Making Spaces Safer: A Guide to Giving Harassment the Boot Wherever You Work, Play, and Gather

by Shawna Potter

"Every time someone wants me to prove sexism in the scene exists I am not going to tell them about having beer spat in my face while I’m singing or about men screaming 'shut up' while I’m talking between songs. I’m gonna hand them this book and say 'No more horror stories, here are some solutions.'" —Kathleen Hanna, Bikini Kill, Le Tigre, and The Julie Ruin

"Never underestimate the tenacity and creativity of Shawna Potter. Here's her badly needed how-to book for people who don't feel they have much power to tap into, nurture, and use ... then help others to do the same. Make a public space safe, without retreating from reality's trigger warnings into a walled off fantasy cocoon." —Jello Biafra, Dead Kennedys and Alternative Tentacles Records

“Shawna Potter’s work represents the best of punk and DIY values—an insistence that we don’t need to wait for politicians or anyone else to act. We can lead by example.” —Will Potter, author and TED Senior Fellow

“Punk made a promise of a freer, fairer, safer, and saner world, but never fulfilled it. Shawna Potter has written a field manual for how, inch by inch and scene by scene, we get there.” —Spencer Ackerman, The Daily Beast

"Making Spaces Safer has so many clear tactics for making shows more inclusive and welcoming, and, as a side effect, more fun for everyone. Whether you book bands, tend bar, want to look out for the wellbeing of your fellow music fans, or own the whole damn club. Great tips that will help you make your space rule.” —Sadie Dupuis, Speedy Ortiz

Shawna Potter, singer for the band War On Women, has tackled sexism and harassment in lyrics and on stage for years. Taking the battle to music venues themselves, she has trained night clubs and community spaces in how to create safer environments for marginalized people. Now she’s turned decades of experience into a clear and concise guide for public spaces of all sorts—from art galleries to bagel shops to concert halls—that want to shut down harassers wherever they show up. The steps she outlines are realistic, practical, and actionable. With the addition of personal stories, case studies, sample policies, and no-nonsense advice like “How to Flirt without Being a Creep,” she shows why safer spaces are important, while making it easier to achieve them. Punk passion, candor, and anger get the job done!

Genres: Nonfiction, Feminism, Social Justice, Politics, Music, Abuse, Audiobook

230 pages, Paperback

Published May 14, 2019

About the author

Shawna Potter is a musician, activist, educator, and writer. She fronts the hardcore punk band War On Women and currently lives in Baltimore, Maryland.

Reviews

[Madeleine · Rating 3 out of 5]

the most useful and clear parts of this book are the rich appendix of rad spaces safer spaces policy and the concrete guidelines set of how spaces can de-escalate and intervene in conflict. the book struggles with foregrounding gender-based violence but attempting to gesture to / integrate analysis of racism and transphobia as well. it fails in equating those oppressions / at times presuming they interact in the same way. it can feel like potter talks about the role of racism and white supremacy in creating unsafe spaces as an afterthought. the lens of how gender intersects with race isn't consistently there, and there isn't a critical analysis of how the relationship of punk spaces to gentrification undermines folks "safety" as well. if it's a book about gender-based violence in diy spaces there's nothing wrong with that and the book would have been more successful if it positioned itself as that. but the vague gestures to any sort of oppression, and continual representation as men as the primary perpetrators (w/out analyses of how we white women can do harm particularly to men of color) make it not helpful as a general guide to discussing privilege, power, and harm in alt spaces.

[Doug · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the title implies, the bulk of this book is about work that people who organize events, manage venues, and perform at these venues can do to help combat harassment in its many forms and create an atmosphere where everyone can enjoy a show, event, or night out. That said, the majority of the lessons and suggestions Potter offers can apply at the individual level as well, so it's worth the time to read and reflect and consider the ways you can actively contribute to safer spaces.

[Jonathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my new favorite book that I will be recommending to anyone and everyone to read. A must read for any individual to give tools on how we can, individually, make this a better, safer world.

[Libros Prohibidos · Rating 5 out of 5]

¿Qué es un espacio más seguro?, os preguntaréis. El término se popularizó en los años 70 para referirse a aquellos lugares en los que las personas queer podían comportarse, vestirse y relacionarse como quisieran; ha evolucionado hasta referirse a espacios en los que se puede expresar la propia opinión y socializar sin miedo a violencia o represalias, lo cual permite el diálogo y el florecimiento de ideas diferentes. Se emplea un comparativo para enfatizar que ningún espacio puede ser completamente seguro, sino que trabajamos para combatir el acoso allá donde se presente, incluso en nosotres mismes.

Reseña completa: https://libros-prohibidos.com/shawna-...

