questions (appendix 7.2) was created in order to guide the process, but according to the answers, the following topics were adapted so as to obtain other relevant interesting information for the research. The questions asked during the interviews dealt primary with women’s habits at night, previous experiences, their perception of safety in the public space in their respective cities and travel decision making at night. However, one of the challenges of this method was to avoid influence the person interviewed by directing, suggesting or amplifying certain discussions in search for some specific information.

As an instrument of research, fragments from the transcribed interviews were used in format of quotes with the purpose of support an argument or other findings of the work. For all the interviews conducted in Portuguese, a translation was made by the author, without changing the meaning of the interviewees' speech. As well, in order to preserve their identity, all the real names were modified and pseudonymous were adopted for each women interviewed and cited in this work.

4. Women’s perception of safety at night: A comparative approach

This chapter is intended to discuss the results of the research. All the data collected through the questionnaires and interviews are gathered here through a comparative analysis in order to find answers to the questions raised in the introduction of this work. For this purpose, and for better understanding of results, this section is divided into six subtopics: 1. Night habits; 2. Neighbourhoods; 3. Safety impressions: the relation to previous negative incidents; 4. Public environment: physical and social aspects; 5. Mobility at night and perception of safety; and 6. Feeling safer at night. Each subtopic follows the same logic of analysis and discusses the results of the two cities foci of this research, dynamically. The goal is to find similarities and differences in the results of each city and to discuss possible reasons for such results. It is also the intention in this chapter to cross the results with the published literature on the subject, discussed previously in this work.

4.1. Night habits

The aim here is to identify the nocturnal habits of the women who participated in the research. That is, understand what are the reasons that make the women of both cities go out at night and how often do they do it during the week. Through the results it will be possible to know if the habits of each city resemble or not.

In Recife, as the results show, the majority of participants go out at night from 2 to 3 days a week, 25.2% and 23.3%, respectively. Only 7.1% leave home 7 days a week at night (Graph 6). On the other hand, in Brussels most of the participants said to go out more between 3 and 4 days in the week, 24.8% and 23.7% respectively. Only 4% leaves between 6 and 7 days (Graph 7). As shown in the graphs, the frequency that the respondents from the two cities come out at night is quite similar. Both in Recife and Brussels, the majority go out at night on average 2 to 4 days a week, probably predominantly at the weekend, when the nightlife is more intense. However, there are also other reasons why women go out at night, including studies, work and sports, for example. To better understand these reasons the participating women were also asked about that matter.

Recife Brussels

30% 30% 25% 25% 20% 20% 15% 15% 10% Number of days 10% Number of days a a week women 5% 5% week women go go out at night 0% 0% out at night 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Graph 6 Night habits in Recife. Source: author’s elaboration Graph 7 Night habits in Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration

In order to identify the reasons that the women from both cities go out at night they were given the possibility to choose in the questionnaire more than one option depending on their habits. According to the answers obtained, the majority of the participants attend the city at night for reasons of leisure: 79.5% in Recife and 98% in Brussels (Graphs 6 and 7). That fact helps to confirm the hypothesis in the previous paragraph, where the responders who go out twice a week probably are also the same ones going out for leisure during the weekends. This also supports the Chatterton and Hollands (2002) affirmation that the night time is mainly

consumed for leisure purposes, especially by students and young workers. In contrast, it is also possible to identify that in both cities a great number of women work or study at night. This result expands the need to discuss the topic addressed in the research developed by Col.lectiu Punt 6 (2016) that deals with the reality and difficulties of women which work at night and criticise the night-time seen only as a consumption of entertainment time.

Despite the fact that women’s habits from both cities tend to be similar, it is also possible to see some differences in the results (Graphs 8 and 9). While visiting family in Recife is the second most voted reason for going out at night, 31%, in Brussels only 18% have the same habit. One possible reason for that can be cultural, since that in general in Latin America the contact with members of the family tend to be more frequent than in the western European culture or also can be for the fact that most of the responders in Brussels have their family living in different cities. Another difference that stands out, as seen in the graphs, is shopping. That is probably explained by the fact that in Recife it is common to go shopping in malls, which can be open at night, until 10 pm and in Brussels at this time most of the shops are already closed.

Work 21,40% Work 30,80% Sports 22,40% Sports 35,10% Shopping 29,50% Shopping 8,10% Studies 29,50% Studies 22,10% Family 31% Family 18% Leisure 79,50% Leisure 98,00%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 120%

Reasons women go out in Recife Reasons women go out in Brussels

Graph 8 Reasons women go out in Recife. Source: author’s elaboration Graph 9 Reasons women go out in Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration

4.2. Neighbourhoods

Related to safety, in order to have an idea of how women from both cities feel about their city at night, they were asked: ‘How safe do you consider going out at night in Recife/Brussels’? The results can be seen below (Graphs 10 and 11) and it is clear that they are very different according to city. In Recife, 36.2% of the responders consider going out

unsafe while just 1% consider safe. The great majority, 91%, chose the values of 1 to 3, where in a scale 1-6, 1 represents unsafe and 6 safe. This result clearly shows that the general perception of the city at night in Recife is of insecurity.

Recife Brussels 40% 30%

30% 20% 20% How safe women How safe women feel in Recife at 10% feel in Brussels at 10% night: 1=unsafe/ night: 1=unsafe/ 6=safe 6=safe 0% 0% 1 2 3 4 5 6 1 2 3 4 5 6

Graph 10 How safe women feel in Recife at night. Source: author’s elaboration Graph 11 How safe women feel in Brussels at night. Source: author’s elaboration

On the other hand, when comparing to Brussels it is possible to notice that the general feeling of safety at night changes considerably. Only 4.3% said they feel insecure at night in Brussels, but at the same time just 2.1% said to feel completely safe. The majority of women chose a middle ground option (3 to 4 in the scale), showing that the general feeling is of safety but there are still some reasons (discussed further) for them not to feel perfectly comfortable at night.

However, when it comes to analysing a city under the perspective of perception of safety, it becomes a challenge to have only one absolute response that characterises the city as a whole. That is say, analysing Recife and Brussels in a general way can be too broad and not enough representative to understand and identify potential issues that influence on women’s feeling of safety. In addition, it becomes problematic to classify a city as unsafe or not since no city is homogeneous. There will always be locations that convey different sensations depending on their characteristics.

One example that identifies specific features per neighbourhood is the digital platform SafetiPin. According to its co-founded, Kalpana Viswanath, the app aims to help women stay safe by letting users rate streets and areas for safety criteria such as lighting, visibility, people density, gender diversity, security and transportation (Figure 4). Originally developed in India in 2013, the app can also be used in Colombia, Indonesia, Kenya and Philippines. Moreover,

SafetiPin has been contracted by local authorities to make recommendations on how to make metro stations, bus stops, tourist spots, public toilets and parks more woman-friendly.

Figure 9 SafetiPin in New Delhi. Source: http://safetipin.com/myCiti#

In this context, the idea here is to identify some specific neighbourhoods from each city in order to find elements that might affect women’s perception of safety. An evaluation per neighbourhood is valid to understand some of the reasons that may explain the feelings related to safety at night. For that purpose, the research participants from both cities were asked which neighbourhoods they usually go out to at night and which neighbourhoods they avoid at night in their respective cities for safety reasons. As the two cities are relatively large and distributed in numerous neighbourhoods, Recife 94 and Brussels 1458, it was a challenge to ask for women to choose between diverse localities. For the purpose of this analysis, only

8 Bairros do Recife. Available at: (Accessed 23 July 2019) La partition du territoire de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale en quartiers. Available at: (Accessed 23 July 2019)

the six neighbourhoods most voted in each category per city were taken in account to exemplify the comparison.

To make it clear, this is not an analysis of the neighbourhoods; the main purpose of this topic is to try to identify similarities and differences between the neighbourhoods from both cities that women usually go and the ones they avoid. It is also important to remark that it is not the objective of this research to create or reinforce any possible negative image of some neighbourhood or area, but try to understand the reasons why women avoid going there.

Neighbourhoods women commonly go out at night

Recife Brussels 1. Boa Viagem 41% 1. Grand Place 55,6% 2. Casa Forte 34,8% 2. Flagey – Malibran 51,8% 3. Boa Vista 27,6% 3. Université 37,2% 4. Espinheiro 27,1% 4. Haut Saint Gilles 34,5% 5. Graças 23,8% 5. Dansaert 32,9% 6. Bairro do Recife 23,3% 6. Matonge 24,8%

Table 3 Neighbourhoods women commonly go out at night. Source: author’s elaboration

Related to the neighbourhoods that women go out more at night, it is possible to observe the results on the table (Table 3). The neighbourhoods chosen the most by women in Recife are the ones that offer several options of night life entertainment, such as bars, pubs, night clubs and restaurants. Boa Viagem, Casa Forte, Espinheiro and Graças are also known to be neighbourhoods mainly residential, with a population with higher monthly income rates when compared to the city as a whole, ranging from R$ 7.108,00 to R$ 11.318,97 (the average in Recife is R$ 3.193,60)(IBGE,2010).9

These neighbourhoods that have a greater mix of uses, such as residential and commercial are the ones that consequently promote more natural surveillance, as Fernanda, 30, from Recife highlights: ‘In my neighbourhood (Espinheiro) I feel safer walking at night. There are

9 By way of comparison 1 Brazilian Real is equal to 0.23 Euro (Data collected on 8 August 2019).

many people walking on the street and more variety of uses, like commerce, residence and services’. On the other hand, Bairro do Recife is not known as a residential neighbourhood but it has a high historical importance, being more touristic and concentrating several edifications that belong to the city's historical heritage. For that reason, it is also a neighbourhood where frequent public cultural events are offered, also during the night, attracting many people.

In Brussels, it is possible to also find similar reasons why people go to the six most chosen neighbourhoods present on table 3. All these localities are known to be places where there is a vibrant night life going on, especially on weekends. Grand Place has a great number of cafes and bars, being a tourist attraction, also at night; Flagey-Malibran, Haut Saint Gilles and Université are also areas with high concentration of bars; Flagey square and Parvis de Saint Gilles are hotspots frequented by many people, making the public space full, especially during the summer; Université aggregates a great focus of student’s night life. Dansaert and Matonge are also very popular destinations at night in Brussels. The first one is the known Flemish neighbourhood, with several hipster bars and Matonge is known to be the African neighbourhood, also attracting people at night.

Curiously, Matonge is also among the neighbourhoods that a significant number of women (25.9%) said avoid going at night. One of the reasons can be possible related to the known drug dealing activities that occur there, as Emma, 22, living in the neighbourhood explained:

“The neighbourhood I live in is very safe (Matonge). Sometimes I feel uncomfortable when I walk around a corner and realise that someone is selling drugs, but I feel much safer here than in Molenbeek, for example. There I think I would be afraid to go alone at night. I think my fear is more related to the fact that I know mugging cases of friends of mine there, but I really like the neighbourhood. On the other hand, here (Matonge) it is very calm; there is Chaussée d’Ixelles very close to my place, where there are always people walking at night. As well, in Matonge I am not harassed by men”.

