A woman has spoken out about being “violated” when she was grabbed between her legs at bars in Aberdeen and called for more to be done to protect patrons.
Lauren, a 37-year-old who has enjoyed nights out in the city centre since she was 18, has shared the details of horrific encounters as part of a Press and Journal survey examining street safety in Aberdeen.
She revealed: “I’ve been grabbed from behind in bars. You feel violated and like they don’t see you as a person. You’re just an object.
“Bouncers have done nothing but laugh and call me names when I’ve reported it.
“I’ve had to build up a hardy reaction to being grabbed, turning around quite aggressively, so I never become the victim of something even worse.”
Now, the results of the survey of residents and recent visitors to Aberdeen have revealed that Lauren’s ordeals are far from isolated incidents.
The Press and Journal’s safety survey, carried out by DC Thomson’s in-house Insight team, took place online between December 9 2022 and January 3 2023 and collected individual responses from 452 residents or regular visitors to Aberdeen.
Is Aberdeen safe at night?
Hundreds of P&J readers have shared their experiences of going out – raising safety concerns and exposing the scale of worry surrounding the city’s nighttime economy.
They’re urging Aberdeen’s bars and nightclubs to do more to protect their patrons and calling on the police to step up their response to reports of bad behaviour.
Of 452 people polled – nearly 63% identifying as female and just over 34% male – almost three-quarters of respondents (78.6% – 80.6% female, 76.8% male) have said they feel most threatened by drunken behaviour when out and about in Aberdeen.
And more than half (55.2%) of survey participants (57.6% female, 47.8% male) believe they’re “not very safe” or “not safe at all” alone in venues such as pubs and nightclubs after dark.
Of those who have suffered incidents – from catcalling and wolf-whistling (57%) to receiving sexual comments/jokes (58.5%), unwelcome sexual advances (45.7%) or unwanted touching (40.7%) and even sexual assault or rape (17.2%) – 58.7% said that they occurred in hospitality settings including pubs, clubs and restaurants.
A total of 77 people (22.8%) also revealed that their drinks have been spiked.
Reacting to the figures, Machaela Mitchell posted on Facebook: “Bouncers don’t care. They will chuck anyone out without caring about the possibility they have been spiked.
“I understand they must see so many drunk people but there is no care from them and they are the ones supposed to be protecting people.”
More than two-thirds (68%) of survey participants suggested Aberdeen’s venues should bring in “added security” to improve women’s safety.
Over three-quarters of respondents (78.3%) said pubs could be “stricter with repeat offenders”.
And almost one in five (19.7%) suggested “only girls’ nights”.
Sexual assault in Aberdeen pubs and clubs
Lauren added: “I’ve been in bars where I’ve been standing at the bar leaning over to order a drink and someone’s come up behind me and grabbed me between my legs.
“They find it hilarious – saying, ‘just Donald Trumping’. No, it’s sexual assault. You feel violated.
One month before Donald Trump was elected as President of the United States, a video from 2005 emerged, featuring the election candidate’s lewd conversation about women.
He was caught saying: “…when you’re a star…You can do anything… Grab ’em by the p****”.
‘What are you doing? Back off!’
In another incident a few months ago, Lauren said a “guy who looked like he had barely hit puberty” grabbed her head and tried to kiss her without consent.
“I put my hand on his face, pushed him off and said, ‘No. What are you doing? Back off!’
“He replied, ‘But I fancy you’. I pushed him away and then he called me a s*** and a lesbian. He got really aggravated. You can’t call a girl a s*** for saying no.
“The bouncer was like, ‘He’s drunk. He’s fine. You’re okay’. Yeah, I am okay, because I dealt with it.
“I had to be the person to say no but for the bouncer to be like, ‘Yeah, that’s what happens’ – that’s not okay.”
During a separate occasion, “one guy who was part of a group kept grabbing me and my friends either by the breasts or bums”, Lauren revealed.
“We said no and told him to stop. Eventually, I shoved him off of me on the dancefloor.
“I went over to the bouncer and told him that the guy was really creeping me out and that I had said no three times.
“The bouncer turned around and said, ‘Yeah, but you and your friends seemed to love it’.”
‘Reports not taken seriously’ in bars
The findings of the Press and Journal’s Aberdeen safety survey have shown 59.4% of respondents feel that drug dealing contributes to them feeling unsafe when out and about in Aberdeen.
And 31.2% of people said they had experienced physical violence.
Tom, a former bouncer and survey participant, said he has reported drug use to bar managers and security.
The 59-year-old has also pointed out patrons who were “getting to a point of potential violence” due to drink or drugs.