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really useful book that just about anyone involved with formal social group activities (churches, SF conventions, social dance, kink - the list is endless) should read sooner rather than later.

It talks about how to use publicity, training and social boundary setting to counter harassment and make the location/activity a safer and more comfortable space for all. Reading this is at times unsurprising, insightful and uncomfortable as you work through some heavy issues that most would just as soon not, but need to in order to counter harassment that's going on all the time.

For me the best takeaways were in the back, where the subject shifts to restorative/transformative justice and how to return reformed harassers back into the society. While the focus is always on the victims, understanding ways to stop the cycle rather than simply move it to another social circle is good for the long term health for both the circle and those in it.

This is something you your should strongly insist the convention chair, congregation board, or event organizer read before their next event, with the implication that you might go to other events that take this thing more seriously if they don't.

[Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

In October, the DADS team held a workshop with Shawna Potter, author of Making Spaces Safer: A Guide to Giving Harassment the Boot Wherever You Work, Play, and Gather, that was a follow-up to the excellent bystander intervention training we did with Calling All Crows the month before. We got some actionable ideas from it (the first and easiest being to repurpose Prommunism's "Be a Comrade, Not a Creep" posters and start putting them up at more stuff) and I also miiiight have bought both the full-length book and the cute little pocket guide version. Since we are trying to put together an internal priority proposal on anti-harassment and inclusivity for next year, I figured this would be a good thing to read over Thanksgiving break.

After a very slow start in which I attempted to read it while sick and drinking mint tea in front of a fire, and therefore succeeded only in taking multiple very cozy naps instead, I did read the entire book (it's not very long) over the Thanksgiving break. A lot of it was at least somewhat familiar territory for me, as I am not especially new to the harassment discourse at large, so I found the stats about violence and harassment, the arguments for why having anti-harassment policies is important, and other theory/background/justification stuff to be pretty good summaries of material that I, personally, didn't really need a retread of, but which would probably be great for people who haven't spent a lot of time on the fourth-wave feminist internet. What really made this book super valuable, in my opinion, was the concrete suggestions for taking action--sample anti-harassment policies; breakdowns of how to talk about creating and enforcing anti-harassment policies with staff, audiences, bystanders, guests, and other parties; walk-throughs of restorative justice plans; posters; checklists; scripts; the lot. There are a lot of short case studies of stories shared by folks in the punk and activist scenes in Baltimore, where Potter is based, and sometimes in other places. While the book is very much grounded in Potter's main milieu of the music scene, the policies are pretty easily adaptable to any kind of scene where you get a whole bunch of people in one place.

I definitely feel more prepared to help draft this proposal, and I expect everyone in BDSA to vote for it, yes?

Originally posted at On comrades, creeps, and doing my community safety homework.

[Mark Guadagni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part of the required/suggested reading for Spokeland Bike Co op. Typically I don't warm up as well to "assigned reading" , but overall found the book useful and enjoyable. It's not about making a utopia for "snow flakes" or whatever they call them these days. This book rather came out of a venue owner's desire to make harassments unwelcome at her Baltimore venue. It's written as a guide book for discouraging harassing/offensive/unpleasant behavior and also gets into manners.

I found the "How to flirt without being a creep" chapter amusing, and other chapters on active listening and apologizing as a champ more useful in my daily life.

For active listening, simple questions are asking "What kind of listener do you need right now?..." and for apologizing like a champ emphasizes keeping the focus on the person you're apologizing to, especially by concluding your apology with lines like "How can I make it up to you.... or happy to clear some space for you"

The book rounds out with ideas for practicing self care etc, and how to confront someone who is harassing someone, with specific lines--avoiding the fight or flight approach, and the fawn/friend approach to deescalate situations, but clarifying to venue afterwards that whichever behavior wasn't acceptable.

The book is only 52 pages and helpful to people who are responsible for public spaces. This interview sums it up well too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wesGg...

[Suitcaselife · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such an important book, not only for the event industry but us as a society. Shawna Potter, singer of the band War On Women lays out an analysis about why spaces are not safe for everyone, what makes people unsafe and most important: How to make spaces safer. As a part of the concert industry, her main focus is on the music event side of things, but as she mentiones in the text, all her suggestions are open for any sort of space, being it a theater, a bar, a coffee shop or a simple hang around place.

I hope this book will be translated into German soon, so I can tell everyone I know, about it and make them follow these steps to make sure our event industry gets safer!

[Adrian · Rating 5 out of 5]

a great book and highly relative in my life as a venue worker. what i liked most about this book is that it gives examples and options of what to do with those who commit offenses, instead of just "cancelling them" and ostracizing and forgetting about them as i see so often in today's culture. i'd say this is a very informative read and one that everyone should pick up

[musicologyduck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Required reading. A practical, compassionate, and thorough yet concise book on stamping out harassment in venues—with lots of examples. Great for those of us who spend a lot of time in music venues, but applicable to a wide variety of spaces.