As previous studies have identified, avoiding places that are perceived to be dangerous, not going out at night and not travelling alone in certain areas can be a reflex of behavioural consequences of fear of crime (Yavuz and Welch, 2010). This idea is also confirmed by Jeannine, 26, from Brussels: ‘I have already changed my way during the night to avoid some

places. I think that all the cities have places that people avoid going’. In that context, in both cities there are also some neighbourhoods that some women would avoid at night, as the results demonstrate on Table 4.

In Recife it is possible to observe certain similarities among the localities most chosen by the participants. All of the neighbourhoods are in general disadvantaged areas of the city when it comes to social and infrastructural aspects. When analysing the monthly household income of the six localities the amounts range from R$ 705,83 to R$ 1.545,82, all below the average in Recife, R$ 3.193,60 (IBGE, 2010). Coelhos and Ilha Joana Bezerra are also know for being neighbourhoods with the presence of large high-risk communities (slums), being places more susceptible to the development of crime. As well, Ibura is a very populous neighbourhood, with 50.617 inhabitants living in precarious conditions (IBGE, 2010); the neighbourhood is located near the suburbs and faces serious infrastructure problems such as poor sanitation and floods during raining seasons.

In this case, social conditions can be used as parameters that directly affect the physical conditions of an environment. It is implied that favoured neighbourhoods will have better infrastructure, consequently better quality of public spaces, better lighting, security and good access to transports: elements that directly affect people’s perception of safety.

Neighbourhoods women would avoid at night

Recife Brussels 1. Coelhos 67,1% 1. Quartier Nord 51,9% 2. Ilha Joana Bezerra 62,4% 2. Gare de l’ouest 47% 3. Ibura 63,8% 3. Anneessens 45,9% 4. Brasilia Teimosa 57,1% 4. Molenbeek Historique 45,4% 5. Agua Fria 49,5% 5. Porte de Hal 30,2% 6. Afogados 48,1% 6. Saint-Josse-Centre 29,7%

Table 4 Neighbourhoods women would avoid at night. Source: author’s elaboration

In the case of Brussels, the neighbourhoods most voted are also known to be disadvantaged areas in general. When analysing the average taxable income per capita of the

neighbourhoods all of six are classified in the lowest level income classes, 1, which represents less than €11.000 a year (Monitoring des quartiers, 2015). As well, related to unemployment rates, all the neighbourhoods have high levels, varying from 31.12% (Porte de Hal) to 42.81% (Gare de l’ouest).

Another factor that can also influence women’s perception of safety at night is walking next to train stations, many times considered rougher areas, not only for the environment itself (visual barriers), but also for poor social conditions. That can be the case for Porte de Hal, next to Gare du Midi, an already negatively stigmatised area of the city, and Quartier Nord, neighbourhood known to be a no-go area at night, due to drug and prostitution activities.

There are also other reasons why women would avoid some neighbourhoods, such as previous negative experiences, influence of media and less diversification of gender in the streets (male dominant). One of the participants shared a negative experience in Anessens: ‘Two young people on the street tried to mug me and a friend in Annesens. Since then I only go out in areas I know to be less dangerous at night’. Another neighbourhood negatively framed by media influence is Molenbeek, associated with terrorists. As Valentine (2001) defends, media also plays a role in framing public space as dangerous by disproportionately reporting and publicising crimes that occur in certain areas. As a result, this information produces stigmatised places in the city.

As seen, reasons why women would avoid some neighbourhood are coincident in some aspects when compared to city. However, it is also important to highlight that in both cities, especially in Brussels, some women said not to avoid any neighbourhood of the city, proving that the perception of safety and idea of the city can be very personal. In Recife, only 1% chose that option, against 12.4% in Brussels. As Clara, 25, said: ‘In Brussels, I had never the need to avoid a place at night’.

In order to have an overview, figure 5 illustrates a map of the two cities, identifying the neighbourhoods discussed in this topic. Painted with purple and blue are the areas women commonly go and in red are the areas women would avoid.

Figure 10 Maps of Recife and Brussels identifying the neighbourhoods that women commonly go and the ones they would avoid at night. Source: author’s elaboration

4.3. Safety impressions: the relation to previous negative incidents

4.3.1. Previous events and social forces

According to Koskela (1997), fear of crime can be seen as a product of each individual’s experiences, memories, and relations to space. Consequently, previous negative incidents can shape women’s perception of safety. In order to confirm or not this affirmation, women from the two analysed cities were asked if they were already victim of any negative incident at night. In Recife, 53.8% said they had been victim of a negative incident; while 42.4% said no, but know someone close who has had some negative experience at night. On the other hand, when analysing responses from Brussels the results are quite comparable. Here, 58.3% said already been victim of some negative incident at night, 28.1% do not, but know someone that has been a victim. As it can be seen, the majority of women from both cities have previous negative experiences that can potentially affect their feeling of safety at night.

Still, what kind of incidents we are talking about? As noted in the graphs below (Graphs 12 and 13) it is possible to see the most common occurrences reported by women from both cities. In Recife, mugging and theft are the most frequent episodes (43% and 30% respectively) while in Brussels harassment occurred to almost half of the women participants of the survey (48%). Mugging and theft are also present in Brussels, but only 20% and 18% of the participants said had been victim of those, respectively.

Recife Brussels

10% 14% Mugging 20% Mugging 17% 43% Theft Theft Harassment 18% Harassment 48% 30% Never suffered Never suffered

Graph 12 Incidents in Recife. Source: author’s elaboration Graph 13 Incidents in Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration

According to the testimonies of participants from Recife, it is possible to understand and to have an idea of how previous incidents can affect women’s feelings at night. Bárbara aged 23 said: ‘I'm from the countryside and coming to the capital (Recife) has given me some traumatic experiences. I've been mugged twice and other colleagues have been too. Also, cases of rape and violence alert me daily’. Letícia aged 25 also shared her experience: ‘I was harassed and mugged. It happened near where I live, with me and other acquaintances. Therefore, a sense of insecurity is established in my everyday life’.

As seen, violent incidents can generate fear of crime, influencing directly women’s routines and quality of life. As also affirmed by Truman (2005) activity restriction can be a result of this established fear. Additionally, it is also relevant to mention that the fear of crime can affect differently each individual, since it can depend also from personal psychological traits (Gilow, 2015), but also influenced by the level of trauma caused by the previous suffered situations. Joana aged 27 explained how her experience affected her life:

“After a mugging and attempted of rape at night in my neighbourhood I spent months just going out during the day, at night I was always already at home. The therapy helped to go out again at night, but I could only do it alone 3 months after the incident. Then I went back to a nightly routine, but it still works like this: when I need to go back home alone I prefer to sleep at a friends’ place”.

When analysing testimonies from Brussels, it is possible to observe the same trend. Despite the fact that the incidents are more related to harassment in general, the women’s’ perception of safety is altered. Rose aged 20, coming from Switzerland, said: ‘Harassment and assault has made me very vulnerable and scared at night. I have not changed my habits, but I always walk home fast, holding my phone in one hand and keys or pepper spray in the other’. Louise from Belgium, aged 28, suffered a similar issue: ‘After being harassed in front of my house I had to develop strategies to arrive home. I often walk with my companion, which reassures me. So, sometimes it only takes a bad experience to create a general climate of insecurity and we become marked’.

As discussed in Pain’s (2001) work, women’s susceptibility to sexual assault and frequent experiences of various forms of harassment make them feel more vulnerable and thus

perceive risk more often than men. In both cities this feeling of sexual vulnerability can also affect women’s behaviours, sometimes influencing in the way they dress as we can confirm in Amelia’s (aged 23, from Belgium) testimony: ‘After an incident of "cat calling"10 in a subway, I prefer to take a bike or enter a metro area where there are women too. Sometimes I realise that wearing certain clothes can cause reactions, but in general I try to ignore them’. Anna from Recife aged 25 also said: ‘I am always approached on the street by men when I'm in gym clothes, they whistle or honk and slow down when they are driving. I don’t want to accept that this is part of our culture, I always feel very exposed’.

In addition, the constant perception of vulnerability to sexual victimisation is an issue that can create a sense of anger and frustration for many women. As hard as it can be, some women try to continue their normal night rituals even after passing through negative incidents. Josephine from France, aged 24 shared her experience in Brussels:

“I refuse to let harassers and aggressors dictate my fear and how I should live my life: I still walk alone at night, and I still take public transport, but sometimes being walked home by a male friend can make me feel a bit safer, especially in areas where there are many groups of men who catcall or follow you (Anneessens, Bourse and Anspach, for example). I used to be quite fearless (I would walk home in heels and tight dresses) but after having been: catcalled (practically every time I walk home), insulted, followed and threatened to get beaten, I cannot deny the safety issue of this city anymore”.

However, besides previous negative experiences, there are also other factors that can influence on women’s perception of safety at night. As discussed earlier in the literature review chapter, we saw that aspects such as media influence and sexist sociocultural values can also contribute to reinforcing a negative feeling for women. Experiences with close acquaintances also directly influence women's perceptions. About this, Amanda from Recife, aged 28, said: ‘My habits at night have been shaped by friends’ and other women’s experiences every day’. This theory is also discussed in the work of Macassi (2005), who defends that negative incidents suffered by a woman affects every one of them as they are

10 Cat calling: Rude sexual remarks made by men passing women on the street. Usually “cat calls” are about the woman’s body as a whole or a certain feature.

exposed to the same kind of aggression belonging to the same gender. Consequently, the feeling of insecurity affects even those who have not suffered anything.

Related to media, it can be a great influence in shaping people’s perception of crime and propagating fear (Vanderveen, 2006). Cases of violence reported by the various means of communication are often sensational and are hardly proportional to actual crime rates. At the same time they are one of the greatest responsible for increasing the general feeling of insecurity in society. Concerning this topic Carol, 32, from Recife, commented: ‘Luckily nothing bad happened to me at night, but that doesn't stop my constant concern. The media messes a lot with our perception of safety. I have a feeling that if I didn’t see so many bad news I would feel safer’. Fernanda aged 30, from the same city, also shared her worry:

“I'm afraid of rape because some time ago in Recife there were some cases where girls were approached while getting out of the car and taken by the rapist. The street security cameras filmed everything and it was released by the media. I thought it could happen to me too”.

