Date Rape Safety and Personal Security

I remember my dating years fondly as a time of excitement, fun, and growth. I was raised to respect and protect women, but those values seem to have changed with many of today's young adults. As a result, date rape or acquaintance rape is a very real and serious safety concern for women today. Alchohol, mariquanja, Rohypnol, cocaine, speed, and GHB are some to the common substances used in date rape cases. It is crucial that women who are actively dating are aware of some common causes of date rape.

• Binge drinking is very popular among todays college aged daters. Consuming drinks quickly, takes the edge off, reduces stress and inhibitions. Binge drinking is thought of as a way to break the ice, but often it can create an "angry or mean drunk" that can get very sexually aggressive and violent. This can lead to date or acquaintance rape.
• A common date rape practice is to spike an unsuspecting persons drink with drugs that will render them unconscious. This way the attacker meets no resistance and the victim often cannot remember what happened.

The Centers for Disease Control released the following date rape statistics.

• For every 1000 women attending college, there will be 35 reported rapes every academic year.
• Over 62% of all rapes are committed by a friend or acquantance.
• Over half of all rapes happen after midnight

There are some things you can do to greatly reduce the chances of being a victim of date rape. There is increased power and security in numbers. Group dates are a great way to increase personal security and reduce incidence of date rape. Only group date with someone you trust and can count on. Never leave your drink unattended, if you do, toss it and get another. Do not accept drinks from a stranger. Consider not drinking alcohol at all. Persons under the influence of alcohol are much more likely to fall victim to date rape. Isolation is a bad idea; do not allow yourself to be in an isolated location with a date or acquaintance that you don't know well and trust. Consider carrying a self defense product such as pepper spray, stun gun and/or personal alarm. When used correctly pepper spray will stop even the most aggressive attacker instantly. Keychain pepper spray units are small, convenient and easy to use. Disguised units appear to be common items but have a hidden pepper spray canister inside. Lipstick pepper spray can prove extremely beneficial in a dating situation. Another excellent option is the stun gun; a stun gun that looks like a real cell phone can be a great benefit. Unless you tell someone they simply will have no idea that you are carrying a high power stun gun. Personal alarms are small, inexpensive and accomplish one goal - make noise and get the attention of others.