Welcome to “Seeing through a safety lens”

This safety audit featured ten women from Johannesburg and Soweto who were given cameras (many as first time photographers) and asked to capture images of places and things that made them feel safe and unsafe. One of the challenges of this was capturing ‘fear’ and going to places of danger to take photos. Yet their successes are captured in these intriguing images that encourage viewers to question their own notions of safety and danger. The photographers have commented on what made them feel unsafe or unsafe, and some of them commented on how they would change the space to make it safer.

We encourage you to give your sense of safety based on these images and leave comments behind in order for other viewers to gauge a holistic view of ‘safety as a perception.’ An integral part of our exhibition going virtual is so that global perspectives on safety can be incorporated into this safety audit.

Please feel free to browse through our photos regarding women’s safety in Johannesburg. And of course, your commentary is more than welcome, it’s encouraged!

Gallery: Built Environment

This gallery contains 20 photos.

Gallery: Poor Living Conditions

This gallery contains 14 photos.

Gallery: People Together

This gallery contains 9 photos.

Gallery: Empty Spaces

This gallery contains 7 photos.

Empty Spaces

This place is unsafe, it shows no existence of any life form, a good place for robbers and thieves and rapists to hunt for their prey. KN

Portable Toilets

These toilets make us sick because nobody is cleaning them. Bn

Back Rooms

Places like this make a person feel unsafe, it looks like a back room where a person can easily be abducted and kept against one’s permission. KN

Women

The woman in this photo suggests that the place is safe and people are friendly. LN

Taxi Ranks

I feel safe at taxi ranks because I know that taxi drivers do not tolerate crime. RL

Nelson Mandela Bridge

The new billboards on Nelson Mandela Bridge make me feel unsafe because now people can’t see us on the pedestrian walkway. RM

Crowds

I took a picture of this place because I feel safe around a crowd of people. I believe that if any thing was to happen to me like getting mugged or attacked by thugs, the crowd will defend me. LN

Sex Work

I took this picture because I think its really not safe for a woman to be a prostitute, because she increases woman abuse and human trafficking, they also decrease the dignity of other women. KN

Braamfontein

Safety for me means security and freedom from threat. When taking these photos and often anytime I walk around Braamfontein after daylight, it’s absolutely necessary for me to walk with a friend. People don’t bother me or try to get my attention when I am with someone who looks more ‘local’ than me, or who is a male. I feel safe when I know that my personal space and security is protected/guarded in the hands of another. TL

Bricks

It’s not safe to walk next to these bricks at night. JM

Toilets

Women have to go to these toilets everyday and it is unsafe. MM

Shack

This is a shack that has no basic services like water and electricity, that is why they have a fire and a pot. MM

Burning Tyres

Kids burn tyres at night to keep warm. I tell them it’s unsafe, they could get burnt. BN

Portable Toilets

These toilets make us sick because nobody is cleaning them. BN

Passages

This looks like a passage or corridor whereby it is not safe during the day or night, a person can easily be robbed. KN

People

This is a safe place where no one is expected or suspected to do any wrong. The people are happy, having fun and seem to be singing. LN

Poor People’s Houses

This house is clearly unsafe, unprotected and not a good place to be; the people living here seem extremely poor and in need of aid. LN

Empty Spaces

This place is unsafe, it shows no existence of any life form, a good place for robbers and thieves and rapists to hunt for their prey. KN

Community

This looks like a safe place as there are grown ups and it is in a community. LN

Dirty Houses

This house looks unsafe, it has crates of beer and bottles and it is also dirty and looks like a back-room, if not a store-room. LN

Pollution

This place is unsafe and not a good place to raise a child, it looks polluted. LN