Another factor influencing on women’s’ safety impressions is the incorporation of a supposed female vulnerability. According to Knox & Pinch (2013), women’s perception of fear is shaped by the social and cultural elements transmitted to them, in this case, reinforcing the idea that they are in constant danger. The authors also defend that women are surrounded by patriarchy heterosexual values where behavioural expectations related to gender are socially constructed. This idea can be well exemplified in Carla’s (21, from Recife) testimony: ‘Since my childhood my mother always warned me about the insecurity of walking at night in Recife, so this fear has always been in me’.

As Valentine (1989) also argues, the female generalized fear is also a product of traditional notions about the role of women and places considered suitable for them in cities. According to her, since they are young, women are presented restrictions through "norms" that build and strengthen determinate limits. Transmitted by parents and established by society, the safe space for women is the private space. About this subject, Amanda aged 28, from Recife, expressed her point of view:

“The way some men look at a woman in the public space at night fills me with fear and I believe that for a long time this idea was built in my mind that the street was not an environment for me to be alone at night. Currently, I have been working to undo this image of insecurity, but it is hard and a daily work to get me into situations and environments that I did not realise before as belonging to me as well”.

4.3.2. Fear affecting night habits

As seen in Recife and Brussels, the feeling of insecurity can be a product of previous events but also be influenced by social forces (Vanderveen, 2006). Nevertheless, how these factors affect women’s nocturnal habits in both cities? In order to have a representative understanding, women were asked the following question: Do you avoid going out at night because of fear of crime? The answers are shown in the graphs (Graphs 14 and 15) bellow:

Recife Brussels

No, I don’t feel affected 1% No, I don’t feel affected 21,60% No, although I feel insecure 29% No, although I feel insecure 47% yes, sometimes yes, sometimes 20,50% 34,30% Yes, frequently 18,10% Yes, frequently 8,10% Yes, always 16% Yes, always 2,70%

Graph 14 Fear affecting habits in Recife. Source: author’s elaboration Graph 15 Fear affecting habits in Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration

By analysing both graphs it is possible to remark that the results are quite different when comparing the cities. In Recife it is clear that fear of crime is an issue that considerable affects women’s habits at night, while in Brussels fear of crime has a lower impact in their habits. Only 1% of the responders in Recife think that fear of crime do not affect their perception and routine, against 21.6% from women in Brussels. On the other hand, when comparing the number of women that do not change their habits of going out at night although the feeling of insecurity, the cities have the following numbers: 29% in Recife and 47% in Brussels. Although it is known that Recife presents more issues related to crime when compared to Brussels, these results help to confirm that the majority of women from both cities do feel affected, feeling insecure in determinate situations, as previously seen.

In order to exemplify how mixed and different depending on each woman these perceptions can be in Brussels, the participants shared their impressions. Louise from Belgium, aged 28, said: ‘I continue to go out at night but always with anxiety’. Dividing the same point of view, Amelia aged 23, from Belgium, explained: ‘Growing up being street harassed from a young age made me take precautions when going back home at night. It is a reflex, it is not even conscious’.

On the other hand, when women living in Brussels have already lived and experienced stressful situations related to safety in other cities, their perception can be affected differently. When comparing Brussels to these other cities, they consider it a safe city. Concerning this, Clara aged 25, from Czech Republic, said: ‘I feel safer in Brussels then in my hometown; maybe there is more crime in Brussels then in Prague, but in reality I feel safer here, perhaps it can be related to some bad experiences that I already had in my city’. The same position can be shared by Emma aged 22, from Belgium:

“I am not someone who stops doing things, even if I have a bit of fear. Once I went to a party in Anderlecht and faced a very dark and deserted metro station, so I was very attentive. But, since I've lived in Rio de Janeiro and Barcelona, I'm used to being alert in situations like this. I feel the difference between the perceptions of safety when comparing Brussels to Rio. There, I was always under a lot of stress because people would tell me all the time not to have my Smartphone showing. Once, I was mugged there when I was with two friends on the beach and it was a bit traumatizing”.

In Recife, the feeling of insecurity also affects women in different manners. Some of them try not to change their habits, but are constantly attentive in order to avoid incidents. Anna aged 25 said: ‘I go out every night to go to the gym. I always go walking, I'm afraid, but I don't stop doing it, however I am always careful to avoid mugging’. This feeling changes for Julia, 27, even though she also had to pay more attention to her surroundings after an experience:

‘I don't think a lot about the bad things that can happen; I am not a person who anticipates fear. Once I suffered an attempt of mugging when I was walking back home from the park at around 8pm. I didn't change my habits after this incident, although I became more alert’.

4.4. Public environment: physical and social aspects

As previously said, there are other factors that can influence women’s perception of safety, such as the characteristics of the built environment. According to Schulz and Gilbert (1996), design features not only contribute to actual crime, but also to people’s perception of safety. Furthermore, not only physical aspects but also social can contribute to influence the public environment atmosphere. In that sense, the users of the area are also responsible to shape the night spaces. As defended by Jacobs (1961), it is the presence of people that provides the natural surveillance, consequently increasing the sense of safety.

In this section, the participants were asked how they feel in relation to diverse elements of the public environment. The purpose is to identify how safe these elements make women feel, asking them to choose between feeling safer, indifferent or less safe. The table below (Table 5) presents the most representative results from both cities according to each element analysed.

Elements Recife Brussels

Public lighting safer: 93% safer: 90,8% Environment with many less safe: 49,1% / less safe: 89% walls indifferent: 48,6% Environment with abandon less safe: 93% less safe: 85,9% aspect Environment well maintained and good safer: 83% safer: 71,3% signage Environment with lots of indifferent: 41% / less safe: 44,8% / green spaces less safe: 34% indifferent: 40,5% Presence of people from a sociocultural group similar safer: 74% safer: 67% to yours Presence of people from a indifferent: 58% / indifferent: 51,8% / sociocultural group less safe: 30,4% less safe: 37,8% different from yours Presence of cameras safer: 59% / indifferent: 35% safer: 31,8% / indifferent: 55,1% Police presence safer: 78% safer: 58,9% / indifferent: 25,9% Table 5 Elements influencing perception of safety in Recife and in Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration

As observed, the results are quite comparable, which leads us to conclude that, overall, women from both cities respond in the same way to the elements presented to them in the question. These results are also in line with previously reviewed literature, which helps to reinforce existing theories as to how the elements analysed influence the perception of safety. In order to understand the impact of each element, they will be analysed separately below. a. Public lighting

When it comes to public lighting, the results are not surprising. In Recife 93% of the participants said feeling safer, while in Brussels 90.8% had the same impression. Correspondingly, it is more than proven in previous studies (Boyce et al. 2000; Knight, 2010; Edensor, 2013) that lighting directly influences people's perception of safety. In this sense, the clearer an environment is, the safer women will feel. Other studies also addressed the same topic. Jacobs (1961) underlined that people felt frightened when they were alone in dark places, particularly when they could not be observed by those they trusted, while Schulz and Gilbert (1996) affirmed that darkness, poor lighting and isolation contribute more to women’s fear of crime. b. Walls

Related to an ‘environment with many walls’, the results from each city were slightly different. In Recife, the great majority, 89% of the consulted women said feeling less safe, while in Brussels only 49.1% said feeling the same way, and 48.6% claimed to feel indifferent. As supported by Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink (2009), people tend to be mostly fearful in places where they do not have a clear line of sight of their surroundings. The presence of walls between the private and the public space also limit the ‘eyes on the street’ and the consequently natural surveillance (Jacobs, 1961).

One factor that can possibly explain the different results from each city is that walls in Recife are very associated with exclusion and territorial fragmentation. As discussed by Dammert and Tobar (2018) in their research in Latin America, processes of segregation are reinforced

by the rhetoric of fear. This way, the creation of gated communities11 , that are becoming more common in the Brazilian context, can generate a sense of security for the residents inside, but has a terrible effect on people using the public space. This situation can be exemplified by Carol, 32, from Recife:

“I think the fact that our city has many walls affects my feeling of safety; the most luxurious buildings usually have very high walls between the sidewalk and the private site. I always avoid going through these places at night, I feel very vulnerable, because if something happens to me no one will see”.

In Brussels, the situation is different. In general, the urban configuration and the building relation to the public space respect more the pedestrian scale and there are fewer walls creating visual barriers in the streets. Concerning this topic Jeannine aged 26, from Belgium, shared her point of view: ‘In general, Brussels is like a village; the buildings create a good relation with the sidewalk, it is a comfortable scale for the pedestrian’. c. Environment with abandon aspect

Responding to an environment with abandon aspect, the results from both cities are very similar. In Recife, 93% of the women said feel less safe in this situation; in Brussels, 85.9% answered the same. These numbers confirm the evidence of previous published literature: Valentine (1990) and other empirical studies addressed attention to that matter. The presence of certain environmental factors in a public location such as darkness, desolation, lack of maintenance, and poor environmental quality can be associated with the generation of a greater fear, because they denote weakened social control. In addition, these kinds of spaces also produce fewer opportunities for informal surveillance. Reinforcing this idea, Bárbara aged 23, from Recife said: ‘When I walk down a darker and less busy street I feel more insecure’.

11 In its modern form, a gated community (or walled community) is a form of residential community or housing estate containing strictly controlled entrances for pedestrians, bicycles, and automobiles, and often characterized by a closed perimeter of walls and fences.

d. Environment well maintained

On the other hand, an environment well maintained and with a good signage can have the opposite effect on women’s perception. As expected, the results from both cities are in agreement. In Recife, 83% claimed to feel safer in such a condition; also in Brussels the majority, 71.3%, think they feel safer in an environment with these characteristics. Confirming the findings, Yavuz and Welch (2010) affirm that when an environment promotes visibility, is well lighted and maintained people are less likely to feel fearful of crime and more likely to use public areas after dark. About this topic, Jeannine, 26, gave her opinion: ‘In large public spaces, such as Flagey, I feel super safe at any time. There, you can have a good visibility of your surroundings, you have a lot of public transport options and there are lots of people passing’. e. Green spaces

The next analysed element was how women felt in an environment with lots of green spaces. In both cities comparable results ranged from indifferent (41% Recife and 40.5% Brussels) to less safe (34% Recife and 44.8% Brussels). Perhaps, the variation in results may be related to how women perceive such green spaces. Most of the time green spaces are parks that have dense vegetation and do not have enough lighting at night. Consequently, women feel more insecure because they do not have a good visibility of their surroundings. In this sense, dense vegetation can become a visual barrier reinforcing feelings of insecurity. About that, Sarah aged 24, from England said: ‘In Brussels, I am very afraid of parks at night, they can be really dark. I would never go out by myself to run in a forest after midnight’.