“These reports are not taken very seriously in Aberdeen these days,” Tom said.
“More women should be recruited into the door security industry to make it easier for women to have the confidence to report problems at venues including pubs and nightclubs.
“I believe that women feel that, with misogyny common, they’re unlikely to get assistance from men when asking for help, therefore they do not report issues.
“Door security has got negligible females in Aberdeen. It’s a joke. It’s a disaster.
“Women are more aware of what to look for and can identify problems before they start.
“Women are best placed to do that, especially when it comes to sexual violence against females. They can see it. They know exactly what they’re looking for.”
Almost three-quarters (74.3%) of survey participants – 81.5% female, 60% male – said they feel “not very safe” or “not at all safe” when alone at night “on or waiting for public transport/taxis”.
Lauren was among them and said: “When you go out into town there are no late-night buses, hardly any taxis, so you have to leave the nightclub early to have somebody pick you up or not even go out.
“On the buses I used to take, there would be people fighting, or if you looked at somebody the wrong way they’d get aggressive.
“There were often times when arguments had broken out and there were a couple of fists thrown on the nighttime buses but at least they were actually running then.
“Now when you go out into town there are no late night buses, hardly any taxis, so you have to leave the nightclub early to have somebody pick you up or not even go to the nightclub.
‘People coming up to you drunk or on drugs’
“The taxi wardens were a great help when they were installed to make sure there was no fighting or people pushing in front of you.
“But if the taxi rank queue is really long, you’re waiting there for more than an hour to two hours, you’re cold, you’re tired, your feet are killing you, and you get people just coming up to you drunk or on drugs.
“You don’t feel safe standing there with your purse. I’ve had times when I’ve been at a taxi rank and a guy’s come up to me asking to get in a taxi with me.
“He’s asked ‘why am I here? Why am I out? Where is my partner? Do I have one?’ It makes you feel uneasy that you can’t even stand and wait for a taxi without someone coming up and making comments.”
Even more people have taken to social media to highlight the issue as they reacted to the Press and Journal’s survey results.
On Facebook, Tracy Barron commented: “The major issue with Aberdeen is not having anywhere near enough taxis at the end of the nights.
“I decided to walk one night, got followed then chased and had to take off my heels and run in my bare feet into the Garden Inn hotel for help.
“All because no taxis. We need Uber!”
Lucy Andrea added: “The lack of taxis is a huge problem.
“I finish work late when there are no buses running, so I have to put up with long waits in the freezing cold, surrounded by drunken, lechy creeps who become aggressive if you don’t entertain them.
“The drivers who are still working comment on the massive decline in taxi numbers. Night buses and Uber would make such a difference.”
City council reaction
The Press and Journal shared its safety survey results with Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeen Inspired Business Improvement District.
A council spokesman replied: “We take the safety of women and indeed all our residents seriously”.
The local authority and Aberdeen Inspired both boasted about the city’s eight-year-long-running Purple Flag status.
Aberdeen was the first city in Scotland to be awarded the international accreditation, which is only given to areas that meet or exceed standards of excellence in managing the evening and nighttime economy.
Police response
Police Scotland confirmed that city officials are in the process of securing a 10th consecutive year of Purple Flag designation.
Superintendent Neil McDonald, of North East Division, added: “Police Scotland is committed to keeping everyone in our communities safe and there is a significant focus on tackling violence against women and girls and developing a strategy for the future.
“We have made progress but we want to do more to support the rights of women and girls to feel safe and we know how important the role of policing is in making this a reality.”
Among those who answered the P&J survey, 80.9% of participants – 86.7% female, 71.3% male – were not aware of any initiatives already in operation to improve women’s safety in Aberdeen.
But the superintendent, who said that “changing societal attitudes” is “key”, explained: “Our successful ‘That Guy’ campaign is playing a role in challenging sexual entitlement, urging men to take responsibility for their actions and language to help effect a culture change to tackle sexual crime against women.
“In the north-east, we work alongside our communities and partners every single day to identify what will make a difference, how we can ensure that victims of such crimes are best supported, and play a key role in shaping the collective response – including chairing the Aberdeen Violence Against Women & Girls Partnership.
Supt McDonald added: “We also thoroughly investigate all sexual crime that is reported to Police, providing support to those in need and ensuring those responsible face justice”.
If you would like to discuss the findings of our survey or share your own experiences please email our reporter Bryan Rutherford at bryan.rutherford@pressandjournal.co.uk.
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Credits
Words by Bryan Rutherford
Insight by DC Thomson IDA team
Data visualisations by Emma Morrice
Images by Kami Thomson
SEO by Jamie Cameron
