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Many attackers look for individuals who are distracted and not aware of what’s happening around them. Avoid staring at your phone while you’re walking or on the bus, and instead, keep your eyes on the landscape and people around you. This can help you identify any potentially dangerous situations.  It’s okay if you have your phone out or nearby—that could even be helpful if you need to call for help. Just don’t use it to the detriment of not knowing what’s going on around you. Pay attention to how people are acting, if someone is following or staring at you a lot, and any potential escape routes you could take in case something were to happen. Even if the person in the car seems kind, confused, or lost, don’t step up to an open window. If you can, cut across the street or behind some houses to get away from an unknown person who is trying to talk to you.  Common ruses that would-be-abductors use are asking for directions or pretending to be looking for a lost pet. They assume that people, children especially, will take pity on them and want to be helpful. If this car circles back around to you again, try going to a neighbor’s house or calling your parents or the police. If you can, take note of the license plate number. You could also turn and walk in the opposite direction if you think a car is following you. If they also turn around, you know there is a potentially dangerous situation at hand. When someone is following you on foot, it’s important to get to the safety of other people or to at least get far enough away from them that they can’t easily grab you. The main goal is to prevent them from getting close enough to touch you or to coordinate an abduction with a second person waiting nearby in a car. Generally, there is more safety in numbers. Try ducking into a store or crossing over to a busier street. Abductors are less likely to strike when their victim is surrounded by other people. If you’re out shopping after dark, park as close to the front of the store as you can, and try to get a parking spot beneath a lamp post. If you are walking somewhere after dark, try to stay in well-lit areas where there are other people around.  If you’re at a store, you could also ask an employee to escort you to your car. If you carry mace with you, make sure you know how to use it. If it lies forgotten at the bottom of your bag, it won’t help you if you’re attacked. Have an agreed-upon phrase that only you and your family members know. If someone approaches you and says they were sent by your parents to give you a ride home for whatever reason, they must be able to give you the code word. If they don’t know it, run away and find other adults.  This code word or phrase should be something simple, yet unique, to your family that a stranger couldn’t easily guess. Even if the person approaching you knows your name and the names of your other family members, you still need to ask for the code. It’s possible they learned your names some other way and don’t actually know your family. If you feel that a person is off or they’re giving you weird vibes, trust that feeling. If you feel uncomfortable in any kind of situation, it’s okay to leave or ask someone to come get you. Attackers can use the promise of people being polite or afraid of being rude to their advantage, so resolve that you will trust your gut and keep yourself safe, even if that means you have to be “rude.” Our intuition often comes from a primal place that is meant to identify potential threats to our safety.
Look up and around while you walk so you aren’t distracted. Move away from slow-moving cars that come up alongside you. Cross the street or go up to another person if someone is following you. Walk and park in well-lit areas when you’re outdoors at night. Ask for your family’s “code word” if the person claims to be a friend. Trust your intuition and don’t put being polite above your own safety.