That matter is also discussed by a study about green spaces in Brussels, called Femmes au parc! (Women in the park!). Conducted by Garance, a feminist non-profit organization, the research had the purpose to fight against the issue of women’s feeling of insecurity in parks (DH.be, 2017). According to the results, one of the omnipresent criteria observed in all parks is that participants never feel safe at night, and most of them avoid walking through the parks at night. Among the reasons are: poor lighting and the presence of men, but also myths and beliefs about the dangers of women's place in public spaces.

f. Presence of people

As discussed before, one of the factors that make people feel safer is the presence of natural surveillance. That is only provided when the public spaces are being occupied by other users or when there are ‘eyes on the street’ from those watching the continual flow of pedestrians from buildings (Jacobs, 1961). Jacobs defends that the constant flow of ‘strangers’ at different times of the day and night provides consistent surveillance of a space. Following this theory, the participants were also asked how the presence of people impact on their perception of safety.

In order to understand if this perception changes according to the social-cultural characteristics of each group occupying the public space, they were asked specifically how the same, but also different social cultural groups affect their perception. Related to the presence of people belonging to a similar sociocultural group the answers were most positive: women from both cities tend to feel safer (in Recife 74% and in Brussels 67%). Confirming this result, Anna aged 25, from Recife, said: ‘In environments like Parque da Jaqueira (Jackfruit tree park), I feel safe and more relaxed at night, people going there are middle class in general and there is also the presence of police’.

When it comes to the presence of people from a different sociocultural group, the results were more heterogeneous, but in both cities ranged mainly from indifferent (58% Recife and 51.8% Brussels) to less safe(30.4% Recife and 37.8% Brussels). It is possible to observe this trend when Jeannine, 26, from Belgium said: ‘Normally I feel more uncomfortable in the presence of groups that hang out in the streets doing stuff they are not supposed to be doing there’. Despite the feeling of insecurity coming by considerable part of the women, some of them like Louise, 28, try to demystify this feeling: ‘I realised that I might feel unsafe for the wrong reasons such as presence of people from a sociocultural group different than mine; so I might pay less attention to that matter in the future’.

However, in both cities, but mainly in Brussels, more important than the sociocultural classification of a group on women’s perception of safety is the balance between the presence of female and male gender in the public space. Related to that Sarah, 24, said: ‘When there is a group of men standing in a corner drinking and I need to pass next to them I

feel very intimidated’. When asked about an environment that they considered safe, the participants often considered the gender balance as a determinant factor. Emma, 22, highlighted: ‘The place that feels good at night has plenty of light, people passing by on the street, and a balance of presence of men and women. When there are only men I don't feel very comfortable’. Clara, 25 also commented: ‘I feel safe in my neighbourhood. The bars are always open; there are many men from the neighbourhood, but also bars with women as well’. g. Cameras

Another element asked was how the presence of cameras influences on women’s perception. The results from both cities varied between safer (59% Recife and 31.8% Brussels) and indifferent (35% Recife and 55.1% Brussels). In theory, cameras have the purpose to prevent crime, but it is not always what happens. Yet, there are a great number of women that feel indifferent, especially in Brussels. This can be possibly explained by the fact that women tend to be more sceptical that somebody is watching the video camera surveillance at the moment they feel vulnerable in a deserted space (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009). Regarding that, Emma, 22, shared her opinion: ‘I think the presence of cameras can solve some crimes after they happen, but personally I don't feel safer with the presence of cameras, it doesn't change anything for me’. h. Police

In relation to police presence, the majority of the answers indicate that it has a positive effect on women. In Recife 78% said feeling safer when there is police around; while in Brussels 58.9% said feeling safer and 25.9% are indifferent. Even though most women in Recife consider feeling safer with the police presence, some think that it does not solve their general feeling of insecurity, as Mariana aged 29, said: ‘In my opinion, police only makes a difference in the location, but it is not a feasible solution to put a policeman around every corner’.

4.5. Mobility choices at night and perception of safety

As seen, there are numerous different factors that can influence how women feel at night. Consequently, these are aspects that affect not only how women perceive the public spaces but also influence their choices of travelling in the city, especially at night. In addition, as affirmed by Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink (2009), it is at night that the choices of mobility are more influenced by the perception of fear and concerns about personal safety.

4.5.1. Mobility habits at night

For that reason, in order to investigate how fear of crime affects on the travel decision making of women from both cities, they were asked about their mobility habits at night. In a first moment, they were asked what usually they choose as a mean of transport in their normal nocturnal routines. In another moment they are invited to imagine a hypothetical situation where their choice would not be influenced by the factor fear of crime. This approach has the objective to find out how this fear influence on their choices of transport in both cities. The results from both cities can be observed on the tables (Tables 6 and 7) below:

Recife

Transportation choice Usually Without consider fear of crime

Car Often: 33,3% / Sometimes: 22,3% Always: 24,7% / Sometimes: 25,2%

Public transport Never: 32,8% / Sometimes: 26,6% Always: 28,5% / Often: 30,9%

Sometimes: 30,4% / Rarely: 28% / Taxi Sometimes: 34,2% / Never: 31,4% Never: 28,5% Uber (or similar apps) Often: 50% / Sometimes: 27,6% Often: 24,2% / Sometimes: 44,7% Always: 16,1% / Often:21,4% / Bicycle Never: 61,9% / Sometimes: 20,9% Sometimes: 25,2% / Never: 25,2% Motorcycle Never: 71,9% Never: 60,9% Sometimes: 33,3% / Rarely: 28,5% / Always: 25,2% / Often: 30,9% / On foot Never: 25,2% Sometimes: 23,8%

Table 6 Choice of transportation in Recife. Source: author’s elaboration

Brussels Transportation choice Usually Without consider fear of crime Car Never: 54,5% / Rarely: 16,7% Never: 49,1% / Rarely: 20,5% Public transport Often: 43,7% / Always: 32,9% Often: 43,2% / Always: 38,3% Taxi Rarely: 36,7% / Never: 30,2% Never: 36,2% / Rarely: 30,2% Uber (or similar apps) Never: 38,3% / Sometimes: 21% Never: 35,1% / Rarely: 25,9% Never: 37,2% / Sometimes: 18,3% / Bicycle Never: 58,3% / Rarely: 16,7% Often: 18,3% Motorcycle Never: 91,3% Never: 86,4% Often : 43,7% / Always: 20,5% / On foot Often: 42,7% / Always: 36,2% Sometimes: 23,2%

Table 7 Choice of transportation in Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration

In this exercise, women were asked to choose how often they use each mode of transport at night. For this purpose, they could choose between: always, often, sometimes, rarely or never. As it can be seen in both tables, the mobility habits change considerably comparing to cities. In Recife the answers were very heterogeneous (table 6), but through the results it is possible to conclude that the car and the Uber (or similar apps) are the most common options, since they were the only transports that a considerable number of women said to use often (33.3% and 50%, respectively). Additionally, except for motorcycle, the option ‘’sometimes’’ appeared in all of the other given options of transport, identifying that women try to diversify their choices of mobility in some situations.

Still in Recife, when analysing the results for the hypothetical situation without fear of crime influencing in their decision, the answers change substantially. This result reflects on the importance of this factor on women’s mobility choice. When feeling safer, women tend to change their mobility choices at night. As it can be observed on the table, the options “public transport”, “bicycle” and “on foot” received rather different answers. The choice “always” and ‘’often” appears now in these options (different than before), indicating that women would be willing to use these means of transports if they felt safe, in a situation without fear of crime.

Differently from Recife, in Brussels the results were not very affected by the factor fear of crime. As the table 7 shows, public transport and walking are the most common choices in women’s night routines, where “often” and “always” were chosen by the majority of the participants for both categories. When analysing the results in the column “without fear of crime” they are almost the same as before, except for some slightly changes. As we can see, “bicycle” and “on foot” received different answers when compared with the usual habits. When feeling safer at night, some women in Brussels would use the bike more often and feel more comfortable to always choose to walk.

When talking about their mobility choices, women explained how they feel and the reason of their choices. Anna, 25, from Recife, said: ‘At night I always use Uber, because even driving is dangerous. Besides, it's more practical and I can drink. But if I'm with a group of friends, I usually go by bus, because it's cheaper’. Mariana, 29, also from Recife has a similar opinion:

“I usually use Uber because I consider it the safest mean of transport today and I don't have a car. It has a better cost benefit than the taxi and I consider it safer than public transport. I haven't been on a bus at night for many years. The main reason is for not feeling safe. As a woman I'm afraid of both mugging and harassment, I feel more vulnerable, especially at night."

Also in Brussels women explained the reasons of their mobility choices at night. Emma, 22, said: ‘I always prefer to walk than take the bus; I like to feel the fresh air. Usually, only when it is very cold or when I am very tired I take the bus”, besides, I don't feel much safer when I take a bus because I have to walk in another street that is more deserted to get home’. Jeannine, 26, also shared her habits when it comes to mobility choices: ‘To go out at night I always use the metro, because it is very effective in Brussels and to go back home I just use Uber when there is no metro left; I would never get the last metro and take the risk for it not to come’.

4.5.2. Relevant factors influencing mobility decision at night

However, it is important to clarify that there are different components that influence on women’s mobility decision at night. In order to understand what are the most relevant

aspects, women from both cities voted on what they considered very relevant factors influencing their choices of transport. The results can be seen in the graph (Graph 16) below:

Factors considered very relevant in women’s mobility choice at night

Recife Brussels

89%

66% 64,30% 54% 54% 49,70% 43,70% 44,80% 40% 30%

Cost Consumption of Speed Fear of crime Comfort alcoholic beverages

Graph 16 Very relevant factors in women’s mobility choice at night in Recife and in Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration

Analysing the results, it is possible to remark that most of the responders in Recife (89%) considered fear of crime as a very relevant factor when choosing the mean of transport at night. That outcome is also present in previous research about the topic. According to Yavuz and Welch (2010), fear of crime is among the most important reasons why people choose not to use public transit. However, as it can be seen, this theory can change according to the locality researched. In Brussels, for instance, only 44.8% said that fear of crime is a very relevant element influencing on their mobility choice at night.

Nonetheless, aspects such as cost and consumption of alcoholic beverages also received a considerable attention from women in both localities. In Brussels, cost was the most voted element influencing women’s mobility with 66%, while in Recife it was the second most relevant with 64.3% of the participants choosing this option.

In addition, with the purpose of knowing the elements that influence women’s mobility choices the most, some participants shared their thoughts about the subject. Fernanda, 30, from Recife, said: ‘Safety is the first thing I take into consideration when choosing my mode of transportation at night’. However, even in the same city, women can have different priorities as it is stressed by Julia, 27: ‘I drive when I know I have a place to park the car and I won't

drink alcohol. Safety is not the main factor influencing my choice of transportation, although I rarely walk at night for that reason’.

In Brussels the priorities can also change according to the individual perception. Even if the majority do not take fear of crime as the most relevant aspect on their mobility choice, some perceptions can differ as Sarah, 24 explained: ‘Safety is the factor that I consider as the most important when I am choosing my transportation mode. I would rather walk 10 minutes more and take a safer route than to take a short cut on a street that is very dark.’ On the other hand, some women said that comfort is the most important element for them when moving at night, as Clara, 25 shared: ‘At night, I normally chose the most comfortable mean of transport; mostly, I prefer to go inside a public transport than walk, for example. I usually get the tram 92 and it stops very close to my house’.