...Did I mention required reading?

[FRan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ayudar a que la vida de todos sea más segura en la comunidad parte de las acciones del individuo.

Impactante, instructivo y visceral este libro me ha tocado mucho la fibra, me ha llevado a reflexiones interesantes, además te ofrece ejemplos de cómo mejorar, es un libro con mucho valor.

[Jay Slayton-Joslin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic. Covers a lot of bases. Every workplace I'm in from now on I'll make sure has a copy. Well written, accessible and includes lots of practicality for change.

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is such a great resource and a really engaging read!

[Cassandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is fabulous. I am glad I bought it. It distills Hollaback!'s Safer Spaces Program training. Although written mostly from the experiences of performers, bars, and venues, the recommendations apply to any space and bystander. It explains how to prepare for harassment situations, what to do in the face of harassment, how to empower victims, and how to set expectations and influence behaviors.

Some things I learned:
"People like you and me can make a difference - in fact we're the only ones who will" "Research shows that even a knowing glance can significantly reduce trauma for the person who is targeted" (citation?)

People victim-blame to re-assure themselves. If I dress like this or prepare like that then I am safe and that other person was hurt because they didn't do the things I do.

Statements should be equally for victims and harrassers. If you behave badly, you will be (kicked out). If someone behaves badly towards you, talk to (any employee, me) and I will (help you feel safe and address the issue).

Callouts are most effective if followed by resources for rehabilitation and healing.

Help others reframe their response of "How can I avoid being accused of harassment?" to "How can I avoid harassing someone?" This one was useful to me because I had a colleague say her husband was afraid to talk to female students behind closed doors - and I was at a loss for words.

Allow victims to deal with one trauma at a time. Don't push or impose solutions. Help them reclaim power stolen from them by letting them take the lead on what to do. You can provide options though.

And these suggestions from INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence https://incite-national.org/

- create and affirm VALUES and PRACTICES that resist abuse and oppression and encourage safety support and accountability
- develop sustainable strategies to ADDRESS COMMUNITY MEMBERS' ABUSIVE BEHAVIOR...
- Commit to the ongoing development of all members of the community and the community itself...
- Provide SAFETY and SUPPORT to... members... that RESPECTS THEIR SELF-DETERMINATION

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to read and well researched. Potter writes an actionable guide to making a better, more inclusive, and less violent space, whatever your space is.

She provides three easy steps:

1. State your values. Say what behavior is okay and what's not.

2. Appropriate responses. Make sure you know how to do the right thing.

3. Accountability. Dealing with mistakes, taking responsibility for improving. Long term improvements to how we respond to, but also prevent violence and harassment.

"Making Spaces Safer" is clear and thorough. It includes useful info on how to ground victims; the Five Ds of Bystander Intervention; and Ring Theory for who and where to send support in a crisis. Potter explains the reasoning behind why anyone might want safer spaces in the first place, or who this book is for - "Acknowledging that some people are discriminated against just for being who they are. ... It is under-reacting to let it slide. ... A 'safer space' is not one free of challenging ideas or different opinions. It's not about avoiding exposure to people different from you. ... The idea that everyone should be treated with respect and autonomy should no longer be considered radical".

I especially liked the chapter on Transformative Justice, and how we might build better methods of achieving justice without focusing only on punishment. "The former equilibrium may not have been particularly just to begin with. [let's] transform both the individuals and the social context in which the harm becomes possible". Potter backs it up with real examples to illustrate that it really works.

Every venue and gathering place would benefit from this book. The more this knowledge is shared the better we will all be, and Potter has written a fantastic guide to help make it happen.

[Michael Bartolone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone familiar with Shawna through her public speaking or her fronting War on Women would not be surprised to hear that this treatise on how to defend and support victims or harassment is imbued with righteous fervor, empathy, rational analysis, and humor. I am not involved with running or managing public spaces in any way, and there was still so much in here that I found important and helpful. Among my key takeaways were: that escalation of a situation, whatever the emotional draw toward anger may be, often hurts everyone involved, most importantly the victim; consoling and supporting a victim after an incident greatly reduces the lingering trauma they experience afterward; and calling out someone's behavior as abusive instead of the person themselves is more effective in getting them to understand what they've done.

Highly recommended for anyone, venue operators or not.

