Eurydice Dixon: Canberra man seeks to establish volunteer walking group to help women feel safe at night
Updated
A Canberra man outraged and saddened by the rape and murder of Melbourne woman Eurydice Dixon is hoping to establish a group of volunteer patrollers and do his little bit to help keep women safe in the city at night.
Matthew Perry said when he first heard the news of the 22-year-old comedian's death, he felt unsure how to help.
"It's absolutely awful. Unbelievable. Inconceivable," he said.
The 39-year-old was angry that people were being hurt and did not feel safe in their own neighbourhoods.
Like many, he took his frustration to Facebook.
"I just sat down and typed the post and put my ideas in writing," he said.
Mr Perry, an electrician by trade, said he felt compelled to help in whatever way he could.
"It would simply be a group of people walking a pre-determined route, probably at night, through areas that are possible trouble spots — at first perhaps at a frequency of once a week," he said.
"If someone felt unsafe, we could provide assistance. If we were to encounter trouble, we would simply call the police. Maybe a person would like to safely walk with us to their car etc."
While he has never done anything like this before, Mr Perry said "the tragedy that occurred in Melbourne really spurred [him] on".
"I do like walking. I do need to get steps up too," he said.
"I thought, why not combine both things — get some steps up and make other people feel safe?"
This is about public safety, not vigilante justice
While the idea is still in its early stages, Mr Perry proposed that the group of male and female volunteers would walk through public places to assist if people would like the company or needed help.
He was surprised by the interest he received after posting his callout, with 20 people contacting him straight away to take part.
But Mr Perry said the volunteer group would "definitely not be vigilantes".
"We're not going to go and cause trouble or do citizen's arrests or anything like that," he said.
And he said the volunteers were not aiming to take on the role of police.
Rather, he hoped it would be a group of friendly people offering help if needed.
Police, volunteer association offer warnings
A spokeswoman for ACT Policing said while policing the streets was a job for officers, there were many ways the public could pitch in.
"For example, members of the public can assist police by joining their local Neighbourhood Watch group," she said.
"And, while Canberra is a safe place to live, we encourage members of the community to immediately report any suspicious behaviour to police."
Chief executive of Volunteering and Contact ACT Vicky Darling applauded Mr Perry for his idea, but urged him to take the correct steps in setting up the group.
"Social change is often sparked by the spontaneous actions of volunteers seeking to improve the lives of others," Ms Darling said.
"However, Volunteering and Contact ACT recommends organisers of volunteer groups consider risk management and safety of volunteers, including appropriate insurance, police checks and relevant working with vulnerable people checks."
Ms Darling said the organisation was there to offer free advice and support to prospective volunteers and novice organisers, like Mr Perry.
Mr Perry said in a perfect world, grassroots actions like his would not be necessary.
"But I think in my way, this is one thing I can do, to make the streets that little bit safer," he said.
Topics: community-and-society, human-interest, women, canberra-2600, act
First posted