4.5.3. Feelings when travelling at night

As previous literature highlight, walking to public transportation, the experience inside the modes and choices such as bicycling are assumed to be more unsafe at night, especially by women (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009). As well, according to Stanko (1990), they often prefer to drive or take taxis rather than walk or use public transit because of fear of being harassed or victimised. In this context, in order to understand how women from each city feel in various mobility situations at night when they are alone, they were asked to assess their degree of perception of safety in the following scenarios, as observed in the table (Table 8).

Again, this table only gathers the most representative results, that is, how the majority of the women chose to feel according to each situation. As seen, women’s feeling of safety changes a lot according to city. While in Recife women tend to feel unsafe in most of the situations at night when they are alone, in Brussels the trend is the contrary; except for some situations that women can feel unsafe, such as waiting for the public transport or walking, the general feeling is of safety for the greater part of the women consulted.

Situations Recife Brussels Driving a car unsafe: 38% / safe: 29% safe: 32,4% / very safe: 24,8% When walking on the street very unsafe: 49% / unsafe: 46% unsafe: 48,1% / safe: 34,5% When using public transport (inside the unsafe: 55% / very unsafe: 27% safe: 58,9% / unsafe: 27,5% vehicle) When waiting for unsafe: 44,8% /safe: 30,2% / transportation (on the very unsafe: 58% / unsafe: 37% very unsafe: 23,7% street or at the stop) safe: 52,4% / unsafe: 16,7% / When inside a taxi unsafe: 41% / safe: 38% very safe: 16,2% When inside an Uber (or safe: 52% / unsafe: 36% safe: 47% / very safe: 18,9% similar) When riding a bicycle unsafe: 36% / very unsafe: 24% safe: 27,5% / unsafe: 22,7%

Table 8 Women’s feelings in diverse transit situations in Recife and in Brussels. Source: author’s elaboration

Related to driving a car alone at night, in Recife the answers were divided between feeling unsafe (38%) and safe (29%). On the other hand, in Brussels the results varied between safe and very safe for 57.2% of the responders. In Recife, this result may have varied due to different personal perceptions, but also because some women feel insecure when parking their cars on the street, afraid of being victims of assault or mugging. Joana, 27, shared her impressions about it: ‘Driving a car is practical and I feel safer than when I am inside a bus. Even though, it is not easy to leave the car on the street, in Recife there is no security anymore’.

In what concerns walking, in both cities, most women feel unsafe when they are alone at night. In Recife, 95% of the women consulted said feeling unsafe or very unsafe, while in Brussels the answers were more diverse, 48.1% said feeling unsafe against 34.5% that feel safe. As seen in previous studies, the nature of the on-foot sections of women’s journey can make them change their routes and look for alternatives to arrive somewhere (Col.lectiu Punt 6, 2016). That statement can be confirmed by Clara, 25, when she said: ‘When I go home walking, I normally try to choose the main roads, instead of some back street, because I feel safer’. In Recife, women also adopt other strategies when they need to walk at night, such as walking with someone else. Mariana, 29, shared her experience: ‘At night I usually go walking

to bars and restaurants that are at close to my house, but normally I just walk at night with my partner, I feel safer with him. Alone, just during the day’.

Towards how women feel inside public transports at night, the results from both cities differed. In Recife 82% said to feel unsafe or very unsafe, in contrast, the results from Brussels varied from safe (58.9%) to fewer women that said feeling unsafe in this situation (27.5%). According to Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink (2009), one of the reasons that can contribute to the feeling of insecurity is the absence of visible staff and other passengers on station platforms and train wagons. This theory was confirmed by Carla, 21, from Recife, when she testified: ‘The last time I got a bus I was the only one in an empty vehicle, it was 8pm on a Sunday. This has led me to insecurity and even today I rethink the relevance of certain commitments when I need to get a bus’. Also in Recife, other previous experiences can affect negatively the way some women feel about public transports. Amanda, 28, said: ‘I was mugged on the bus after 9pm, so I almost never get buses alone at this time’.

Waiting the transport at night can also be a situation where women feel unsafe. According to the results, the majority of women tend to feel unsafe in this circumstance. In Recife, 95% of the participants said feeling unsafe or very unsafe; in Brussels this number dropped to 68.5%. Moreover, 30.2% of Brussels’ women said feeling safe when waiting for transportation. But what are the reasons that make women feel unsafe in this situation? According to Loukaitou- Sideris (1999), passengers tend to feel more fearful during their wait for the transport than when they are on the transit vehicle due to lack of attention to the security of public areas from the transportation system. For that reason, especially during the night, women avoid bus stops if they believe that they may be harassed or victimised. Valentine (1990) also emphasises that deserted subway stations and desolate transit stops can be spaces particularly frightening to women. Concerning this, Anna, 25, from Recife said: ‘I don't take the bus because waiting in the bus stops is too dangerous, there's no one after the rush hour. Standing still makes me more insecure than when I'm walking’.

On the other hand, if the transport environment offers comfort and is well lit women tend to feel safer. Jeannine, 26, from Brussels talked about it: ‘for me to feel safe in a subway station it needs to be very well lightened and not too narrow’. The opposite also happens; if the users do not trust the transportation system, they would be negatively affected. Julia, 27, from

Recife pointed: ‘Once I spent 40 minutes waiting for the bus to arrive, the system of public transport definitely needs to be improved for me to go back to use it’.

With regard to taxi, and how women feel inside the vehicle, the answers changed according to city. In Recife, 41% said feeling unsafe while 38% feel safe. As well in Brussels the results were diverse, but the majority feel safe or very safe (68.6%); only 16.7% said feeling unsafe. Despite the positive results in Brussels, there are still some cases affecting women’s perception of safety negatively. About this, Amelia, 23, said: ‘I have heard so many stories of friends being harassed or assaulted while being in a taxi, that I avoid it, also, it's expensive’. In Recife the fear is higher, as Bárbara, 23 can exemplify in her testimony:

“I'm always afraid inside a taxi when I'm alone. I feel safer inside a bus than in a taxi. On the bus I am afraid when I am at the stop and when I walk home from the stop, but in the taxi I am always afraid, I do not trust. When I take a taxi I only get calm when I arrive home”.

When it comes to Uber, the perceptions slightly change. In both cities women tend to feel safe. In Recife, 52% said to feel safe against 36% that feel unsafe. In Brussels, 65.9% feel safe or very safe. Concerning that, Jeannine, 26, from Brussels shared: ‘for me Uber is the easiest and safest way to go back home, I use it since I was 19 or 20; my parents were very relieved. Before, I used to get taxis’. As well, Carol, 32 from Recife, said: ‘Regarding Uber the advantage is that everything is registered by the application, this gives you more security than the random taxi you take on the street, for example’. Still, some women can feel insecure due to bad experiences related to harassments as it is the case of Letícia, 25 from Recife:

“Whenever I get Uber I share the location with family members because I've felt very insecure in many Ubers. I am well aware that I am a beautiful woman, so I walk purposefully messy because I have suffered many harassments and this makes me deeply insecure, so I do ALL to call less attention”.

In regards to how women feel when riding a bicycle, the perception changed according to city. In Recife 60% of the women said feeling unsafe or very unsafe. This result can be explained not only by the fear of crime, but also by the general lack of bicycle infrastructure in the city. Consequently, it is very likely that during the day the general feeling of insecurity also exists. On the other hand, in Brussels the feelings are mixed; 27.5% feel safe against 22.7%

that feel unsafe. Some women as Louise, 28, use the bicycle as an alternative to walking in order to feel safer: ‘I hardly go out without my bike to avoid confrontations’. However, in the same city this feeling may change. Rose, 20, shared her impressions: ‘I personally would feel safer if the infrastructure for bikes would be improved’.

4.5.4. Women’s-only transportations

When it comes to exclusive transport carriages for women the opinions from both cities were very different, proving how polemic this topic can be. As well, according to previous literature, segregated transport schemes, which establish women’s-only services or women’s- only cars on commuter trains and subways, is a non consensual matter that can vary also according to locality (Loukaitou-Sideris and Fink, 2009).

In order to find out how the women participants in the present research think about the topic, they were invited to give their opinion. As observed in the graph below (Graph 17), the option most voted in Recife was “totally in favour, as a permanent measure” with 28.1% of the votes. Moreover, 25.2% said to be in favour, as a temporary measure, that is, for a limited period of time. In contrast, the majority of women from Brussels (51.8%) are against, believing that this measure does not solve the problem of women’s lack of safety.

What is your opinion on public transport carriages/sections exclusively for women?

Recife Brussels

28,10% Totally in favor, as a permanent measure 16,70% 25,20% In favor, as a temporary measure 14% Against; It does not solve the problem of 20,50% women's safety 51,80% Indifferent, would not change the 19% perception of safety 13,50% 7,10% Don’t know 3,70%

Graph 17 Recife vs. Brussels: opinion on public transport carriages/sections exclusively for women. Source: author’s elaboration

In this context, why the differences of opinion according to city? In Brazil, this measure is already adopted by cities such as Rio de Janeiro (since 2006), Brasilia (since 2013), Belo Horizonte and Recife (since 2017) (Figure 6). Authorities justify the application of this action as a manner to prevent passengers from being embarrassed by overcrowding and to preserve the physical integrity of women that constant complain about abuses suffered within transportation. In general, female wagons are only available to women at rush hours, from 6 am to 8:30 am and from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm (G1 PE, 2017). Worldwide, the solution was also implemented in Tokyo (Figure 7), Jakarta, Cairo and Mumbai, among others. In Guatemala, Mexico and Pakistan there are exclusive buses for women (Veja, 2017).

Figure 6 Women’s wagon in Recife. Source: G1.globo, 2017

Figure 7 Women’s wagon in Tokyo. Source: Veja, 2017

Despite most of female transit riders seemed to appreciate this action, even in Recife the opinions were diverse. According to Cida Pedrosa and Silvia Cordeiro, Secretaries of Women in Recife, ‘the measure may satisfy at first, but does not solve the problem of insecurity, as there are other factors to be adjusted in public transport policy’(G1 PE, 2017). Moreover, feminist groups claim that ‘exclusive wagons could even encourage assaults on ordinary wagons under the pretext that passengers on board would be risking being harassed’. According to activists, ‘the only way to stop harassment is through education, and coexistence between genders is an important part of learning’ (Veja, 2017).