[Molly Roach · Rating 5 out of 5]

Making Spaces Safer: A Guide to Giving Harassment the Boot Wherever You Work, Play, and Gather by Shawna Potter

This was a really great and informative read. It’s a pretty interactive text with space for us to reflect on our own behaviors. It is absolutely bent toward abolition and advocates the use of transformative justice to respond to harassment. It’s also a refreshing guide to bystander intervention, one that recognizes the structural nature of harassment and sexual violence. It includes incredibly helpful and important information in the appendices. This is a good tool to have in your back pocket, pick it up if you can. (Only knocking the .5 off for the push for more surveillance cameras)
4.5/5⭐️

[Josiane Stratis · Rating 5 out of 5]

C'est vraiment une démarche complète qui s'inscrit dans une vraie volonté que les gens changent pas qu'on fasse juste les shamer sans penser au fait que ce sont des humains. Ça fait du bien surtout de penser l'espace d'une façon, des interventions d'une autre et la démarche de changement d'une autre façon. Le tout s'inscrit dans une démarche holistique qui prend en compte ce que tout le monde pense. Mettons, ce serait le genre de lecture qui devrait être obligatoire pour toutes les personnes qui militent, surtout celles qui font des interventions publiques. J'aurais aimé le lire avant. Mais bon han.

[Bloody Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este libro es una guía hecha por la gran Shawna Potter, activista y cantante del grupo War On Women, en la que explica cómo hacer que los espacios sean más seguros para todos, especialmente locales de ocio nocturno.

Debería ser obligatorio que cada local en el que haya personas de diversos colectivos tuviera un ejemplar de este libro. Está lleno de practicas sobre cómo solucionar momentos de acoso, ya no solo como responsables del local si no como personas que estamos allí en el momento de los hechos, ya que hacer que todo el mundo pase un buen rato es una responsabilidad colectiva.

[Fraser Simons · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very clear and filled with actionable information, as well as backing everything up with stats you can use yourself with “skeptics”. I read a book on inclusion in the work place as well as this and this is, by far and away more helpful to me, personally. It’s clear and concise and affordable and not a long read; filled with examples and first hand accounts; and includes a comprehensive appendix. Highly recommend it.

[Dylan Heyhowyadoin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good intro piece for creating safer public spaces, mainly focused on business spaces navigating what that looks like in real-time and moving forward as a safer space. The second section is on how to navigate not harassing people (focused on men/people who are attracted to women/gender-nonconforming people), how to handle being harassed, and real, lived examples of handling these situations. Real easy read.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick, fantastic read about how to make subculture spaces safer for everyone. A lot of transformative justice texts are written in flowy, lofty language that can feel alienating to folks unfamiliar with the concepts, but Potter does a great job of making these values digestible and applicable to anyone who reads this. If you’ve been interested in restorative and/or transformative justice practices in your subculture space but don’t know where to begin— check out “Making Spaces Safer”

[Elaine Brandenburg · Rating 2 out of 5]

A short read with some insights into how to address harassment. I especially liked the points about using community groups to address perpetrators. However, I felt as though the author included too many blatant opinions in the book which detracted from the content. Additionally, the author seemed to try to advocate for people buying her book or using her programs almost every few pages which was redundant and a slightly annoying sales pitch.

[Bonnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Concise, clear, useful, compassionate. This book addresses the messy realities of harassment in community spaces and gives very concrete suggestions for how to respond. I especially like that it addresses situations where you might not have explicit authority - as a bystander / audience member / community member, you can still make a space safer.

[Silvia Serrano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Imprescindible. Para quien ha sufrido acoso, para quien lo ha presenciado, para quien ha ayudado y para quien no. Da directrices claras sobre cómo actuar cuando se presentan las dinámicas nocivas en tu entorno y siempre mantiene un tono positivo y amable. Un pequeño empujón para hacer del mundo un sitio un poco más habitable.

[Michael (Horror Gardener) · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a musician within the tumultuous world of death metal, having the knowledge to look after my friends is very important to me. This is a great guide to making your scene safer for women and LTGB+ and POC. Time to put his into practice!

[Scout Wise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I underlined half of this book because it is so well-crafted. It’s for everyone, but it is invaluable to people who struggle to explain the need for a safe space to their friends, family, and coworkers. It gives you the rhetoric to communicate the most basic of things: worry free places to exist.

[Nate Deprey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Important and well thought out. I was working on the patron conduct policy for my library and this was part of my research. Potter's work really helped me prioritize how best to create and maintain public spaces.

[Mare · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone working in music should read this, but also relevant to anyone hosting or organizing events. It's also a short, accessible guide to victim-centered responses to harm with next steps to find more information on RJ and abolition.

[Eirini · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book, includes actionable items for being proactive about avoiding or actually handling harassment incidents. Has an abundance of resources and material to dive deeper into, I highly recommend it to anyone participating or organizing shows.