According to the results, most of the women in Brussels and some in Recife share the same presented point of view. ‘Segregated wagons would only enforce the image of women as

prey’, said one of the Brussels’ participants. From Recife, Fernanda, 30, is part of the women that also disagree with the measure:

“I don't think exclusive public transportation would significantly contribute to the transformation of habits, behaviours, and a whole culture of the way women are viewed in the public space. I believe a substantial change is needed, which involves deconstructing sexism and disrupting the patriarchy instilled in people's thinking and acting when they encounter a female body in the collective space of the street”.

In a following moment, women were also asked about their opinion concerning their perception of safety when they take a ride with a female taxi or Uber driver. Once again the results changed considerably compared to city. As the graph shows (Graph 18), in Recife, 88.6% of the women said feeling safer when the driver is from the same gender, against 57.3% in Brussels.

When using a taxi or Uber at night, do you feel safer when the driver is a woman?

Recife Brussels

88,60%

57,30% 42,70%

11,40%

yes no

Graph 18 Recife vs. Brussels: women’s perception of safety related to female drivers. Source: author’s elaboration

Despite the differences, still the majority of women from both cities share the same impressions. One of the reasons can due to previous negative experiences with male drivers, as is the case of Mariana, 29, from Recife:

“I already had a negative experience with an Uber driver, he harassed me verbally. At this point I sent his license plate number to friends and to my partner. This is our defence mechanism

when we are feeling vulnerable. When I get a ride with an Uber female driver I feel much safer, it is the only situation when I sit in the front seat, when the driver is a woman. ”

In Brazil, due to this general perception, the emergence of new women-only Uber-like apps is becoming increasingly popular. Some examples are the FemiTaxi, available in the cities of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Brasilia, Goiania, Belo Horizonte, Santos and Campinas. The app has 50 thousand registered passengers on the platform and more than 5 thousand drivers. Another app that follows the same concept is the Lady Driver: launched in July 2017, the application has more than 8 thousand registered drivers. It is available in São Paulo, Guarulhos and in some parts of southern Rio de Janeiro (Use.Mobile, 2018).

4.6. Feeling safer at night

After the previous discussed findings, it is clear what makes women feel safe or not, and how the perceptions change according to the analysed cities. Therefore, recognising what makes them feel insecure, what do women tend to do about this feeling in order to continue enjoying their lives at night? What do women in both cities think can be done by authorities and society in order to improve their safety at night? The present chapter has the aim to respond these questions. In a first moment, there will be discussed the strategies that they already adopt themselves to feel safer at night. Secondly, some measures suggested by the women participating in the research are presented to improve their experience in the public space and their general feeling of safety at night.

4.6.1. Personal strategies

As already discussed in the literature, in order to avoid feeling unsafe, many women adopt strategies when travelling in the cities (Gillow, 2015). Especially at night, some environments are avoided, because they are assumed to be more risky by women. In both cities, despite the fact that perceptions of safety can differ, the strategies used by women consulted in this research tend to be the same.

In both cities, many women take a longer way home to avoid walking in certain streets and neighbourhoods. They mostly avoid narrow, poorly lit streets and deserted places, such as

tunnels and passages under train lines. Additionally, some women can avoid areas in order to escape from potential situations of harassment. About that, Rose, 20, shared her experience in Brussels: ‘I avoid walking in dark streets, parks, train station areas and neighbourhoods with many immigrants since unfortunately I might encounter men who are willing to stalk and harass women’.

Another frequently used approach adopted by women from both cities is being more vigilant and attentive to the surroundings when walking at night; many times removing headphones to be more aware of potential unexpected situations. Moreover, being accompanied by someone when coming back home or when waiting for the transport can reassure them. However, when alone, many women try to make sure their phone will have enough battery for the whole night in case of the need for an emergency calling, asking for an Uber or to send messages to relatives and friends to tell they are safe or feeling in danger. Concerning this, Josephine, 24, said: ‘after several harassing experiences in Brussels, I took the sad habit of always informing my beloved ones by message when I got home’.

As well, commonly in both cities, but more in Recife, women try to avoid walking with objects that call attention to possible theft or mugging, such as expensive watches, jewelleries or a Smartphone. But also in Brussels, some women that were already victim of theft tend to take more care of personal belongings to avoid theft, such as bags. Related to this, Emma, 22, said: ‘I'm more cautious with my bag, I was victim of theft once. Now I am more aware of my environment. If I go on foot, I'll avoid some places where I know friends had problems’.

Another concern shared by women from both cities is make sure they know how they will go back home before going out at night. For that reason, some women avoid going to places on that circumstances or if the place is also difficult to be reached. When already out, it is the instinct of many women to walk fast and not staying standing alone in the street at night, they often speed up in order to arrive at their destination as soon as possible, sometimes holding the keys between the fingers. In Brussels, Amelia, 23, commented about that: ‘I want to get home as fast as possible; I also try not to go to places if I need to think how I am going to get back home, especially if it's after midnight. And I am always alert about the environment and who is behind me or around me’.

Furthermore, many women in Brussels go back home earlier than they actually wanted to not miss the last transport at night. That somehow is a limiting factor, especially for the ones that would like to enjoy a party that finishes later. Additionally, in order to avoid walk alone, some women try to go back home together with friends that are going the same way or direction. An example of this situation was given by Sarah, 24: ‘If I'm with friends or colleagues, I try to come back home with them or to take the same roads as them for a while in order to avoid being alone. I feel very much safer like that, even if the way is much longer”. On the other hand, to avoid going home alone, some women also adopt other strategies, like Anna, 25, from Recife: ‘Sometimes I sleep at a friend's house to avoid returning alone at night’.

As seen in the previous results, women in Brussels tend to walk more. For that reason, some of them choose to wear comfortable shoes to be able to escape from an unexpected uncomfortable situation. Also related to dress code, some women avoid wearing clothes that show and reinforce their feminine body shapes in order to call less unwanted sexual attention. In relation to that, Joana, 27, from Recife, said: ‘I avoid wearing certain clothes that show a lot my body, prefer to be more discreet to not feeling exposed and not drawing attention’. On the other hand, there are women that use other strategies. Through empowering self defence classes, they feel less fearful when walking alone at night. Clara, 25, talked about her experience and methods to walk in Brussels at night:

“If you walk with confidence you show to other people that they should not approach, it sends the message that you don’t feel vulnerable and you are not an easy target. I also did some self defence classes which help me to feel safer. It makes you more familiar with possible physical conflicts or defending yourself, not feeling paralysed”

In Recife, it is common for women to avoid staying inside a parked vehicle at night. This can make them an easy target for possible robbery or ‘express kidnapping’12. Another strategy that women usually adopt in both cities is changing sidewalk sides when feeling vulnerable or due to suspicious situations or people. This approach can be considered judgemental but unfortunately it became a habit caused by fear, especially in Recife, as Julia, 27, explained:

12 From the Portuguese version: “sequestro relâmpago”, express kidnapping is a crime in which a victim, usually kidnapped in her or his own vehicle, is held for a short time - often for a few hours - under the control of criminals.

‘Sometimes at night when I am walking to get back my car in the street, if I see someone and suspect I might be mugged, I would change my route and wait for the person to pass in order to get back inside the car’.

4.6.2. Suggested measures

As seen, women from both cities tend to make use of immediate strategies which are the intuitive reactions to the current and not ideal safety circumstances. For that reason, for women from both cities feel safer, a deeper change is needed. In that context, women from Recife and Brussels were also given the space to suggest and request for measures that would make them feel more comfortable and less vulnerable at night. After all the opinions collected in the questionnaire, a compilation of short term and long term measures was created. This follow section tries to recommend some actions that can be adopted by public authorities and society in order to improve women’s perception safety at night in both cities. a. Police investments

In general, women from both cities, especially from Recife, requested for more police presence on the streets during the night. In Brussels, the demands were mostly directed to more "policing" on the streets, not necessarily from police, but patrol agents who are able to maintain order and intervene in case of incidents, such as the gardiens de la paix13 (peacekeepers). In addition, they also requested for patrols that could help/guide women on their night trips. On the other hand, police was also requested in Brussels but in more specific places and situations such as neighbourhoods with higher crime incidence and areas near train and metro stations (e.g. Gare de l'Ouest).

Another matter raised by women from both cities was giving better training for police staff in order to offer better assistance to women victims of assault, taking street harassment more seriously. Moreover, women from Recife think that the number of female police officers

13 The term "gardiens de la paix" generally refers to all non-police public security functions. Their goal is to increase citizens' sense of security in the neighborhoods. To this end, they perform a large number of tasks. They are the relay between the municipality and the population and report to the relevant municipal services or the police the problems they face. Available at: https://www.belgium.be/fr/justice/securite/precautions_a_prendre/services_de_securite/gardiens_de_la_paix (Accessed 4 August 2019)

should be increased in order to make women more comfortable and encourage them to report gender related crimes. In the same city, concerning police approach, women participants also argued that there should be better training for the police as a whole, so that interventions against crime in general can be less biased and less violent. b. Urban planning and design solutions

When it comes to quality of public space, women both cities expressed concerns about it, especially when it comes to lighting, proving to still be a priority to improve women’s perception of safety. In Recife, the majority of women think that public lighting should receive more attention and investments from responsible authorities. In Brussels, some women called attention for improving the lighting in darker neighbourhoods. In addition, few women also consider that they would feel safer with the presence of more cameras in the streets.

Mainly in Recife, women think that there should be more attention on creating public spaces of quality in order to bring more people to use the streets, encouraging natural surveillance: the more people, the safer the street becomes. For that purpose, the land use legislation should be revised in some parts of the city, in order to promote areas with a greater mix of uses that allow hybridism in residential buildings by entering commercial establishments that offer 24-hour services. Another priority should be investing in the quality of sidewalks to encourage more people walking; cleaning and maintenance are also important. Moreover, promote greater visual permeability between the interior and exterior of private lots and avoid the use of walls in order to provide natural vigilance.

Another demand from the participants from Recife was to promote cultural events in the public space at night, with the aim to attract more people to the street. It is also important to take in count the creation of non-exclusionary spaces, promoting diversity of socioeconomic groups in public spaces. c. Improvements in night public mobility services

In both cities women asked for investments in the quality of public mobility services. In addition, another request in common was for better-kept and well-lit bus stops at night, women friendly and better securitised. In Recife, women would like to have more overnight

transportation options and more frequent transport, with shorter intervals between each bus. They also demanded better integration between modes and security between connections: sometimes it is not safe to walk after getting off the bus, for example. In the same city, some women asked for a system where they can request the bus to stop anywhere at night, in addition to the existing official stops, a measure already adopted in other Brazilian cities, such as Curitiba and Brasilia(Gissoni, 2014).

In Brussels, many women would like to have a 24-hour transportation option on weekends, in order to avoid unnecessary long walks at night. Additionally, night time public transport should have better prices or be offered for free to everyone. The frequency of each bus/metro should also increase and the stops should be more flexible so women do not have to walk as far to get home once leaving the bus. Moreover, in both cities women asked for investments in bicycle infrastructure, better integration between existing bike lines and creation of new ones to encourage bicycle use also at night. d. Education and gender equality conscience

In Brazil, urban violence is a structural problem caused mainly by a large social inequality and lack of equal opportunities for all; in Recife is no different. For that reason, many participants argued that investing in quality education for all should be a long-term priority for reducing urban violence, thereby improving the perception of safety. Carol, 32, exemplified the problem:

“What does the violence come from? From the lack of education, lack of family structure, contact with violence since a young age; in some less structured households, women are often disrespected and beaten by their own relatives. It is necessary a change from the root of the problem; in my view the best way to reverse this situation is with education, which in our country does not receive the necessary investment”.

Furthermore, according to women from Recife and Brussels, education should also be related to gender equality. Small children, especially boys, should be taught since early about boundaries and mutual respect, regardless of gender. However, education should not only be focused on children, it is also necessary to raise everybody’s awareness, mostly men’s, in order to avoid sexist behaviours and street harassment. Related to the public space, it is

needed to stop sexist advertising and promote the encouragement of female appropriation of night spaces, that current belong mainly to men.

Another measure defended by women from both cities, mainly in Brussels, was investing also in programs to promote female empowerment, such as public sponsorship for self-defence classes for girls and women. It is an action that would help many female to feel stronger and less vulnerable when walking on the streets, as Clara, 25, defended: ‘I experience a lot less fear while alone at night in the city because I have followed a course by Garance association. So, I know how to defend myself and how to react in a 'non safe' situation’. Also, women from Recife suggested more investments in public safety policies especially focused on women. For them, it is also needed to increase the efficiency and applicability of existing laws aimed to protect women. In this context, there should be also more support and empathy for victims of aggression, including platforms to listen to them. e. Reduce social inequality and promote cultural integration for immigrants

Another important long term measure defended by the consulted women from both cities was to invest in public policies to reduce social inequality, such as creating more job opportunities for various types of qualifications. It is also crucial to guarantee social aid and housing for people in vulnerability. In Recife, women suggested social crime prevention programs in high-risk communities such as slums as a measure to reduce the incidence of crime, also creating more opportunities for young people to integrate into society.

In Brussels, there is also a disparity in infrastructure for poorer neighbourhoods, where vulnerable groups join the crime due to lack of better alternatives. As well, general tensions stemming from inequality leads to a perceived 'lack of integration' that are also related to cultural differences, especially of groups from immigrant background. There is also the matter of respecting the local cultural, which for some groups can be a challenge, as a participant from Turkey, highlights:

“Brussels has many people coming from other cultures where sexual harassments can be more common and they keep behaving the same way in Belgium. I also have foreign roots but I am aware that I should follow the rules of the new country I am living in. I don’t blame only the people, since this topic involves directly the Belgian government and community as well. There

should be more effort to include the foreigners in the Belgian culture and values. Only then we can tackle from its root the problems like safety and many more which are directly related to culture and people”. f. Improve the efficiency of the criminal system

In both cities, women think that there should be law enforcement from the criminal justice system and more strict punishment for the perpetrators, including real legal action taken against harassers and assaulters. On the other hand, In Recife, some women called attention to the prison system. The focus should be on the rehabilitation and social reintegration of prisoners in order to prevent released criminals from being repeat offenders. About this, Bárbara, 23, said: ‘What would make me feel safer would be more policing and better enforcement, impunity is still high. And our prison system doesn't educate anyone either’.

5. Conclusion

As seen, the fear of violence in public spaces affects the night routine of women as it restricts their movement and freedom to exert their right as citizens and inhabitants of the city – freedom to move, study, work, and leisure. As previous literature highlights, many factors can play a role in determining women’s access to the city, including urban design and planning, usage of space, improved policing and so on.

In this context, the present work aimed to identify which specific factors answer to female safety concerns, by looking at how women react to certain attributes in the urban night environment from Recife and Brussels. As raised by the research question, the perception of safety and its role on the travel decision making during the night were the main issues investigated. After the analysis, the main hypotheses and questions presented in the beginning of this study can be discussed and answered.

Confirming findings of previous studies on the topic, fear of crime can limit women's access to the urban environments at night. However, there are different levels of impact that vary not only by conditions of geographical location, but also due to psychological factors, such as personal traits. In this way, even if there is a general trend about determinate feeling, each woman has their individual perception. According to results from both cities, only 1% of the responders in Recife think that fear of crime do not affect their perception and routine, against 21.6% from women in Brussels.

As well, it was verified in both cities that the perception of safety can be a product of lived experiences and secondary information. Factors such as consequence of actual aggression and previous negative experiences, such as harassment can reinforce the image of women as potential victims of sexual assault and increase negative feelings. Moreover, sexist socially constructed values can also contribute to reinforcing an incorporation of a supposed vulnerability in women, assuming that they are less able to defend themselves when compared to men. Aspects such as media influence, publishing cases of violence also makes the general feeling of insecurity grows.

Related to how geographical location affects the perception of safety at night, the results proved that it has a significant influence. In Recife it is clear that fear of crime is an issue that considerable affects women’s habits at night; the great majority, 91%, classified the city at

night as being more unsafe than safe. On the other hand, in Brussels fear of crime has a lower impact in their habits, the majority of women chose a middle ground option in between unsafe and safe, showing that the general feeling is of safety but there are still some reasons for them not to feel perfectly comfortable at night.

Additionally, it is not only on the city scale level of geographical location that differences on perception of safety were found. Variations were also perceived on the neighbourhood’s scale within the same city. In both cities there were identified neighbourhoods that they would avoid going at night. As seen, reasons why women would avoid some area were coincident in some aspects when compared to city, such as localities considered more social disadvantaged, influencing also physical elements of the environment.

It was also confirmed that the relationship between physical and social aspects of a location affects the perception of safety. According to the findings, elements impacting on women’s perception of safety from both cities are the same, but presented in different circumstances and influencing in different levels. These results are also in line with previous literature, which helps to reinforce existing theories.

In Recife and in Brussels, physical factors such as public lighting, environment well maintained, police and camera presence received overall positive responses on affecting their perception of safety at night. In contrast, it was also consistent that women from both cities are affected negatively by elements such as environments with an abandon aspect, with the presence of walls and dense green spaces.

Related to social aspects, the results showed that in general the presence of people influence their perception of safety positively, especially if they belong to the same sociocultural group. However, the feelings from both cities were mixed regarding people coming from a different sociocultural group. While 30.4% (Recife) and 37.8% (Brussels) said feeling less safe, 58% in Recife and 51.8% in Brussels declared to be indifferent.

When it comes to fear influencing women’s travel decision making at night, the cities had different results. Analysing the findings, it is possible to remark that most of the responders in Recife, 89%, considered fear of crime as a very relevant factor when choosing their mean of

transportation at night. In contrast, in Brussels, only 44.8% said that fear of crime is a very relevant element influencing on their mobility choice.

While in Recife women tend to feel unsafe in most of the travel situations at night when they are alone, in Brussels the trend changes; except for some situations that women can feel unsafe, such as waiting for the public transport or walking, the general feeling is of safety for the greater part of the women consulted. Yet, in a hypothetical situation where women would feel safer, they tend to change their mobility choices at night. In Recife, instead of the usually chosen transport at night (car and Uber) they would use more public transport, bicycle and walk, for example. In Brussels, they would also choose more often to walk and ride a bike.

In both cities, despite the fact that perceptions of safety can differ, women tend to adopt similar strategies in order to feel safer at night. Avoid walking in certain streets and neighbourhoods, being more vigilant and attentive to the surroundings, go back home earlier and avoid using some clothes are among the examples. As well, as suggested measures, they would feel safer if authorities invested more in police, urban planning and design solutions and on the night public mobility services. In a long term, education and gender equality conscience, efforts to reduce social inequality and promote cultural integration for immigrants and improving the efficiency of the criminal system would be among the suggestions.

But, what comes next? As seen, creating safety involves much more than just responding to one isolated element. Acknowledging the factors that make women feel vulnerable in the public space is essential to identify safety strategies that could effectively work in improving conditions by which women would be able to move safely and without fear. However, measures need to be put in practice and it is a construction that takes time. Promoting an inclusive urbanisation, with more emphasis in gender equality and women participation is needed and important. Moreover, empowering women by giving them voice and encouraging their presence in the public space is a good start.

6. Bibliography and references

Atlas de Desenvolvimento Humano no Brasil (2019). Recife, PE. Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019)

Bannister, J. and Fyfe, N. (2001) Introduction: fear and the city, Urban Studies, 38, pp. 807– 813.

Baur, J. (2007) Fear of crime: the impact of age, victimization, perceived vulnerability to victimization and neighborhood characteristics. Report No. I6, Australasian Centre for Policing Research.

BBC (2018) Belgium country profile. 21 May 2018. Available at: (Accessed 10 August 2019) be. Brussels (2019). About the region. Available at: < https://be.brussels/about-the- region>(Accessed 10 August 2019)

Bianchini, F. (1995) Night cultures, night economies. Planning Practice and Research 10(2): 121–126.

Boyce, P. R.; Eklund, N. H.; Hamilton, B. J. and Bruno, L. D. (2000) Perceptions of safety at night in different lighting conditions. Lighting Research Technology. 2000. Vol. 32, no. 2, p. 79- 91.

BISA (2016). Brussels Institute for Statistics and Analysis. How many different nationalities live in Brussels? Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019)

BISA (2018) Brussels Institute for Statistics and Analysis. Safety. Criminality and Police personal. Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019)

Brands, J., Schwanen, T. and Aalst, I. Van (2013) Fear of crime and affective ambiguities in the night-time economy. Urban Studies. 2013. Vol. 52, no. 3, p. 439-455. DOI 10.1177/0042098013505652. SAGE Publications

Brussels.info (2019) Brussels weather and climate. Available at: (Accessed 10 August 2019)

Caldeira, T. (2003). Cidade de muros: crime, segregação e cidadania em São Paulo. São Paulo: Ed. 34 / Edusp, 2003.

Calió, S. A. (1997) Incorporando a Questão de Gênero nos Estudos e no Planejamento Urbano. In: encuentro de geografos de america latina, 6., 1997. Resúmenes. Observatorio Geográfico, v. 1, p. 1 - 9. Available at:

(Accessed 10 January 2019).

CBTU (2019) Companhia Brasileira de trens urbanos. Recife. Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019) Chatterton, P. and Hollands, R. (2002) Theorising urban playscapes: Producing, regulating and consuming youthful nightlife city spaces. Urban Studies 39(1): 95–116.

Col.lectiu Punt 6 (2016) Nocturnas. The everyday life of women nightshift workers in the Barcelona metropolitan area. Ed. Col.lectiu Punt 6, Barcelona.

Collins, R. (2016) Addressing the inconsistencies in fear of crime research: A meta-analytic review. Journal of criminal justice, 47:21-31.

Crawford, T. and Flint, J. (2009) Urban safety, anti-social behaviour and the night-time economy’, 2009. Criminology & Criminal Justice, Vol. 9, no. 4, p. 403-413. DOI 10.1177/1748895809343390. SAGE Publications

Dammert, L. Tobar F. (2018) Fear and Insecurity in Latin America, in: Lee, M. & Mythen, G., The Routledge International Handbook on Fear of Crime (pp 339-353), London: Routledge.

Deboosere, P., Eggerickx, T., Van Hecke, E., Wayens, B. (2009) The population of Brussels: a demographic overview. Brussels Studies, Synopsis nr. 3, 12 january 2009 (corr. 17 March 2009).

DETRAN (2015) Departamento de Trânsito. Available at: (Accessed 10 August 2019)

DH.be (2017) Les femmes se sentent en insécurité dans les parcs bruxellois. 18 September 2017. Available at: (Accessed 4 July 2019)

Edensor, T. (2013) The Gloomy city: Rethinking the relation between light and dark. Urban Studies DOI: 10.1177/ 0042098013504 009.

Eldridge, A. and Roberts, M. (2008) A comfortable night out? Alcohol, drunkenness and inclusive town centres. Journal compilation Royal Geographical Society and Institute of British Geographers, 2008. Vol. 40, no. 3, p. 365–374.

G1 PE (2017). Vagão exclusivo para mulheres será ampliado para todo o metrô do Recife. 6 Mars 2017. Available at:< https://g1.globo.com/pernambuco/noticia/vagao-exclusivo-para- mulheres-sera-ampliado-para-todo-metro-do-recife.ghtml>(Accessed 6 August 2019).

Governo do Estado de Pernambuco (2016). Estatísticas da criminalidade violenta em Pernambuco – 2016. Publicação da Agência Estadual de Planejamento e Pesquisas de Pernambuco – CONDEPE/ FIDEM

Gilow, M. (2015) Travelling in Brussels and feeling unsafe: women’s perceptions and strategies. Brussels Studies, General collection, n 87 [Online]. Available at: < http://journals.openedition.org/brussels/1277 > (Accessed 7 January 2019).

Gissoni, A. (2014). Cidades adotam ações por segurança de mulheres no transporte. 8 August 2014. Available at: (Accessed 4 August 2019)

Grande Recife (2019). Dados e estatísticas. Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019)

Gwiadzinski, L. (2015) The urban night: a space time for innovation and sustainable development. Articulo - Journal of Urban Research. 2015. Vol. 11, p. 1-13.

Heath, T. (1997) The twenty-four hour city concept– A review of initiatives in British cities. Journal of Urban Design 2(2): 193–204.

Hollands, R. (1995) Friday Night, Saturday Night. Department of Social Policy, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

IBGE (2010) Censo Demográfico. Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019)

IBGE (2010) Censo Demográfico, Resultados do universo: características da população e domicílios. Available at: (Accessed 23 July 2019)

IBGE (2019) Cidades. Pernambuco, Recife. Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019)

IBGE (2019) Recife histórico. Pernambuco, Recife. Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019)

IBSA (2019) Mini-Bru. La Région de Bruxelles-Capitale en chiffres. Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019)

INMET (2019) Normais climatológicas do Brasil. Available at:

(Accessed 10 August 2019)

IRM (2019). L’Institut royal météorologique. Le climat de la Belgique Available at: (Accessed 10 August 2019)

Jacobs, J. (1961) The Death and Life of Great American Cities. New York: Random House.

Knight, C. (2010) Field surveys of the effect of lamp spectrum on the perception of safety and comfort at night. Lighting Research & Technology. 2010. v. 42, no. 3, p. 313-329. DOI 10.1177/1477153510376794. SAGE Publications

Knox P. & Pinch S. (2013) Chapter 11: Bodies, Sexuality and the City, in: In: P. Knox & S. Pinch (Eds.). Urban social geography: An introduction. (pp. 234-251). Edinburgh: Pearson.

Koskela, H. (1997) 'Bold Walk and Breakings': Women's spatial confidence versus fear of violence. Gender, Place & Culture. 1997. Vol. 4, no. 3, p. 301-320. DOI 10.1080/09663699725369. Informa UK Limited

Koskela, H. and Pain, R. (2000) Revisiting fear and place: women's fear of attack and the built environment. Geoforum. 2000. Vol. 31, no. 2, p. 269-280. DOI 10.1016/s0016- 7185(99)00033-0. Elsevier BV

Larrañaga A. N.; Rizzi, L. I.; Arellana, J.; Strambi, O. and Cybis, H. B. B. (2016) The influence of built environment and travel attitudes on walking: A case study of Porto Alegre, Brazil, International Journal of Sustainable Transportation, 2016. Vol. 10, no. 4, p. 332-342. DOI: 10.1080/15568318.2014.933986.

Le Soir (2018) La criminalité a chuté de 19% à Bruxelles en dix ans. Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019)

Liempt, I. Van (2013) Safe nightlife collaborations: Multiple actors, conflicting interests and different power distributions. Urban Studies. 2013. Vol. 52, no. 3, p. 486-500. DOI 10.1177/0042098013504010. SAGE Publications

Liempt, I. van, Aalst, I. van and Schwanen, T. (2014) Introduction: Geographies of the urban night, 2014. Urban Studies, Vol. 52, no. 3, p. 407-421. DOI 10.1177/0042098014552933. SAGE Publications

Loukaitou-Sideris, A. (1999). Hot spots of bus stop crime: The importance of environmental attributes. Journal of the American Planning Association, 65 (4), 395-411.

Loukaitou-Sideris, A. and Fink, C. (2009) Addressing women’s fear of victimization in transportation settings: a survey of U.S. transit agencies, Urban Affairs Review, 44, pp. 554– 587.

Macassi, L. I. (2005) El miedo a la calle: la seguridad de las mujeres en la ciudad. Lima. Centro de la Mujer Peruana Flora Tristán; Centro de Intercambio y Servicios para el Cono Sur, 117 p. Available at: http://www.flora.org.pe/pdfs/PDF%20EL%20MIEDO%20A%20LA%20CALLE.pdf (Accessed 13 January 2019).

Monitoring des quartiers (2015) Revenu imposable moyen par habitant (classes de revenus) 2015 (€). Available at: (Accessed 23 July 2019)

Newman, O. (1972) Defensible Space: People and Design in the Violent City. London: Architectural Press.

Ngesan, R. M. and Karim, H. A. (2012) Impact of Night Commercial Activities towards Quality Of Life of Urban Residents. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. 2012. Vol. 35, p. 546 – 555. DOI: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2012.02.121

Pain, R. (2000) Place, social relations and the fear of crime: a review. Progress In Human Geography, Northumbria, v. 3, n. 24, p.365-387. [Consulted on 9 January 2019]. Available at: .

Pain, R. (2001). Gender, race, age and fear in the city. Urban studies, 38(5-6), 899-913.

Reynald, D. & Elffers, H. (2009). The Future of Newman's Defensible Space Theory: Linking Defensible Space and the Routine Activities of Place. European Journal of Criminology, 6 (1): 25–46.

Roberts M. & Eldridge A. (2009). Chapter 2. Cities at night. In: Planning the night-time city.(pp. 1-32) London: Routledge.

Roberts, M. and Eldridge, A. (2012), Planning the Night-time City. Hoboken : Taylor and Francis.

Robinson, J. (2014) Comparing places. Available at: (Accessed 8 August 2019)

Santos Jr , L. L. and Halley, B. M. (2018) Medos e muros em Casa forte: topofobias do Recife. Revista de Geografia (Recife) V. 35, No. 1 (especial), p. 236-253

Schulz, D. and Gilbert, S. (1996) Women and transit security: a new look at old issues, in: Women’s Travel Issues Second National Conference, Federal Highway Administration, Washington, DC.

Shaw, R. (2014) Beyond night-time economy: a_ective atmospheres of the urban night. Geoforum, 2014. v. 51 (1). p. 87-95.

Silva, D. C. and Silva, A. N. R. (2017) Segurança, percepção de segurança e escolha modal para acesso ao campus da USP São Carlos. Anais do XXXI Congresso Nacional de Pesquisa em Transporte da ANPET. Recife

Siqueira, L. de A. (2015) Por onde andam as mulheres: percursos e medos que limitam a experiência de mulheres no centro do Recife. Thesis (Master) – Universidade Federal de Pernambuco. Centro de Artes e Comunicação. Desenvolvimento Urbano, Recife: O Autor, 2015. 161 f.: il.

Stanko, E. (1990) Everyday Violence: Women’s and Men’s Experience of Personal Danger. London: Pandora.

STIB (2019). Activity Report. Available at: < http://2018.stib-activityreports.brussels/en> (Accessed 10 August 2019)

Use Mobile (2018) Uber para mulheres: aumento na adesão desses aplicativos. 10 September 2018. Available at: https://usemobile.com.br/uber-para-mulheres-aumento-na-adesao/ (Accessed 6 August 2019).

Vanderveen, G. (2006) More than one ‘Fear of Crime’, in: Vanderveen G., Interpreting Fear, Crime, Risk and Unsafety, Boom: Boom Juridische Uitgevers (pp. 197-224)

Veja (2017) Barros, M. A polêmica do vagão rosa: separar homens e mulheres no transporte público é uma boa ideia? 11 February 2017. Available at: (Accessed 6 August 2019)

Valentine, G. (1989) The Geography of Women's Fear. Blackwell Publishing. Royal Geographical Society. v. 21, n. 4, p.385-390. [Consulted on 5 January 2019]. Available at: .

Valentine. G. (1990) Women’s fear and the design of public space. Built Environment 16 (4): 288-303.

Valentine, G. (2001). Social geographies: Space and society. Essex, England: Pearson Education Limited.

Truman, J. (2005) Fear of crime and perceived risk of victimization among college students. Thesis (Doctorate)- Department Of Sociology In The College Of Sciences At The University Of Central Florida, B.a. University Of Central Florida, Florida, 2005.

Tavares, R. (2012) Uma análise das desigualdades de gênero em favelas do rio de janeiro: perspectiva do reconhecimento para o urbanismo. Cadernos de Pós-graduação em Arquitetura e Urbanismo, São Paulo, v. 48, n. 2, p.0-1.

Williams R.W. (2008) Night spaces: Darkness, deterritorialization, and social control. Space and Culture 11(4): 514–532.

Wilson, J. Q. and Kelling, G. L. (1982) Broken windows, The Atlantic Monthly, March, pp. 29– 38.

Yavuz, N., & Welch, E.W. (2010). Addressing fear of crime in public space: Gender differences in reaction to safety measures in train transit. Urban Studies, 47 (12), 2491-2515.